Dan Lance Portfolio: Prototype Level

Since January, I have been working in UDK (Unreal Engine 3) creating an experiential level that simulates how an individual on the Autism spectrum experiences the world. I built this level and most of the assets inside it (The sky is Unreal's default mesh with a modified material and the base person mesh was created using Makehuman, an open-source tool for expediting the creation of character models) within this time frame. Planning took place during December and some of January.

The goal of this map is to loosely simulate how someone with Autism (specifically someone with high-functioning autism) experiences the world around them. Since the brains of autistic individuals that those not on the spectrum work differently, stylistic choices were made to convey certain concepts. This includes making an overall less detailed world to force people to focus on smaller details and using a generic NPC model to communicate how face-blindness makes it difficult to recognize people.

The level consists of two interiors and an exterior. The interiors include a subway station and a nightclub while the exterior is a city at night. The subway and nightclub are linear sections, while the exterior allows for some player exploration. Within these areas are stressful situations which trigger sound and post-process effects when the player encounters them. This set up makes an unintended player goal to avoid these situations.

I am currently working on implementing a rudimentary dialog system using Flash and Scaleform.

Due to the time frame, some more intricate work and world-building was abandoned to make sure the core concepts worked correctly.

The original narrative for the level was a near-future district in transition. Older buildings were being turned down in favor of newer buildings with modern architecture. Some spots in the level would be under heavy construction. It was to be cyberpunk-inspired with older buildings and technologies side-by-side with newer ones. It was to hint at the area being in a sort of police state, with drones and security cameras nearly everywhere. Numerous graffiti would show how this specific area was a popular for its music and art, with art installations in some areas (Similar to how the Deus Ex: Human Revolution developers tried to put a pseudo-art installation in each level). It was also a slightly rougher area as well. Several homeless people living in dark corners of this district next to hidden, shady body-hacker shops.

I tried to keep as much of this narrative as possible. Some of the buildings are more modern in design, and some construction is underway. Scattered throughout the level are several homeless NPCs and cardboard houses as well as security cameras. There is a market, but it is closed. A single art installation, the tree of light in the nightclub's outdoor area, exists. An alternate route into the nightclub exists as a method kids use to sneak into the nightclub, according to the level's narrative.