Spin Doctor Level Design: Purpose and Feature

Purpose of the Level:


Each section of the Victorian Mansion level will have a differently themed room, and are all a part of Reeves' personal home. The rooms included in the game are the Study/Library, Living Quarters, Office, and of course the story-related Ball Room. The Living Quarters being the last room/section of the level, also the last room of the entire game that introduces the player to the end of the game and a final twist in the story.
The sections below are of this level (the third and last level of the game), each section has its own theme. Besides the rotating rooms of original game play there will be special fill-in rooms in-between the original rotating ones, in the same theme, that are more related to the story and a few puzzles for variety in game play. The overall purpose of the level is for the player to see Dr. Reeves in a light, by going through his personal belongings, reading through his journals, exploring his home and seeing the early stages of his plans. This might make the player second-guess if Reeves is actually evil or just a desperate man afraid of losing his wife, going to extreme lengths to save her. This level will tell Reeves' side of the story, making him seem more like a human with feelings and hopes.





Purpose of the Ball Room:


Portraits and paintings can be seen at every corner in every room of this themed section. The most visually appealing section of the whole game, with all its decorations and the festive style to it. Pieces of masquerade clothing and confetti, including worn masks are scattered over the entire section. A steampunky Victorian music device is playing Victorian masquerade themed music. Notes can be found from time to time, written by guests that attended the ball. This section is basically just the aftermath of the story-related masquerade ball event.

Feature of the Ball Room:

As one of the features of this section, I want the player to be able to grab onto a chandelier by using the gauntlet found in the medical zone, and use it to swing. The steam boots can be found in this section.

Purpose of the Study/Library:


The study/library is Reeves' personal library that consists of his studies and the process of it, this including: medical books that hold information about epinephrine, science, medicine, anatomy and diseases, especially those that are similar to Elizabeth's disease, although it is not the same disease. The original purpose of this section was for Reeves need to seek out more knowledge that could benefit his experiments and plans.

Feature of the Study/Library:

The theme of the level is a library. I want the unique feature to be related to the books of the library. Maybe the books are the objectives or the obstacles, maybe the book shelves move with the rotating rooms knocking books over, maybe as a threat to the player because the book case can crush the player. Cross section puzzles involving books could be that the player has to alphabetize the books in order to open a secret passage. 

Purpose of the Living Quarters:
The Living Quarters is where Reeves' spends his spare time and sleep. This is also where most of his personal belongings are. Portraits of Reeves and his wife covering the walls, journal extracts scattered around the quarters, traces of previous work and thoughts Reeves had, all give the player a whole new perspective of Reeves and his personal life and intentions. This room is also the last room the player will explore before being introduced to the final event of the game. and the end to the story.

Feature of the Living Quarters:

The feature of this section is a water based puzzle the player has to solve, in the kitchen area.

Purpose of the Office:
The office was Reeves' own personal room where he could start planning out the experiments before taking them down to the medical zone to examine them even further and bring to them life. Journal extracts, sketches and blueprints related to his previous work and experiments can also be found in his office, along with more books taken from the Study/Library that he used to back up his experiments with.

Feature of the Office:

The feature of this section is a steam punk computer.