Counter Strike 2 Custom Map

Level Design

The core plan for this project was to create a playable experience using the design pillars of an existing game. I attempted this with my Hunt: Showdown project previously however that couldn’t be play tested in a multiplayer setting therefore this is almost an extension of that. By building in Source 2 it could be tested and allowed me to learn a different engine.

Built in Source 2.

Process…

Solo Project | Source 2 - Hammer Level Editor

Step 1 | Research

I haven’t played Counter Strike therefore I took it upon myself to familiarise myself with the maps. I looked up four maps taking note of the objectives, spawn points and line of sight.

Step 2 | Learning

I followed a tutorial online to get a basic understanding of the tool and then from there dabbled with a first map. This eventually led to me making a level that was eventually scrapped due to being too large. Each hallway and room ended up being about twice the size it needed to be.

Eventually the design ended up with a small / mid sized level with long sightlines. My favourite playstyle in first person shooters is sniping, it’s something I’ve always done since I was young and so I wanted to lean into that a bit. The long corridors reward bravery and punish those not checking all angles (the spawn snipe on Highrise Modern Warfare 2 comes to mind). There is a Counter Strike map; Dust, which has a pretty powerful, one-sided spawn snipe therefore I was conscious about that and tried to ensure it benefited both teams as much as possible. Further testing would highlight if more cover would need to be put in.

Something else to keep in mind was multiple entry / exit points from both objectives so I made sure to include as many as possible each with different views of the point. Out of the two objectives, the one underneath the bridge would be the easiest to assault / defend because it’s more self contained whereas the other is a lot more open and gives multiple angles to defend / attack from; you need to be more careful around that area. Both objectives take roughly the same amount of time to get to whether you’re attacking or defending and, to keep in line with the existing design pillars, Counter Terrorists are able to get to either point faster.

Step 3 | Sketches & Moodboard

I had an idea already about working a map around an overpass inspired by Edinburgh. To get things going I looked up some reference images and collated into a mood board - this progressed to a very basic top down sketch and a side profile view. I knew I wanted to create the look of buildings between the archways with some close quarters action. The overpass creates an interesting level shape from top down and I think would make it stand out.

Step 4 | Design

I started off by framing the area. The bridge needed to act as both a set piece and visual boundary therefore that was the first to be put in. Once I had the constraints of the size or archways I could go in a blockout rudimentary buildings. I wanted the map to feel confined and unique therefore I went with a cliff face and a sea facing wall. I mainly chose a cliff face so I could use tunnels in my level and generally I think it would create interesting architecture and layers for a final art pass.

My findings from the existing maps told me terrorists spawned further away from the objectives which gives the defenders time to set up and there are generally three lanes; one leading to each objective from spawn points and one or more in the middle. Then when you introduce additional routes between the objectives you get the essence of a CS map.

Step 5 | Playtesting & Iteration

The level changed in parts over the course of the project, notably a lot more pathways and through routes were introduced. The first concept and updates stuck to the three lane quite literally and therefore if you went down the top most lane, you only had forwards and backwards to go. Essentially meaning if you went down one route, you were committing to attacking the objective at the end of it only. This doesn’t give the player freedom to pivot and ultimately it was a guess at the start. More routes meant the map got more character and proper buildings started to emerge.

Height also needed to be considered, not only from a gameplay point of view but from looking at the world like a logical, lived in place. If you built houses here, eventually you would need to build up to make more space. In my mind the final level would have houses built into the cliff face with cool walkways all around. However because none of that would be a playable area, I didn’t think it was worth my time implementing it.

More than anything however, more open areas were given cover of various kinds. Through additional testing, I think it would show even more cover and clutter would need to be added to make it completely balanced because I’m sure one side is stronger than the other but that would take many more players to get a better understanding of it.