Mini Gungolf
Imagine playing minigolf... but with guns! Mini Gungolf blends the aesthetic of minigolfing with more puzzle related elements. Instead of using different clubs and manually adjusting their strengths, MGG comes with 6 different guns with different abilities, strengths and usage areas. Figure out when to use what weapon in which order to beat the 48 unique levels in as few shots as possible!
Year
2024
Team size
8
Engine
Unity
My Role
Level Designer
RESPONSIBILTIES
My role at the team was a level designer. I was responsible for designing most of the levels in the game. I created or reworked most of the levels in world one, world two and oversaw the creation of world three. Since we had three level designers in total I was given the responsibility of lead level designer and it was my job to ensure the level quality stayed consistent and the level complexity scaled with each level and world accordingly.
Level Design Process
I started prototyping the intended in-world purpose of the level. To me the level should have a reason for looking the way it does. Maybe it is a large shipyard requiring multiple layers for storage and repairs or maybe it is a small floating market for ships to dock and trade. With the in-wold purpose done and a rough shape done it was all about playtesting and iterating to make the level feel challenging and fun. I held weekly playtest sessions with the level designers to get fresh eyes and opinions. on occasion programmers and artists would test as well.
Design Challenges and Solutions
My job was to make a lot with very little. The selection of assets provided to me by my artist as shown in the image above is rather limited due to time constraint. I only saw this as a problem to solve. Rapid prototyping was the name of the game. A lot of the assets could be kitbashes to make something new. Primitive cranes to lift up boats for repair or a makeshift bridge on a icy lake. A lot of the assets made for world one also worked really well for world two.
Design Techniques
For this project we utilized scriptable objects to load each level. This meant I could design each level in their own prefab and place that prebab inside the scriptable object. Using these scriptable objects made it much easier to catalogue each level with important stuff such as the level prefab, medal requirements and level name. I did not create the scriptable objects myself but I was taught by the lead programmer on how to use them.
Reflection
Working on a golfing game with a great quantity of levels with limited models was a challenge. As a level designer it was challenge to not spend too much time on each level. I’m quite happy with how the level design turned out in this game. This was my first time working on a project with multiple level designers, guiding them and making sure everything connected smoothly. I also learned to better communicate with artists about modular assets.
