140

140 is a gaming masterpiece. Created by Jeppe Carlsen (known for his gameplay direction in Playdead's Limbo), the game is an immersive and synesthetic experience that uses electronic music synchronized with minimal shapes to give life to the scenario and the main character.



The game doesn’t have a clear narrative plot. You command a multiple-shaped character and must solve some puzzles to advance to the next level. Looks simple, but this simplicity has a dense complexity in terms of level design. Check the gameplay below:



In 140, the level design challenge is to coordinate all the puzzles’ solutions with a constant electronic music (that changes according to the player’s actions). In a game like this, we notice different layers that create one solid level design: one with simple abstract forms, one with synchronized music and one that blends both (the experience of the game per se).

As Adams and Rollings point out, level design is the process of building the experience that will be offered directly to the player, using components provided by the game designer. Level designers create the space in which the game takes place, the initial conditions of the level, the set of challenges the player will face within the level, the termination conditions of it, the interplay between the gameplay and the game’s story, and the aesthetics of the level. (2007, p.399 & 400).

Following the previous ideas from these authors, we can add – in the case of 140 – that music can be another essential component to create a gaming experience.

#GoGamers

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Reference:

ADAMS, Ernest; ROLLINGS, Andrew. Fundamentals of Game Design. New Jersey: Pearson Prentice Hall, 2009