American McGee, (formerly) id Software

"Think out the level all the way through."

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When asked to discuss level design, American McGee quickly confides that it is a tough yet rewarding job, since it is essentially four jobs in one. "You must assume the roles of the level designer, artist, architect, and engineer for a level to come out right," he says. "Otherwise you lose focus for what you want to accomplish."

Additionally, he feels a good level layout is first conceived in a designer's head, but often the end result loses some punch when other designers are called upon to work on each other's maps - an often necessary occurrence when working as a team to finish a product. "It's sometimes hard to split up the work with many people when you're passionate about your own maps... because like a painting, I may sketch out the design in black charcoal, but when it's handed off to another artist, he may not use the paints like I would."

McGee also maintains that good level design is difficult because the complexity of the level is magnified as technology advances. He cites examples within the maturation of id Software's games, where design began with only one floor and square blocks in Wolfenstein 3D, then progressed to Quake II's true 3D engine, colored lighting, localized sound, and multiple floors, angles, and textures. Then there're multiplayer maps to be concerned with, or whether the single-player maps would make good multiplayer maps as well, and so forth. These play-balancing issues were not nearly as relevant (or not at all) just a few years ago.

When offering advice for budding level designers, McGee stresses making maps as realistic as possible while using the right textures for the desired effect. You should also make sure you "think out the level all the way through first."