daniel grafstrom
level designer
+ design . f.e.a.r. 2: project origin
F.E.A.R. 2: Project Origin (2009)
Monolith Productions & Warner Bros
Xbox 360 . Playstation 3 . PC
Senior Level Designer . Single-Player
I joined Monolith in August 2007. After spending 3-4 weeks on an unannounced title, I was transferred to the F.E.A.R. 2 team to help finish up the title. F.E.A.R. 2 is a first person shooter with intense combats and elements of horror. The player takes the role of a new member of Delta Squad, assigned to infiltrate the penthouse belonging to the president of Armacham Technology Corporation. Initially, I spent my time bringing some less flushed out missions up to speed with the rest of the game. As the team transitioned to strike teams, my sights were narrowed to just two missions; the first and last.
Mission 01 - Sanctuary
The first mission already had a rough plan, yet the strike team would still make any changes necessary to it's layout, gameplay, or pacing. Here, I would respond to all design needs for the mission, with the help of one other designer. Duties ranged from blocking out new areas, creating visibility or streaming, laying down AI infrastructure and combats, to responding to usability.
This is the first playable environment in the game. It uses content from another location in the game, but simplified and presented differently for an easy to read first experience. I was responsible for setting up the player path, spawning of characters and FX, performance & memory, and ensuring the area flowed smoothly for player's of all skill levels.
This is the first environment that the player has a weapon and allies in. I created the final navigation mesh for the allied AI, saw into performance & memory, and made adjustments so players always knew where to go.
The two previous shots are from the first combat in the game. The player also has an ally to help them out. My task was to work with the game designer and environment art to create a player driven combat with a decent amount of enemies, light challenge, spectacle, and an easy to read backdrop. I set up scripted presentations, cover and gameplay dependent geometry, AI infrastructure & combat scripting, placed all story dialogue, performance & memory, and ally behavior.
At this point, the player is operating solo. Here I was to create a slightly more challenging combat with more movement options, and with a heavy emphasis on environmental destructibility. All vases, glass, and china are destructible, AI will fastrope through the skylight, blow down doors, and break through windows to take down the player. I was responsible for AI infrastructure and combat scripting, setting up helicopter keyframing and AI presentation, wiring destructible prefabs, performance & memory, and placing all story dialogue.
In the two previous shots, more AI rappel into the environment via helicopter, but this time are searching for the player, rather than already being aware of their presence. The player has quite a bit of room to maneuver, and can initiate combat if they aren't spotted first. Combat can advance through several fronts, each offering different combat distances and experiences. I worked closely with environment art to block out the space to meet the desired look, while creating AI infrastructure, combat scripting, helicopter keyframing & presentation, story dialogue, and performance & memory.
The player has a quick skirmish through a kitchen, loaded with physics enabled food containers and metal for great spectacle. I created the AI infrastructure and combat scripting, performance & memory, and worked with environment art to make sure the small and dark space still played well.
This location was a straight walkway until the polish state, where it received some neat additions. Players now had to cross a window washer platform, dangling several stories off the side of a building. As they approach, an AI searches the rooftop above that when shot, conveniently falls into the pit- complete with a scream. As players cross the window washer, it sways a bit in the wind, and later nearly gives way entirely. I set up the AI encounter and worked with environment art to set up the window washer keyframe logic.
This is the final combat in the first mission. Once again, the player finds himself behind the AI and can initiate combat. I was responsible for the final AI infrastructure pass, placing story dialogue, and performance & memory.
Mission 14 - Climax
When I was assigned the last mission, some parts were designed, while others were only documents and ideas. Again, I was tasked with one other designer, to come up with a plan and wrap it up. Luckily, the team had visited a decommissioned nuclear reactor site and taken lots of photos and video for reference. The mission had to come together quickly, wrap up the storyline, and keep up with the onslaught of changes the map would face.
This is the first room in the final mission, designed to be containment shell surrounding the nuclear reactor core. The player initially encounters it in a dream state, before snapping back to reality and passing through again. I built the shell and basic elements of the room based off reference photos, performance & memory, and set up all gameplay elements.
From inside the containment shell, there is in fact no reactor core. Only the sad reveal that the antagonist character, Alma, has in fact been living in this building for some time. The rolling grass hills in the visions were only a mural on the walls of the cold concrete facility. It was my task to work with the art director, environment art, and the game designer / writer to create the room that satisfied all involved parties. I created the shell geometry and the basic elements of the room, performance & memory, and some of the gameplay scripting.
The previous two screenshots house the only combat in the mission- aside from the final encounter. The player fights their way through the base of the cooling tower up through a scrap yard, where they hop on a turret in a tense showdown. I was responsible for the earlier section's cover and combat setup, gameplay scripting, performance & memory, and the final AI infrastructure pass.
The player exits the yard into a containment airlock. The purpose is mainly to teleport the player to a separate location, and stream the next environment. The player hits a switch to initiate a contaminant sweep, the room is sealed, monitors display the status of the operation, while equipment scans the room, then releases the player. Here, I worked with environment art to integrate custom FX, materials, streaming setup, and time out the equipment events.
The player links up with another member of the Delta squad and prepares to cross the gantry into the cooling tower. I set up some of the buddy AI, performance & memory, and created AI infrastructure.
Inside the cooling tower, the player and another Delta squad member arrive to perform a last ditch effort to stop Alma. An ominous looking containment ball lowers from above as the player enters, emitting an energy field that is deactivated when in the lowered position. The player pulls a switch to extend a bridge to the center platform, where they will be strapped into a chair. This scene went through quite a few changes and a lot of hands. My duties were to construct the shell geometry, and then carefully work with environment art, FX, and the art director to flush out the room. I also placed the AI infrastructure and buddy behavior, all story dialogue, performance & memory, and gameplay object setup.
Strapped into the chair, the player can only watch this scene unfold. Lines are crossed, and anything but the expected happens. I was to work with animation, environment art, the cinematic designer, and the game designer / writer to make sure the scene is hitting all the right notes. This scene also changed dramatically and had a lot of people involved. I helped set up the AI infrastructure, scripted presentations, timed out events, FX objects, and gameplay dependent objects.
All content copyright Monolith Productions and Warner Bros.
