Level Design
Front Yard
The front yard is the first area in the level. Its purpose is to establish a spooky atmosphere and set the tone for the rest of the experience. When working on the lighting for this section I opted for a darker scene with the only light coming from the house to attract the player toward it.
Downstairs
The downstairs area of the house consists of a few areas: the foyer, the living room, the kitchen and the bathroom. The player is prevented from going on the stairs without a light source, encouraging them to explore more. Each room is meant to feel distinct while maintaining a visual cohesiveness between them. After collecting the flashlight from the kitchen, the player is able to travel upstairs.
Upstairs
The upstairs consists of the main hallway, a storage room, a bedroom and the "ritual" room. The player isn't able to open the ritual room at first, which encourages them to explore the other areas upstairs. The key to open the ritual room is located in the bedroom. The final room contains an ominous portal which is meant to narratively explain why the manor is haunted. In a larger game, the player could go through the portal to enter the next level, but for now this is the end of the experience.
Jump Scares
The first jumpscare of the game happens in the downstairs bathroom. There is a trigger in the doorway that calls the "scream" function when collided with which plays an animation. After the sequence is over the actor is destroyed, making it look like the ghost disappears.
This jumpscare at the end of the level works similar to the bathroom ghost, the only difference is that the trigger isn't a separate blueprint, the collider is a part of the demon blueprint itself. I decided to switch up the implementation of these jumpscares for practice.
This jumpscare is a bit different than the others. Instead of playing an animation upon triggering, it uses a navmesh to move to a specific point. Once the AI reaches its designated point, the actor is destroyed so when the player climbs the stairs and turns the corner, the ghost is gone.
Mechanics
Flashlight
The upstairs area is blocked by an invisible wall and is only accessible after collecting the flashlight. On collision with the flashlight, the invisible wall is deleted. To accomplish the "equipping" of the flashlight, there are actually two flashlights present in the level. After colliding with the one on the counter, the flashlight in the player's hand is made visible and the ability to turn it on is unlocked. When it comes to the actual mechanic of the flashlight, it simply sets the visibility of the spotlight on/off depending on its current condition.
Inspect Item
When the player comes in contact with an inspectable item and presses E, a new UI widget blueprint is brought up to allow the item to enter full-screen mode. Once interacting, new input actions allow the player to rotate the item around the screen and zoom in to get a closer look. Pressing E again exits full-screen and allows the player to continue exploring.
Here's a full playthrough of the experience showcasing all the areas, jumpscares and mechanics in action.
Reflection
In total, this entire project took me a little under 2 weeks. This project was a great way to connect all the things I've recently learned through independent research into one playable demo. The most struggles I faced with this project wasn't even with the blueprints, but with the concept of the level design itself. I wasn't sure how to conclude the level or even what to put in the upstairs, but after iterating on the original idea a few times, I am happy with how the ending comes together.
