FAR AND WIDE
GOALS
Level Design

I created the level design coherently with the narrative progression.
DESIGN PILLARS
Exploration

Making every nook and cranny interesting and pushing the narrative
Gameplay Design

I created interactive gameplay mechanics to push the narrative forward.
Narrative

The apartment complex hosts paranormal activity, requiring players to utilize camera equipment to detect and eliminate ghosts.
Narrative Design

I wrote the story and environmental story pieces.
Inspection

Caution is essential for survival—investigate before acting, and use running, sneaking, and strategic movement to stay alive.
THE PROTOTYPE
Far and Wide is a prototype focusing on narrative exploration with a story set in the early 2000s, in a forgotten forest once scarred by a cult. Players uncover Adam’s story through letters, diaries, and objects, piecing together a tale of revenge.
This is a passion project where I focused on creating an immersive, story-driven experience with exploration and interactive systems at its core. I made sure every element—from assets to narrative to small blueprint details—felt consistent and cohesive.
LEVEL DESIGN
The level design chapter is split into two chapters, perspective and environmental storytelling.
To create the level I used a variety of tools, such as Unreal Engines landscaping and foliage tools to shape out the world, and Blender to create the architectural modular kit.
Perspective
For the level design, I focused on creating an immersive first-person experience. I wanted players to truly step into the character’s skin and feel the emotional weight of the journey, without any distance between them and the story.
To reinforce that, I designed the environment to feel abandoned and isolated—far removed from civilization—so that the sense of loneliness and unease became part of the experience.
I designed vast areas to give players a sense of being lost, then added small cult buildings to spark curiosity and guide them toward the heart of the story. As the player move deeper, the level becomes richer and more engaging, building a clear feeling of progress.
Environmental Storytelling
The decision on using certain assets and the placement of the assets were thought of as environmental storytelling.
All of the assets needed to have a reason to be in the game to make the experience coherent. Assets not fulfilling this criteria were cut out and left out of the final playable.
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To evoke the feeling of isolation I designed the level to be far away from civilization in the deep forest.
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The objects of interest that can be found in the level are old and decayed, reminding the character of the lost world from where he once lived in.
GAMEPLAY DESIGN
Gameplay design is divided into mechanics and systems.
Using Unreal Engine’s Blueprints, I built all mechanics and systems to let players explore the abandoned world, interact with doors and drawers, and inspect key objects to uncover clues.
Mechanics
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Flashlight
The flashlight is the core mechanic of the prototype, allowing players to navigate the dark world and uncover the truth.
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Inspection
Designed for close examination, this system lets players inspect and rotate key objects to discover clues and build the story of the world.
Systems
Interaction system

The interaction system handles all player interactions within the game world. It uses a line trace to detect the type of object being interacted with and executes the appropriate logic.
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Furniture
Players can open drawers and boxes to uncover information that advances the narrative. Timelines in Blueprints control the opening and closing, with defined start and end positions for each object.
Journal System

The player can pick up and read letters or notes, which deepen the story and help move the narrative forward.
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Letters & notes
The picked up letters are stored in the player inventory, the player can go back to previously collected letters and notes to review them at a later time.
The inspection blueprint built in Unreal Engine 5.
NARRATIVE DESIGN
Story
You are walking in a set of familiar footsteps, you know exactly where to put the right foot in front of the other. You know where the stream is, you know exactly when to duck before the branches. You have walked this bit through the moss-deafening forest a million times.
This time the clock is ticking. She has to be alive. You’ve seen the signs of the prophecy.
The cult always spoke of this. The glowing light is nigh, you can see the face of agony, clear as day, incarnated.
In the bend of the path you can see the old shed and workbench still standing in place after all these years gone past. The owls are screeching, ripping you out of reminiscing memories.
You find a letter with an old but familiar handwriting, when looking closer you can see your
mothers name on the bottom of the page. Your heart starts racing and there is nothing but the right path ahead.
ART
Assets
The 3D assets used in the game are a mix between using Megascan assets and modeling assets in Blender. To save time I mainly used assets from Megascans and imported them through Quixel Bridge.
The assets I made myself were the modular assets for the architecture of the game environment. The modular kit made the workflow of level design much faster and more efficient. By creating the modular kit myself I was able to re-import the assets if they needed modification such as displacement.
Photoshop was used to create 2D images representing the letters and notes in the game.
LEARNINGS
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Creating modular kit in Blender and establish asset pipeline.
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Designing cohesive and consistent game mechanics.
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Set up realistic lighting in Unreal Engine using Lumen and light profiles.
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Scoping projects to fit available development timeframe.