Projects | Adrian Portfolio

Unreal Engine 5 Personal Projects

Role: Level Designer and Scripter

Engines: Unreal Engine 5

These projects were designed to help me get familiar with the latest version of Unreal Engine by exploring different aspects of level design. The first project was a simple first-person shooter, focusing on learning Blueprint Visual Scripting and applying scripting knowledge from proprietary engines like Snowdrop. The second project involved creating a naval base level, where I sculpted terrain and designed multiple objectives to refine my skills in building open world environments. The third project utilized traditional techniques like Lego boxes and low poly modeling to create a third-person tower map with both indoor and outdoor areas, laying a strong foundation for level design in Unreal.

Tasks and Accomplishments

Enemy Spawning System: Designed an event graph to manage enemy spawning, controlling when and how many enemies appear on the map to balance difficulty and pacing.
NPC Roaming Behavior: Developed a script assigning NPCs a roaming task, causing them to move to random points on the navmesh when not engaged in combat.
Enemy Detection Mechanics: Scripted behavior for NPCs to detect player noise, alerting nearby hostiles, and directing enemies toward the player's location upon visual detection.
Combat Mechanics: Created a script allowing enemy NPCs to deal melee damage to the player's HP when in range and another to apply damage to NPCs, changing their texture to red to indicate a hit.
AI Behavior Management: Built an AI behavior tree to manage NPC detection, movement, combat prioritization, and secondary behaviors like roaming and alerting.
Explosive Object Logic: Implemented a script that applies damage to the barrel NPC’s health, changes its texture to red, and triggers an explosion upon destruction.
Pathing Mechanics: Designed a script to control barrel NPCs’ movement, making them patrol along a designated path.
Player Movement Enhancements: Created a blueprint visual script to increase player speed and drain stamina when a specific key is pressed, with a separate script toggling the stamina drain variable and its effects.
Ammo Pickup System: Scripted functionality to add ammo to the player’s inventory upon overlap or pickup, accompanied by a sound effect.
Game State Logic: Developed blueprint logic to display Pause, Game Over, and Win menus based on conditions such as player health reaching 0 or a specific number of enemies being defeated.
HUD and Menu Design: Designed and implemented menu and HUD elements, including buttons, player HP and stamina bars, kill counters, and ammo counters, ensuring intuitive player feedback.
The open world island map was created using the PCG Biome plugin for efficient and detailed terrain generation and terraforming.

Further details can be viewed by hovering over the image or clicking the play button on video entries.

Far Cry 6: Lost Between Worlds

Role: Mission Level Designer for the Fractured Fortress

Time on Project: January 2022 - November 2022

Genres: First Person Shooter, Action, Adventure, Rogue-lite

Engine: Dunia

Developer: Ubisoft

Release Date: December 6, 2022

Lost Between Worlds is a first-person shooter with rogue-lite elements set in a distorted and chaotic alien world. It offers players a unique and immersive experience. The Fractured Fortress serves as the first map in this DLC and is divided into four distinct paths, each gated by a unique puzzle. These puzzles provide different weapons and gadgets as rewards, adding depth and variety to the gameplay.

Tasks and Accomplishments

Designed and proposed the layout of the Fractured Fortress, incorporating four distinct puzzle mechanics tailored specifically to the map.
In the initial puzzle, players were tasked with hitting a limited number of targets within a designated time limit. Successful completion of this puzzle triggered the formation of bridges or the rotation of the archangel statue, opening up the path for player progression.
The second puzzle involved manipulating and rotating towers to create pathways leading to the end-level portal.
For the third puzzle, players had to navigate a series of floating tiles, carefully selecting the correct path while avoiding cracked tiles that would cause them to fall and restart from the beginning.
In the fourth puzzle, players had to rotate three towers in a specific sequence to create a pathway to the exit portal.
Visual scripting was utilized to develop all four puzzles, as well as other mission logic components, such as dialogue line triggers, random weapon reward spawn systems, and fall damage kill triggers.
Consistent efforts were made to maintain, debug, comment on, and organize scripts, demonstrating a proactive approach to code organization.
NPC setups were implemented, encompassing AI combat behaviors, cover placements, battlefield layouts, and out-of-combat actions like NPC animations and patrol routes.
Collectibles such as health items, ammo, currency and gameplay elements like ziplines and ladders were strategically placed to ensure a balanced gameplay experience.
Close collaboration was fostered with various teams, including level art, narrative, VFX, lighting, quality assurance, managers, team leads, and game designers.
A strong emphasis was placed on maintaining high quality throughout the project, with a continuous effort to minimize the occurrence of bugs.

