Designing Levels: Goals, Failure, and Pacing

A level is not a maze. It is a small experiment. This post explains the goals behind foraging_101, maze_001, and defense_001, and what we are trying to teach with each.

foraging_101 teaches the absolute basics. Place a food source, watch the colony find it, survive a few minutes. There is no predator. The goal is to build intuition.

maze_001 forces the player to use walls. The map is structured so that one bad path costs the colony several minutes. The goal is to learn that placement is a strategic decision.

defense_001 adds predators. The player must place walls to channel predators into kill zones. The goal is to feel the colony act as a unit.

Each level ends with an upgrade reward. The reward is small enough that skipping it does not hurt, but large enough that you want it. That tension is intentional.