Level Designer, 3D Artist, Enviroment Artist
KNOT FUN is a twin-stick shooter game that also blends swarm-style gameplay, bullethell combat and roguelike progression, all set in a Wild West atmosphere with a subtle futuristic twist. Designed for local co-op with up to four players, it offers chaotic and engaging fun that's perfect for casual hangouts with friends. My role in the project involved designing all the levels from scratch, developing gameplay concepts, scripting environmental hazards, creating simple 3D models and testing gameplay. The game was shown at the Indie Showcase during the Game Access Conference and is set to release soon on PC via Steam.
As stated above, the game blends swarm-style, bullet hell, and roguelike elements to create a unique co-op experience. With that in mind, my task was to design a level that complements this style of gameplay. Since the game features swarm-style combat, the basic shape of the map should naturally resemble an arena. However, a key gameplay mechanic is that players are connected by a rope, which limits their movement. Therefore, the map needs to be large enough to allow for smooth navigation, but not so large that it removes the challenge of coordination.
A key point to mention is that the team consisted of six people, and I was the sole person fully responsible for level design. We worked on the project over the course of three months, balancing it alongside our jobs and university commitments.
I began by analyzing the core gameplay mechanics, focusing on how the rope connection between players would affect movement and positioning. During this initial phase, I conducted research into cooperative gameplay design, studying examples from games like Pummel Party and Helldivers for cooperative multiplayer maps, as well as Enter the Gungeon and Risk of Rain for arena-style gameplay and shooter mechanics. This research informed my early sketches of basic arena layouts and helped identify key design constraints to enhance the cooperative experience. I also developed a clear plan for a simple tutorial layout to introduce players to the core mechanics.
Created basic blockout versions of the levels using simple geometric shapes with the ProBuilder extension in Unity to test player movement and overall level flow. This phase was crucial for identifying potential issues with the rope mechanic, three-player movement collisions, and ensuring adequate space for swarm-style combat while maintaining strategic positioning challenges. During this stage, I also received information about the core player objective(destroying generators) and decided that placing these objectives in corners or narrower areas would create additional challenge and tension for the players.
For this step, I conducted research into environments that would best suit the map blockout, focusing on a Space Western aesthetic. One key decision was to initially set aside the space elements and instead create Wild West-style scenes, which could later be reimagined with sci-fi elements through material and color adjustments. Since our team did not have a fully dedicated 3D artist, most of the assets were sourced online, while I also created simple custom assets when suitable ones couldn't be found.
Created simple 3D models and environmental assets that fit the Wild West aesthetic with futuristic elements, focusing on maintaining performance while enhancing visual interest. Ensured all assets supported a top-down camera perspective without obstructing gameplay. Additionally, I created new prefabs by combining downloaded assets to expand the variety and functionality of the environment design.
At this stage, the game was presented at the Game Access Indie Showcase in Brno, where we received a large amount of valuable feedback. Key observations included bug reports, collision issues, and some visibility problems. On the positive side, we also identified which features resonated most with players what made them laugh and smile. All of this feedback was carefully considered and used to guide adjustments and improvements to the existing maps.
The game is still in development and not yet fully finished, with many plans in place for future updates. These include creating a new tutorial to reflect the significant story changes made during mid-development, adding environmental hazards to enhance gameplay variety, and expanding the map pool beyond the current three available levels.
