Act I / 01
The Burning Landmark
Player enters the trench and sees the burning radio tower.
- Landmarking
- Vista / framing shot
- Goal orientation
- Visual hierarchy
Featured · Survival horror
Below the Wire
Investigate the disappearance of the Second Battalion in the claustrophobic trenches of World War I. Inspired by Outlast, Amnesia: The Bunker, Resident Evil 7 and the opening of Battlefield 1.
- Duration
- 4 weeks, half-time
- Engine
- Unreal Engine 5.6
- Focus
- Visual storytelling, scripting, VFX
- Third-party
- Blockout Tools, Mixamo, UE Horror template
Walkthrough
Intent
Despair, then dread
The level opens in chaos — bombs falling, planes diving. Even outside, the player can only move forward or back, reinforcing the lack of control.
Inside the bunker, pacing shifts to slow exploration. Dead bodies and soldiers killed in their sleep build tension, while the "monster" stays deliberately ambiguous.
Overview · click to enlarge
Tension graph · click to enlarge
Bait & switch
In these images, I'm using a clear bait-and-switch. The player is first drawn toward the dead doctor with the severed arm, but when they turn around, the blood-written message shifts the tone and creates a sense of unease.
Landmark
The burning tower is used as a primary landmark, anchoring the player's navigation through the trench layout. As the player moves forward and the tower becomes more prominent, it reinforces direction and confirms that they are progressing along the intended path, even within a maze-like environment.
Design techniques
Act I / 02
The Terrors
Planes approach, the player learns to crouch.
- Player onboarding
- Audio cues
- Anticipation
- Funneling
Act I / 03
The Dead Sprint
Bombing forces the player toward the bunker.
- Escalation
- Forced urgency
- Foreshadowing
- Pacing spike
Act II / 04
The Teaser & The Doctor
Bunker collapse — doctor's office, locked in.
- One-way progression
- Breadcrumbing
- Environmental storytelling
- Red herring
Act II / 05
Shadows in the Hall
Creature glimpse → mess hall hub.
- Jump scare beat
- Leading lines
- Diegetic indicators
Act II / 06
The Lab & The Cold Storage
The lab, then cold storage filled with bodies — and the bolt cutters.
- Environmental storytelling
- Horror framing
- Hard gate
- Affordance
Act II / 07
The Slaughtered Quarters
Soldiers killed in their sleep.
- Environmental narrative
- Pacing contrast
- Soft gate
Act II / 08
The "It's Here" Reveal
The bathroom message, then a loop back to a familiar area.
- Spatial looping
- Player orientation
- Diegetic indicators
Act III / 09
The General & The Twist
General's room → key → monster.
- Narrative payoff
- Objective clarity
- Horror payoff
- Expectation subversion
Act III / 10
Ending
"The infection didn't spread. You did."
- Climax
- Objective clarity
- Psychological horror payoff
Reflections
Exterior Sound Design & Atmosphere
Creating the exterior section of the bunker was one of the most rewarding parts of the project. To capture the feeling of being trapped in a WWI trench during an active bombardment, I focused heavily on building a layered soundscape. Using audio assets from Soundsnap, I combined aircraft flyovers, distant explosions, and environmental ambience to create tension before the player even reaches the bunker.
Lessons Learned
If I were to revisit this section, I would invest additional time in refining the audio implementation. Specifically, I would design a dynamic footstep system in which playback speed and volume
Blueprints & Player Feedback
To enhance immersion, I used Blueprints to connect both audio and visual feedback to player movement. Footstep sounds were synchronized with a subtle head-bob effect, while a faint blur was applied to the player's vision throughout the experience. This visual treatment was designed to create a slight sense of unease and subtly suggest that something is not quite right.
Level Design & Pacing
Exterior
The exterior trench network was designed as a maze-like environment, using a burning radio tower as a primary landmark to guide navigation. I combined environmental storytelling, foreshadowing, and distant audio cues to build tension before the player enters the bunker. Collapsed trenches, damaged structures, and ongoing bombardment help establish both the setting and the threat.
Interior
Once the bunker entrance collapses, the experience shifts into a more controlled and linear progression. I use blood trails, environmental clues, and key points of interest as breadcrumbs to guide the player through the space. The layout gradually introduces narrative reveals while maintaining a clear critical path toward the General's office.
Reflections & Takeaways
Overall, I am proud of what I was able to achieve within the scope and time frame of the project. The bunker layout successfully creates a claustrophobic atmosphere, and I feel the combination of pacing, environmental storytelling, and navigation helps maintain tension throughout the experience.
If I were to continue developing the project, I would focus on improving visual readability in a few areas to make the critical path even clearer. I would also spend more time on iteration and polish, particularly in the final sequence.
One addition I would have liked to implement is a short cinematic ending using Sequencer. My vision was for the player to reach the light at the end of the tunnel and briefly believe they had escaped, only for the creature to appear at the last moment. This would have strengthened the final payoff and reinforced the level's central theme of false hope and inevitable horror.