Instructinator

This is about pulling the player around a level, whether it is a single player level or a multiplayer environment the basics remain the same. There are 3 main ways to lead a player through a map. Light, geometry, and pickups.

With Pickups:

Leading the player with Pickups (pac-man method) involves placing pickups in a way that draws the player towards where they should go using their greed or need impulses. Value of these pickups is only an issue when there are more than one pickup in view. Usually you can place anything obtainable by the player in their view, and they will go out of their way to obtain it, even if they don’t need it.
Mario coins, Sonic Rings, Health Vials, are all examples that spring to mind.

An example that might not spring to mind, is using an enemy or group of enemies to pull in the same way. The player wants action, or to harvest drops off the enemies. So you can treat enemies as Mario coins in this way.

With Light:

Using light or absence of light to show the way is a subtle almost subconscious way to guide a player through an environment.

In that example from The Darkness the player is lead left to the light source even though his powers demand he stay out of the light.

The path in Gears of War is almost always lead with light.

Players will gravitate to doorways which are well lit and often ignore darkly lit or under lit paths and doors.

With Geometry:

Geometry can be used in a lot of ways to lead the player but there are some basics that should always be considered.

One way is the management of the main resource in shooting, Line of Sight. A player given the choice between two exits, one with more and one with less line of sight, they will associate the larger path with the “way they are supposed to go”.

In the example above you can see how a simple edit can drastically alter a decision point in a level. By increasing line of light by opening up the angle to the left I can draw the player toward that choice.

With a Combination:

These principals can come together to create an intuitive flow to a level, where the player natualy makes decisions that lead him allong the right path. This can avoid allot of the complaints players sometimes have about getting lost or backtracking to find the exit to a dungeon.

In the above image they are using all 3 types of pull; Light on the left, Pickups with the enemies, and the geometry is far more open to the left which opens up line of sight. Plus the ground tilts left inviting the player to turn left. The choice between these two paths to any player is clear.