In the context of an assignment for university, for the 2DArt I curricular unit, we were tasked with the development of a 2D platformer game. This project was meant to be developed in a group and, as such, 3 students got together and started on the development of what would later become "Emanuel's Lightning Journey".

Given theme options for this project (fantasy, horror, and sci-fi), we settled on the creation of a fantasy story about a young wizard on his quest for power, fame, and parental affection! 

The development of this project took place over the course of 9 weeks, and below I will share my progress, starting with the creation of thumbnails for my level.

To start the development of a level for a 2D fantasy platformer game, the first thing to do (after researching the subject in question) was to create multiple quick and small drawings that would be used as a way to explore ideas. This was made by focusing on silhouettes and base values, not lingering on details since that was something that would be altered in the future.

Choosing two of the multiple thumbnails made previously, at this stage I focused on brainstorming and applying different solutions for the silhouettes, organization, and values. One of the sketches will be later used as a base for the final mockup fo

Picking one of the made sketches, this step I added small additions in order to make them more coherent and generally more appealing. This version of the sketch has shadows, glows, and textures that will later be translated into the in-game art for the level.

Using the detailed sketch as a base, I proceeded with the testing of different colors, to see which of them would better communicate the idea I had of the level. Despite my absolute adoration for all of them, I ended up settling with the first one, since the blue and the yellow conveyed the idea of electricity the best in my opinion (the green and red one was a close second and I ended up leaning a bit more into the red for the platforms at a later stage).

Finally, at this stage I added all the required little details that didn't make it into the detailed sketch phase, keeping all the values and general shapes but enhancing the feel of the work with small colored textures. This would be the base for the in-game art.

In order to turn the mockup into an actual playable level on Unity, I had to create a couple of assets and tiles that would be arranged on the scene in a coherent manner to best convey the level layout.

Finally presenting the fruits of my labor, this was the final iteration of the level made in Unity, using the created assets and tiles.

Being the 2nd level of the game and to add some extra spice to the symbols, I turned the lightning bolts into ways for the player to “fly” up to higher platforms which otherwise would be impossible to reach. I created 2 different portals, one for the entrance of the level which would be empty of any magic and as such appears a simple doorway, and one for the ending of the level, having some sort of swirling portal-like texture.

On his journey to reach the arena in which the magic tournament will take place, Emanuel crosses different environments, entering and exiting through portals and the start and end of each. These environments are the levels of the game, and mine would be the second one. A hybrid space, both terrestrial, aquatic, and aerial, my designed level is littered with platforms and hazards which Emanuel can both use and be hurt by.

To organize my level I created a couple of platforms on which the player can walk on without peril, this introduces a necessary jumping mechanic. The platforms are covered in blue grass and are made of brown and reddish rocks. At the bottom of the level, the player can see shallow water hazards that wouldn’t be an issue, except for the fact that these waters are filled with electric eels that hurt the player upon falling. The mentioned eels are not only a danger to the player, but they periodically also shoot an upward bolt of lightning which are light enough for the player not to be hurt by them due to Emanuel’s lightning-based powers, but solid enough for the player to be able to use to travel to platforms above. In order for the player to exit the level, they must first acquire a small lightning bolt that is used as a key to the portal at the top left.

And here I end the guided tour through the creation of the second level of "Emanuel's Lightning Journey". Thank you for checking out this project of mine, I hope it was enlightening and enjoyable since it won't be the last I will share.