Eury's Song

Level Designer

From September 2020 to November 2020 at SMU Guildhall, I worked as a level designer for the 2D platformer app game Eury's Song. This project went through a full development cycle, from pre-production through to launch.

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Each designer was tasked with creating a level, and mine was level 2, named 'Asphodel.' The first was 'Tartarus,' the final, hardest level being 'Elysian.' This involved me designing, and then later placing, assets for gameplay.

I was also in direct collaboration with our artists in guiding the aesthetic direction for the general game..

'Asphodel' was directly inspired by the writings of the Ancient Greeks in their descriptions of that layer of the Underworld, in that it was open, desolate plains, filled with the souls of those who were not damned to punishment, but not remarkable enough for paradise.

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While the entire game is a shadowy style, inspired by games like Limbo, the artists and I decided to drape 'Asphodel' further in shades of greys and sombre, pale golds. The first level of the game is a striking, bright blue-green, so the tonal shift was to help with the feeling of progression, and to impart the feeling of size for the Underworld.

Another challenge to tackle was the communication of traversing through the space. Our levels looked too similar, despite different backgrounds, and our mechanics did not visually fit as well in later levels. We solved this by not only changing the color of our obstacles, but reorienting them onto ceilings and walls, shaping the environment in different ways around them.

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I specifically designed a section of caverns for my map, where the player could either stay above ground, or go below. This idea was a risk, as the spirit of 'Asphodel' was blank, desolate plains; however, it worked out, and became a favorite area for players!