10 Simple Video Game Features (That Are A NIGHTMARE To Develop)
8. Showing A Player Where To Go Next
It’s normally the job of a level designer to think about signage. Signage isn’t necessarily literal signs, but rather subtle cues in the environment the players can interpret to mean a particular thing.
As a player, you might see a small alleyway and instinctively know that it’s the right way to go, despite seeing numerous other possibilities, but you probably didn’t notice the cues leading you there - cars parked towards it, lights shining in that direction... and many leading lines. “Leading lines” are when your level/environment geometry flows in an almost arrow-like path, converging at one point - effectively creating lines the player reads as the correct way.
Hey, and you probably thought you were being smart - seeing a sub-path and “defying” the main route like a curious... George. But sorry, mate, that was all planned and intentional too. You were nothing more than a pawn in the level designer’s game.
And yet, even with these carefully-crafted, deliberate attempts to guide the player down a path, sometimes the best of intentions fail - and that’s why you’ll see a big disgusting waypoint marker floating in the sky.