The Cosmic Vale
ROLE
Lead Designer
DESCRIPTION
The Cosmic Vale is a fantasy-inspired zone developed in Unreal Engine 5. It uses pre-rendered assets from the unreal engine marketplace. The primary goal of this project was to take the skills and techniques I learned as a Level Design intern with Blizzard in 2021 and apply them in my own work.
This project came to fruition during my lunch break while interning at Blizzard. I was browsing Pinterest and came across an image of these floating runes. This single image created a light bulb moment and lit the spark which ignited the beginning of what has now been a 3 year passion project.
​
Initially, this was only intended to be a stand-alone level design project. But I wouldn't be doing the project justice by just having it as a pretty display piece. So I found an Action RPG Template and I am in the process of bringing the map to life! In this level players will be able to: Quest, farm materials, fight mobs, play with their friends via online servers, and even run a dungeon!
I - Reference & Research
I was browsing Pinterest on my lunch break one day when I stumbled across this image of these stone runes resting in what looked like a marsh/swamp biome. I dissected the piece for a few minutes when suddenly a light bulb went on in my brain. I began envisioning a similar swamp biome, except with more of these runes. And the biome was nested deep in this vast open ravine. I kept looking for reference images similar to the one you see in the screenshots above. Turns out, a lot of artists like making concepts revolving around magic runes.
​
​
II - Concept & Prototype
​I saved the images in a folder that way I could refer to them later on once I eventually started conceiving and planning the layout of the level. Once I established a solid 2D concept map, I hopped into Unreal Engine 4 and began working on a rapid prototype. This prototype was intended to act as a foundation for what would later become the Vale. I intended to just detail and sculpt over the giant blobs of land overtime. But as any designer knows, plans change quite often...
III - Envrionment Design
After some contemplation & review, I decided to start from square one and completely re-sculpt the terrain. First off, the scale was HUGE! Way bigger than I had intended. And the terrain didn't resemble what I had originally drawn out. It was clunky, mushy, nor did it resemble the picture I had in my head for this project. So instead of trying to fix what I already had,
I wiped everything. Deleted the landscape mesh and replaced it with a clean, flat piece. Then went to work on the new terrain sculpt. I sculpted all of the terrain by hand, then placed a few large assets in the terrain to get a better sense of scaling. During the sculpting process I also looked for a material palette & color scheme. The first group of materials I gathered were pretty bright and almost felt cartoonish; however, they work do for now.
I spent about 3 weeks sculpting, refining, and sculpting some more. Repeating this process until I had a sculpted landscape that I was satisfied with. Then overtime I would just refine any areas that needed cleanup.
​
To enhance the depth of the environment, I implemented large POI meshes and rocks, placing them to break up the terrain and add visual interest. This approach helped to create a more dynamic and varied landscape, making the world feel expansive and intriguing.
A significant part of the project involved using a modular kit system to design various POIs, including a wizard tower, a chained rune in the swamp biome, and the Alnor Citadel. Each of these locations went through numerous iterations to refine their appearance and ensure they fit seamlessly within the overall aesthetic of the world. Originally, players would encounter an abandoned wizard tower where they were meant to battle a corrupted mage. However, I decided to replace this idea with a Stonehenge POI to better align with the thematic elements of the environment.
IV - Level Art
I focused on enhancing the environmental storytelling to immerse players deeper into the world. I introduced various elements that brought the narrative to life, such as clusters of stone runes scattered throughout the landscape, which hinted at an ancient civilization. Vendors and quest givers were strategically placed to guide players through the story, while low-level mobs provided both a challenge and a sense of progression. I also incorporated world materials like iron, which players could farm and use for crafting, adding a layer of resource management to the gameplay.
​
At this stage, I was quite satisfied with the overall look and aesthetic of the level. The combination of these elements created a cohesive and engaging environment. Feeling confident in the progress, I decided to create the first build of "The Cosmic Vale" to conduct playtesting and gather feedback.
​
However, after completing this build, I took a brief break from working on the project to focus on other tasks. This break was short-lived, as the launch of Unreal Engine 5 reignited my passion for the project and inspired me to return to "The Cosmic Vale" to explore new possibilities and improvements with the updated engine
V - Polish
By this point, I was about a week away from releasing the project, so I focused the rest of my time on polishing the Vale. I cleaned up any misplaced foliage, refined the textures in the landscape material, and finished up the quests while implementing some finer details that would bring the world together.
​​
At one point during development, I realized the world needed a proper player hub to serve as a central point of interaction. So, I designed a cliffside tavern nestled in a lush valley, surrounded by a flowing river, a stunning waterfall, and breathtaking vistas. This area serves as more than just a beautiful sight—it's where players will interact with NPCs, collect quests, and gear up before heading out into the depths of The Cosmic Vale.
​​
But I didn’t stop there. I wanted seamless travel between the hub and the Vale itself, so I integrated teleporters into the design. There was a lot of trial and error, especially when it came to multiplayer functionality. I had to refine the teleportation system quite a bit to ensure smooth, immersive transitions between zones.
​​
In the end, I'm proud of how it all came together! The hub feels like a living, breathing part of the world. Will I ever return to the Cosmic Vale? Right now, no. But in the future? Maybe! I enjoyed every second of working on this project, and I hope you all enjoy exploring it, playing it, and even breaking it! To help foster a sense of community, I’ve created a section on the itch.io page where you can leave feedback, share your comments, and report any bugs you find along the way.
