ENGINE: Unity 6
GENRE: Arcade/Action
ROLE: Level Designer
RELEASE DATE: TBA
PROJECT TYPE: Professional
TEAM SIZE: 6
Axis Shift is an arcade-style action game developed Broken Cog Studios. Players pilot an advanced combat vehicle with the unique ability to seamlessly transform between three different forms: Tank, Spaceship and Submarine. Using each form's weapons and abilities in tandem, the player must defeat waves upon waves of corrupt androids and traverse across land, sky and sea.
The game began development as a capstone project of Sheridan College's Game Level Design program, with me taking on the role of the game's level designer. It will continue active development, with the game set to release on Steam in the future.
A video playthrough of Steelforge Spire, one of the levels I designed for Axis Shift.
RESPONSIBILITIES
•Greybox map layouts within Unity, utilizing specific tools such as ProBuilder, establishing core geometry and spatial relationships within a dome-shaped force field environment.
•Develop environments to accommodate fast-paced combat-centric gameplay featuring three vehicle forms with unique movement metrics and controls.
•Determine gameplay flow and challenge by configuring enemy waves with escalating difficulty.
•Implement level-specific scripted events, triggers and gameplay logic.
•Design and prototype gameplay mechanics and interactive level elements, including early-stage enemy prototypes.
•Optimize level experience through strategic collision placement, preventing object obstruction and improving player navigation.
•Iterate levels through data-driven feedback from curated focus playtesting sessions.
•Integrate art assets from modular kits to establish key thematic cohesion across levels.
An enemy wave spawning.
DESIGN PROCESS
The first level that I designed was Steelforge Spire, a junkyard-themed level featuring a tall, multi-layered incinerator tower as its central landmark. The level went through many iterations over the course of development.
•Designed an environment that encouraged free transformation between vehicle forms.
•Configured intentional enemy waves around different parts of the map. Waves become more challenging as enemy variety increases and complex placements, including verticality, are utilized.
Parti diagram visualizing navigation and flow of Steelforge Spire level.
The early greybox form of the level, using simple ProBuilder shapes.
The initial kitbashed version.
The refined kitbashed version, featuring adjustments to level layout and increased level of detail.
ITERATION
•The initial scale of the level felt too small for the fast-moving Spaceship. In response, the size of the force field enclosure nearly doubled in size.
•Health pack spawners were placed across the level
•A network of water tunnels for the Submarine were added beneath the level.
•The large pieces of scrap metal were repurposed as ramps to allow the Tank to climb onto the tower.
•To improve asset modularity, the total number of assets used across the level was lowered to 32.
•For many high-detail assets, I created custom collider meshes order to prevent player obstruction.
The initial version of the tower, without the ramps.
HIGHLIGHTS
WATER TUNNELS
TOWER RAMPS
BREAKABLE CRANE WIRES
EXPLODING CARS
AERIAL SHOWDOWN
INCINERATOR FLAME