FO9 // Client Brief — Playable Level Experience
FO 9
FIELD OFFICE 9
CLIENT BRIEF // PLAYABLE LEVEL EXPERIENCE
STUDENT ISSUE · LEVEL DESIGN COMMISSION
REFFO9-BRF-0924 ISSUED2026-09-24 CLIENTNORTHGATE INTERACTIVE CONTACT@ROSS COHORTLEVEL 3 · YEAR 1
COMMISSION OPEN · 4 CLIENT CHECK-INS

RELIGHT
THE BEACON

Northgate Interactive needs a polished, five-minute playable level that shows publishers how its next 3D adventure game will feel to play. You are being commissioned as the level designer.

KEY PARAMETERS
PLAY TIME4–6 MIN AUDIENCE12+ · NEW PLAYERS ZONES3 + FINALE COMBATNONE ARTBLOCKOUT OK MANDATORYM1–M15 TARGETWINDOWS BUILD
01

PROJECT OVERVIEW

We are a small independent studio. Our programming team has already built the player character and its movement. What we don't have is a level that shows that movement off. We are commissioning you, as a level designer, to build one.

The finished level should feel like a slice of a real game: a player picks up the controller, understands what to do within seconds, and reaches a satisfying ending about five minutes later. The reference video shows the style and quality of experience we are aiming for.

TARGET AUDIENCE 12+

Players aged 12 and over, including people who rarely play games. The level will be played cold at a showcase event, with no one on hand to explain it.

SCOPE GAMEPLAY,
NOT FINAL ART

You do not need to model or texture final art. Build your level from blockout shapes, then bring it to life with lighting and audio. We are judging how it plays, not how finished it looks.

02

THE PLAYER'S AIM

The player must cross the level, recover three power cores, and use them to reactivate a great beacon at the far end. The beacon must be visible, dark and out of reach, from the very first moment of play. Each core is guarded by a different challenge. Placing all three at the beacon lights it up and ends the level.

LEVEL STRUCTURE
00 · START TEACH AREA Learn controls safely. Beacon in view.
01 · ZONE A CORE 1 Own look, own challenge.
02 · ZONE B CORE 2 Own look, own challenge.
03 · ZONE C CORE 3 Own look, own challenge.
04 · FINALE · 3/3 THE BEACON Locked until all cores found. Lights up to end.
WHY THIS AIM
A LANDMARKPulls the player forward and answers "where do I go?" without a single arrow.
NATURAL GATINGThe final area stays locked until all three cores are found.
THREE BEATSA sequence you can design, each teaching or testing something different.
A CLEAR WINA moment you can reward with light, sound and camera work.
i NOTE You may reskin the beacon and cores to suit your theme (for example, a lighthouse and lenses, or a shrine and relics). The structure of the aim must stay the same.
03

THEME: "THE FORGOTTEN PLACE"

The level is set somewhere people once lived or worked and then abandoned, and which the world has slowly taken back. Choose one of the three settings below. Show it through layout, simple shapes, lighting and sound.

SETTING A

OVERGROWN RUINS

An ancient temple complex swallowed by jungle: roots through stonework, collapsed bridges, shafts of sunlight.

BEACONA stone brazier on the highest tower
SETTING B

DROWNED TOWN

A coastal village half under the sea: flooded streets, rooftops as walkways, tide pools, rusted boats.

BEACONThe old lighthouse on the headland
SETTING C

FROZEN OUTPOST

A remote mountain research station buried in snow: frosted machinery, cable cars, ice caves.

BEACONA radio mast with a signal lamp
TONE Quiet wonder with a hint of melancholy.
The player should feel curious and small, never scared. There is no combat. The world should tell its own story. The player should be able to work out who lived here and why they left from what they see, without reading a wall of text.
04

WHAT WE ARE SUPPLYING

A finished third-person player character with the following movement abilities:

A1WALK
A2RUN
A3CROUCH
A4SPRINT
A5JUMP
A6MANTLE
✓Design around them. Every supplied ability must be needed at least once to complete the level.
✓Teach before testing. The player must be taught each ability before being tested on it.
!Tune, and log it. You may adjust exposed settings (such as jump height or run speed), but record every change and your reason.
✕Don't rebuild it. You must not rebuild or replace the movement system.
05

MANDATORY FEATURES

REQUIRED AT SIGN-OFF

Your level must include all of the following. We will check each one at sign-off. Tick items off as you go — your progress is saved in this browser.

{{ g.title }} {{ g.range }}
{{ it.id }} {{ it.name }} {{ it.desc }} {{ it.mark }}
06

BONUS FEATURES

OPTIONAL
! ONLY ONCE M1–M15 WORK A bonus feature only counts if it is finished and polished. Pick one or two and do them well rather than starting five.
B1SECRET AREA
A hidden route or room that rewards curious players, such as a lore item or a view of the whole map.
B2CINEMATIC MOMENTS
An opening fly-through and/or a camera sequence when the beacon lights, made with Sequencer.
B3DYNAMIC SET PIECE
A scripted event such as a bridge collapsing, a flood rising or an avalanche, which the player must react to.
B4VISUAL EFFECTS
Particle effects such as drifting leaves, sea spray or snow, plus a spectacular beacon effect.
B5PAUSE & SETTINGS MENU
Pause, resume and quit, with volume and camera sensitivity sliders.
B6TIME TRIAL MODE
An optional timer with a best-time record, to test how the level plays at speed.
B7CHANGING ATMOSPHERE
Weather or time of day that shifts as the player progresses, such as dusk falling as they near the beacon.
B8YOUR OWN ASSETS
Hero props or set pieces you have modelled and textured yourself, rather than taken from an asset library.
B9ACCESSIBILITY OPTIONS
Subtitles for any spoken or written story content, and cues that do not rely on colour alone.
07

CLIENT CHECK-INS

We will review your work at four check-ins. Come to each one ready to show the item listed.

01DATE TBC
PITCH Chosen setting, mood board, top-down level map and a beat chart showing the three zones.
02DATE TBC
GREYBOX The full level playable in blockout form, timed from start to finish.
03DATE TBC
ALPHA Lighting and audio in progress, with notes from at least three playtesters.
04DATE TBC
FINAL SIGN-OFF Everything listed in the hand-over below.
08

FINAL HAND-OVER & JUDGING

AT SIGN-OFF, HAND OVER
D1A packaged, playable Windows build
D2The full project files
D3A level design document: map, beat chart, the aim and theme choices you made, and any movement settings you changed
D4Before-and-after screenshots showing your level before and after the lighting pass
D5Playtest records, including completion times and what you changed as a result
D6A recorded playthrough of the complete level, start to finish
D7A short evaluation of how well you met this brief
HOW THE LEVEL WILL BE JUDGED
01A NEW PLAYER UNDERSTANDS IT
02ENJOYS IT
03FINISHES IN ~5 MINUTES
Final art is not required, but lighting and audio should make it feel like a real game.