10 Perfect Examples Of Level Design In Video Games

Masterminded by Hideo Kojima, Metal Gear Solid has always been primarily narrative driven, the gameplay usually forced to play second fiddle to the cutscenes and codec calls, which seem almost feature length.

As such, it may seem strange to praise anything but the characters and story – seeing as how those elements typically remain the focus – but, the series really does deserve some credit for its excellent level design, especially the original.

Shadow Moses – a nuclear weapons research facility located off the coast of Alaska – is expertly arranged, offering the player plenty of camouflage without damaging the immersion, maintaining a sense of realism despite the story’s more eccentric qualities. More so than most games, the design makes sense; everything is logically placed, the player given multiple options based around reasonable justifications.

There aren’t dozens of conveniently placed chest-high walls littered about the place, serving absolutely no logical purpose beyond aiding the player in their concealment.

Instead, Shadow Moses feels like an actual, functioning environment, designed with plausibility in mind.