What changed
0 fixes0 additions4 changes1 removal
- Balance
- Gameplay
- UI and audio
- Events
changedThe inspiration for Beaumont-Saint-Denis is the real life Abbey of the Mont-Saint-Michel, a breath taking construct situated in the picturesque bay shared by Brittany and Normandy. Its origins can be traced back to the early 8th century where the bishop of a nearby town claimed that the Archangel Michael had demanded a church be built on top of the island on the bay.
changedSince that time it has gone through a number of changes, including the building of what we now know as the abbey of Mont-Saint-Michel. Its towering steeples, narrow winding streets and assorted monastic buildings are all preserved behind high defensive walls. What could be more perfect as inspiration for a Sniper Elite 5 mission?
changedSaija Wintersun - ‘In order to capture the essence of the location, you have to first experience it. At the end of the day photogrammetry can only replicate the visuals of an object, not the atmosphere. You have to ask yourself what makes this place special. Is it the scale, the claustrophobia, the wind and the cold, the stone, the way the puddles are formed, the ancient medieval wood they had, what kind of birds there are, what does the echo sound like, and so on. Finally there is the challenge of making something that is better than real life. It’s not meant to be an exact copy. It’s something more.’’
changedSimon Richards – ‘All of our environments begin with a whitebox, a basic blockout of the gameplay space. From this point the whitebox is refined until it functions for both Art & Designs needs. We'll then begin populating the environment with art assets created during the whitebox phase, and Design will implement the gameplay. The process between Art & Design is collaborative and we'll often make changes to the gameplay spaces as we build out the environments.’
removedSaija Wintersun – ‘Building a level is a puzzle, with the artist on one side pushing for impressive visuals and the designer looking for the most fun gameplay. Bringing these opposing viewpoints together is always challenge. We had a lot of compromises in the layout of the island. For example, there were originally lots of sharp angles and steep staircases that may have been realistic but didn’t work for gameplay. We also had to make sure the player has enough sightlines and impressive views without removing too much of the architecture so it still felt like a
Sniper Elite 4 changes
changedThe inspiration for Beaumont-Saint-Denis is the real life Abbey of the Mont-Saint-Michel, a breath taking construct situated in the picturesque bay shared by Brittany and Normandy. Its origins can be traced back to the early 8th century where the bishop of a nearby town claimed that the Archangel Michael had demanded a church be built on top of the island on the bay.
changedSince that time it has gone through a number of changes, including the building of what we now know as the abbey of Mont-Saint-Michel. Its towering steeples, narrow winding streets and assorted monastic buildings are all preserved behind high defensive walls. What could be more perfect as inspiration for a Sniper Elite 5 mission?
changedSaija Wintersun - ‘In order to capture the essence of the location, you have to first experience it. At the end of the day photogrammetry can only replicate the visuals of an object, not the atmosphere. You have to ask yourself what makes this place special. Is it the scale, the claustrophobia, the wind and the cold, the stone, the way the puddles are formed, the ancient medieval wood they had, what kind of birds there are, what does the echo sound like, and so on. Finally there is the challenge of making something that is better than real life. It’s not meant to be an exact copy. It’s something more.’’
changedSimon Richards – ‘All of our environments begin with a whitebox, a basic blockout of the gameplay space. From this point the whitebox is refined until it functions for both Art & Designs needs. We'll then begin populating the environment with art assets created during the whitebox phase, and Design will implement the gameplay. The process between Art & Design is collaborative and we'll often make changes to the gameplay spaces as we build out the environments.’
removedSaija Wintersun – ‘Building a level is a puzzle, with the artist on one side pushing for impressive visuals and the designer looking for the most fun gameplay. Bringing these opposing viewpoints together is always challenge. We had a lot of compromises in the layout of the island. For example, there were originally lots of sharp angles and steep staircases that may have been realistic but didn’t work for gameplay. We also had to make sure the player has enough sightlines and impressive views without removing too much of the architecture so it still felt like a
With just 16 days to go until the release of Sniper Elite 5, Rebellion HQ shares top secret intel on the real-world inspirations behind one of the spectacular settings coming to the campaign.
Within the action packed CGI trailer we shared in January, some of our keen-eyed Sniper fans may have noticed a familiar structure standing amongst the chaos - the towering presence of Beaumont-Saint-Denis.
The inspiration for Beaumont-Saint-Denis is the real life Abbey of the Mont-Saint-Michel, a breath taking construct situated in the picturesque bay shared by Brittany and Normandy. Its origins can be traced back to the early 8th century where the bishop of a nearby town claimed that the Archangel Michael had demanded a church be built on top of the island on the bay.
Since that time it has gone through a number of changes, including the building of what we now know as the abbey of Mont-Saint-Michel. Its towering steeples, narrow winding streets and assorted monastic buildings are all preserved behind high defensive walls. What could be more perfect as inspiration for a Sniper Elite 5 mission?
We sat down with Principal Environment Artist Saija Wintersun, Lead Environment Artist Simon Richards and Head of Design Jordan Woodward to discuss the design of the level and the challenges they faced.
What were the benefits of visiting the site in person?
Saija Wintersun - ‘In order to capture the essence of the location, you have to first experience it. At the end of the day photogrammetry can only replicate the visuals of an object, not the atmosphere. You have to ask yourself what makes this place special. Is it the scale, the claustrophobia, the wind and the cold, the stone, the way the puddles are formed, the ancient medieval wood they had, what kind of birds there are, what does the echo sound like, and so on. Finally there is the challenge of making something that is better than real life. It’s not meant to be an exact copy. It’s something more.’’
Jordan Woodward – ‘One of the aspects of Mont Saint Michel is that it is very maze-like, so to replicate that in the game, it is essential that the designers get a real feel for the place. That feeling of disorientation can only really be translated over into the level having actually felt it personally.’
How does the team go about transferring the space into a playable level?
Simon Richards – ‘All of our environments begin with a whitebox, a basic blockout of the gameplay space. From this point the whitebox is refined until it functions for both Art & Designs needs. We'll then begin populating the environment with art assets created during the whitebox phase, and Design will implement the gameplay. The process between Art & Design is collaborative and we'll often make changes to the gameplay spaces as we build out the environments.’
What was one of the biggest challenges when approaching the design of Beaumont-Saint-Denis?
Saija Wintersun – ‘Building a level is a puzzle, with the artist on one side pushing for impressive visuals and the designer looking for the most fun gameplay. Bringing these opposing viewpoints together is always challenge. We had a lot of compromises in the layout of the island. For example, there were originally lots of sharp angles and steep staircases that may have been realistic but didn’t work for gameplay. We also had to make sure the player has enough sightlines and impressive views without removing too much of the architecture so it still felt like a