Further details can be viewed by hovering over the image or clicking the play button on video entries.

Far Cry 6

Role: Open World Level Designer for locations in the province of Lozania

Time on Project: July 2018 - August 2021

Genres: First Person Shooter, Action, Adventure

Engine: Dunia

Developer: Ubisoft

Release Date: October 7, 2021

Far Cry 6 is set on an exotic island located within the country of Yara, which is under the oppressive rule of a brutal dictator. Lozaina is the western province on this island and it is characterized by its picturesque landscape of rugged terrain and mogotes, large hills covered in dense jungle and steep cliffs. The province is predominantly rural, consisting of farms and countryside, with only one small city named Verdera.

Tasks and Accomplishments

Designed and implemented the layouts and unique gameplay features for open world activities in the province of Lozania:

Codename Hornbill Ambush

Created the mission layout for a high-intensity ambush scenario, strategically placing enemies and cover points.
Designed unique gameplay elements, such as timed objectives and dynamic enemy behaviors, to challenge players.

Gran Premio Plane Race

Designed the location layout for an exhilarating plane race, crafting the route and placing checkpoints for an engaging experience.
Implemented gameplay features like time-based challenges and obstacle-filled paths to add excitement to the race.

Ida's Triada Relic Treasure Hunt

Developed the layout for an intriguing treasure hunt, scattering clues and puzzles throughout the environment.
Introduced unique gameplay mechanics, like hidden passageways and interactive elements, to immerse players in the adventure.

High Supply Treasure Hunt

Designed the layout for a challenging treasure hunt, carefully placing supply caches in hard-to-reach locations.
Incorporated diverse gameplay elements, such as platforming sequences and enemy encounters, to enhance the experience.

Buenavista River Valley Run Race

Created the location layout for an action-packed river valley race, defining the race route and critical checkpoints.
Implemented dynamic gameplay elements, like changing weather conditions and interactive shortcuts, to make the race dynamic.

Designed Location Layout and Managed Distribution and Balance for Jewelry Boxes, Libertad Crates, Roosters, Supply Drops, Unique Weapons, USB Songs, Criptograma Chests, Idol Collectibles in the Province of Lozania:

Strategically placed jewelry boxes in various locations, ensuring a mix of easily accessible and challenging spots.
Managed the placement of Libertad crates throughout the province, considering player progression and difficulty levels.
Balanced the frequency of rooster collectible discovery to maintain a sense of discovery and immersion.
Strategically distributed supply drop locations, encouraging players to explore different regions of the province.
Managed the distribution of USB songs in hidden areas, providing players with optional collectibles to discover.
Designed challenging locations for Criptograma chests, rewarding players who solve fun and exciting puzzles

Hunting Spots, Fishing Spots, Wildlife Zones

Planned and placed hunting spots, fishing spots, and wildlife zones throughout the province, offering diverse hunting experiences.
Managed the balance of animal populations to maintain a thriving ecosystem.

