Procedural Levels

One of the biggest visual challenges of Gears Tactics was to maintain the Gears aesthetic within a genre that requires an entirely different camera angle, level design and gamplay.
Most missions in Gears Tactics use a semi-procedural tile system, that can remix elements within the level. This together with the top-down gameplay mean that we were fairly limited when it came to monumental structures, thick walls and clear landmarks in the environment - all key elements of a Gears environment.

We used Unreal Engine a lot early on to visualise possible level compositions using buildings with different sizes, to see what could work. After that the concept team was working closely with the level designers and environment artists, giving feedback and working on solutions to maintain a strong Gears look, that could also benefit gameplay.

Another part of this challenge was maintaining a balance between readability and visual storytelling. Our narrative called for most of the first Act to be played out in the ruins of a city that has just been destroyed by the Hammer of Dawn strikes. As a result we went through numerous iterations of destruction, with a heavy focus on floors, that needed to be detailed, broken, dirty and readable.