I’m a level designer and constantly hang out on job search sites. I often see confusion in job descriptions for level designer and level artist. The first are designers, the second are artists, but they all work on game locations.
In this post I will try to explain the difference between these two professions. For simplicity, I will write exactly the English-language names, because the Russian-language “level designer”, “environment designer” and “environment artist” further confuse job seekers in the gaming industry.
In vacancies Level Designer you can meet the following requirements: world design, setting up lighting and materials, creating detailed graphics. And the software package will include standard Adobe Photoshop, Maya or Blender for artists. In vacancies Level Artist There are mentions of collecting levels, prototyping on gray boxes (blockouts) and an architectural background as a plus.
How to differentiate the responsibilities of a level-designer and a level-artist? Everything is really simple here. Let’s take the process of building a country house as an example. The customer comes and says: “I need a house with a gable roof that suits my height (and he is 2.15 m). I want there to be space for relaxation under the roof, and the stairs to the second floor and the attic are not visible when entering the premises.“Obviously, you will need an architect who will take into account all these features and make a model of the house on paper or using a 3D printer. This is it Level Design.
We have a character https://chillireelscasino.uk/games/ 2.15 m. To prevent him from getting stuck in the doors and banging his head on the jambs, we need metrics (a set of rules that we adhere to when choosing the sizes and formations of openings, bevels, stairs, kitchen shelves, chandeliers).
How to organize space so that no stairs are visible from any doors? How to make the room under the roof comfortable if we have a gable roof and the character is two meters and fifteen centimeters? And the designer rotates the rooms, swaps doorways with windows, until he gets a comfortable space that meets the customer’s requirements.
The customer comes and is left in a precipitate: “Why is my house all gray, where are the doors, windows, where are the paintings and carpets really?? “Beauty was not part of the deal.”.“- answers the satisfied Level Designer.
Level Designer did his job well, but the house is unpleasant to live in, it is comfortable, practical, but ugly. And now the customer turns to someone who will fill the house with details, select colors and building materials, and determine how many lumens should be in each light bulb. He calls the interior designer, that is Level Artist.
The customer gives new instructions: “The house should be in the style of the rest of the village, but stand out, the first floor should have an air of hospitality, muted tones on the second floor, for an office, and something cozy in the attic. And my beloved is not happy with the tree.".
Level Artist walks around the village and photographs houses to understand what style will be authentic to the village. Makes sketches of each floor, searches for or creates materials for an atmosphere suitable for each floor, even models what could not be found in the store. Paints the walls and floor, removes extra light bulbs on the second floor and hangs garlands on the first. And so everything is ready. The house is ready – the game location is ready. Now the customer is satisfied, the house is beautiful and comfortable.
Now imagine that the customer is looking for an architect and calls an interior designer. Or vice versa. When the project is small and the budget for 2 workers is not enough, then one person takes on these responsibilities. But this does not always happen, and this confusion makes it difficult to understand what is needed from you.
I remember how during an interview at Level Designer I was asked about light probes, these are light probes that store information about the light passing through the empty space of a location. Essentially it is a tool for optimizing resources for displaying light reflections from objects in real time. Needless to say, level design has little to do with light probes. I’m still confused about this interview 🙂
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