Contributed to Guerilla Paths in Lozania

Collaborated with the team to design and implement guerilla paths, creating secret routes and shortcuts for players to use strategically.
Assisted in fine-tuning the layout and difficulty of guerilla paths, adding depth to the open-world exploration.
Assisted with Road Setup, Terrain Terraforming, and Set Dressing throughout the Province:
Played a key role in the road setup, ensuring smooth and intuitive navigation for players across the province.
Contributed to terrain terraforming, creating visually appealing landscapes that fit the game's aesthetic and gameplay requirements.

Collaborated with the art team to set dress the environment, adding details and elements that brought the province to life.

Further details can be viewed by hovering over the image or clicking the play button on video entries.

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Starlink: Battle for Atlas

Role: Mission Level Designer for Outposts

Time on Project: June 2016 - July 2018

Genres: Third Person, Action, Adventure

Engine: Snowdrop

Developer: Ubisoft

Release Date: October 16, 2018

Starlink: Battle for Atlas is an open-world space exploration game set in the fictional star system of Atlas. Each planet within this solar system presents a distinct landscape, an engaging story, and potential dangers. The planets are home to diverse wild life and factions, some of which can pose threats to the player. As players navigate the vastness of space and engage in combat, they pilot customizable spaceships. These ships can be equipped with various wings, weapons, and spacecraft modules, allowing for extensive customization and encouraging experimentation with different loadouts.

Tasks and Accomplishments

Conducted prototyping and scripting activities to establish the functionality of various assets, including electrum crates, status effect cannisters, and cashes. This encompassed creating intricate on-hit detection mechanisms, enabling containers to open upon player impact with the appropriate status effect, such as cold, fire, gravity lift, and kinetic.
Devised and executed the design for the crash site canyon, a pivotal location featuring a tutorial segment at the game's outset, aimed at providing players with an engaging and informative introduction.
Orchestrated the mission structure for side quests within key locales like the Armory, Refinery, Observatory, and Workshop. This primarily involved the implementation of dialogue triggers and meticulous checks to ensure the successful completion of mission objectives.
Played a collaborative role in the procedural distribution of set dressing elements across diverse planetary environments, heightening the visual intricacies and immersive qualities of the expansive game world.

Further details can be viewed by hovering over the image or clicking the play button on video entries.

Far Cry Primal

Role: Open World Level Designer

Time on Project: August 2015 - October 2015

Genres: First Person, Action, Adventure

Engine: Dunia

Developer: Ubisoft

Release Date: February 23, 2016

Far Cry Primal takes place in the fictional Oros valley during the Upper Paleolithic to the Mesolithic period, around 10,000 BC. The expansive open world of Oros is rich with diverse plant life and a wide array of fauna. Within this prehistoric environment, players will encounter a variety of wildlife, including woolly mammoths, dire wolves, cave bears, cave lions, woolly rhinos, saber-toothed cats, as well as more contemporary creatures like brown bears, badgers, and deer. Surviving in this ancient world poses a constant challenge as rival tribes compete for limited resources and contend with the unpredictable forces of nature.

Tasks and Accomplishments

Utilized terrain and heights effectively to showcase animal encounters, including rare and unique ones.
Collaborated with the Montreal studio and other partners to align animal density, distribution, difficulty, and scarcity.
Supported various hunt zones with collectable and wildlife distribution, including Neanderthal, Meso, Mammoth Hunt, Bear Hunt, Dire Wolf Hunt, and Sabretooth Hunt.
Carefully designed wildlife regions based on the space, climate, and desired atmosphere of each map zone.
Placed encounter markers and overlaps to facilitate territorial combat interactions among animals.
Strategically positioned collectibles, such as masks, tribal totems, relics, and more, in a logical manner.
Worked closely with sub-district Open World Level Designers, Mission Designers, Level Design Director, Art Director, and Technical Directors from Toronto and Montreal.

Further details can be viewed by hovering over the image or clicking the play button on video entries.

Other Projects and Unreleased Games

Role: Level Designer

Engines: Snowdrop, Source Engine

This section showcases a compilation of my personal projects and work in progress from unreleased games.

