What makes a good game environment/level design

The environment of a game depends on the type of game, First Person games are often based around only what the player can see and making sure they do not get confused while navigating through the space. This often means using light and obstacles to direct the player, large open environments that look great can be used to full effect in first person games because the player is more immersed into the environment. Even if you have a First person game which is an online multiplayer shooter game you are using the same elements as a First Person Puzzle game would use. Both types of games are trying lead the player towards a goal whether that be leading them towards enemy players or leading them to a key which unlocks a door. A game i think that does this well is Dark Souls, the pathways are always very direct throughout the game and i think it's hard to get lost while also incorporating a lot of exploring. It seems like it try's to focus on getting the player to the next boss fight or combat area.

When it comes to Side scrolling games such as Super Mario Bros and the more recent Cuphead the player knows which direction they must go. So the aim for the designer is to make sure the layout is challenging for the player, but also making sure it is not impossible. This requires a lot of testing throughout the creation to make sure the player can make certain jumps and that any mechanics that might be in the game do not break certain points within a level because they may work for some points but then be totally unusable at others. You must also make sure that things which damage the player and things which benefit the player are obvious.

Strategy games have a few similarity's to both because they need to make sure the pathway to the other players is obvious and accessible, while also making sure the resources for the players are balanced unless stated otherwise. A good example of this would be Europa Universalis 4, the game is a strategy game based on the real worlds history. When designing this they had to make sure the different nations would have relative power to what they had at that time, because it would be strange if suddenly a tiny South American nation was as powerful as France during the 1400's. Then there are competitive strategy games such as Starcraft where player build up units they can command individually and see and then destroy other player or AI. For this type of strategy they would have to make sure that the terrain which they want to be accessible is and that the units are balanced otherwise certain players may have an advantage.

I think there are a lot of differences and things to take into account when it comes to Level and Environment design in Games. I think i am going to look deeper into what drives the player through an environment and the different variables which may affect the player and their decisions. This could be things such as Light, Objects, Sounds and the actual layout of the environment.