level-design-and-environmentlisted

# Level Design and Environment ## Purpose Levels fail in two ways that are both decided early and expensive to fix late: players cannot read them, and they cannot be made to run within budget because their structure does not permit culling or streaming. Both are addressed at blockout, before any art exists. A level that is fun as untextured grey boxes will be fun when finished; one that is not, will not be rescued by art. ## When to use - Starting a new level or area. - Players get lost, miss objectives, or fail to see the intended path. - Combat spaces play badly — no cover, unclear sightlines, unfair encounters. - A level exceeds frame time or memory budget. - Establishing modular kit and metrics conventions for a project. ## When NOT to use - Lighting a level that is already built. Use `lighting-design`. - Purely technical rendering cost with no layout component. Use `gpu-optimization`. - Procedural generation of layouts. Use `procedural-generation`, then apply this skill's readability criteria to the output. ## Required context | Fact | Why it matters | |---|---| | Player metrics | Everything is measured against them; without them nothing is buildable | | Camera and field of view | Determines what the player can see and therefore what reads | | Core gameplay verbs | A level supports specific actions, not "gameplay" generally | | Performance budget | Structure must permit meeting it | | Whether the world streams | Streaming imposes structural requirements from