Tasks and Accomplishments

City 7: Toronto Conflict is my thesis project for the Game Design program at George Brown College, an action-packed Half-Life 2 mod featuring a variety of unique levels and gameplay. The mod explores what has become of City 7, including iconic Toronto landmarks such as Dundas Square, Eaton Centre, Mel Lastman Square, St. Michael's Hospital, and the TTC system, all under Combine rule. The story follows Gordon Freeman, who finds himself stranded in Toronto after a teleportation accident in Kleiner's lab. To escape the war-torn city, he must locate teleportation technology that can send him back to City 17.
In this project, I was responsible for researching, designing, and implementing the levels for Mel Lastman Square and Dundas Square. Additionally, I created various supporting models and textures for these levels, including landmark statues, street signs, mailboxes, and commercial signage.

Further details can be viewed by hovering over the image or clicking the play button on video entries.

QC and Development Tester

Role: QC and Development Tester

Studio: Ubisoft

Time on Projects: June 2012 - May 2016

Starlink Battle for Atlas (November 2015 - May 2016)
Far Cry Primal (April 2015 - July 2015)
Assassins Creed Syndicate (March 2015 - April 2015)
Far Cry 4 (November 2013 - November 2014)
Assassins Creed 4 Black Flag (October 2013 - December 2013)
Splinter Cell Blacklist (June 2012 - September 2013)

Similar to many professionals in the game industry, I began my career in Quality Control (QC). This experience provided me with a deep understanding of game development cycles and familiarized me with essential tools such as JIRA. Working in QC also instilled in me a strong emphasis on quality and the importance of minimizing bugs, which has been instrumental in my role as a level designer.

Tasks and Accomplishments

As a quality assurance game tester, I have been involved in various stages of game development and have performed a range of tasks to ensure the quality and functionality of the games. On a daily basis, my responsibilities have included:

Executing test cases that are designed to thoroughly test different aspects of the game such as gameplay mechanics, user interfaces, graphics, audio, controls, and overall functionality.
Documenting encountered issues or bugs in a bug tracking system, providing detailed information including steps to reproduce, expected results, and actual results to assist developers in resolving the issues efficiently.
Conducting regression testing to retest specific areas or features of the game, ensuring that previously fixed bugs or changes have not introduced new issues.
Performing creative testing by exploring the game in an unstructured manner, aiming to identify potential issues that may not be covered by predefined test cases, and uncovering unexpected bugs or usability issues.
Collaborating closely with developers, designers, and team members, engaging in discussions, providing feedback, and ensuring effective communication throughout the testing process.
Creating and maintaining test documentation, including test plans, test cases, and test scripts, to ensure consistent and organized testing practices.
Setting up and configuring hardware and software environments for testing purposes, including game installation, configuration, and tool setup.
Collaborating with test leads or QA managers to develop test strategies and plans, analyzing requirements, identifying test objectives, and determining the scope of testing.
Continuously staying updated on industry trends, game testing techniques, and new technologies to enhance testing effectiveness and efficiency.
Starlink Battle for Atlas - As a Development Tester, I focused on engine smoke testing and performance analysis.
Far Cry Primal - As a Development Tester, my responsibilities included engine testing, performing test cases that cover various aspects of the game, such as gameplay mechanics, user interfaces, graphics, audio, controls, and overall functionality.
Far Cry 4 - In the role of Development Tester, I conducted daily build smoke tests and specifically focused on testing the starting map and gameplay features.
Assassin's Creed Syndicate - I worked as a Development Tester, primarily focusing on testing various gameplay features.
Assassin's Creed 4 Black Flag - As a Development Tester, I conducted daily build smoke tests and performed destructive testing.
Splinter Cell Blacklist - In my role as a QC Tester, I was responsible for testing specific maps, namely the American Consumption and Insurgent Stronghold maps.

Throughout these experiences, I have developed a strong understanding of game testing methodologies and have honed my skills in ensuring quality and identifying potential issues.