ABOUT
Genre: Multiplayer Stealth/Shooter
Engine: UEFN
Time Frame: 3 weeks
Team Size: Solo
INTRODUCTION
Inspired by asymmetric team-based games like Dead by Daylight, Escape from Marble Manor is a custom game mode for Fortnite set in an expansive manor house. A team of two Fugitives races to activate a series of beacons and escape the Manor’s grounds before their rival team of four Hunters can kill the Fugitives or the beacons’ guards.
GAMEPLAY
Three to six players are divided into teams at a ratio of 2:1 (two Hunters and one Fugitive or four Hunters and two Fugitives). Once teams have been selected, all players spawn into their start areas: the front gates for the Hunters and one of two attic spawn locations for the Fugitives. When both teams are ready, the barriers around the spawn areas are dropped.
Fifteen “beacons” and fifteen A.I. guards are scattered throughout the rooms and grounds of the Manor. The Fugitives are on the guards’ side; their goal is to activate six beacons. Guards, however, are each tethered to a specific beacon, and upon being killed by a Hunter, their beacon will be disabled.
SETTING
Although the Manor was mainly designed around gameplay, there’s a story behind the house. Near the back gates, crates are stacked; up the stairs in the back of the house, plants are grown in a hidden attic room, across the house from a curtained map room. The Fugitives are the denizens of the house, and they have been running a secret smuggling operation out of the attic.
DESIGN PROCESS
The first room I created in the Manor was the main hall: the focal point of the house, featuring a massive cherry tree and skylight. The main hall is the largest space in the house, serving as a point of connection between all three floors and the outdoors, as well as one of the main combat arenas.
From the main hall, the manor branched out in either direction. The first level of each wing of the Manor has the same floor space, though specific layout varies slightly between eating and living spaces. The second levels are slightly more distinct, with one wing containing an artists’ studio and the other containing bedrooms. The attics on each side are not directly accessible from the stairs in the main hall, but can be reached through the back stairs, the crash pads in the main hall, or the grind rails on either side of the house.
Once the entire Manor was set up and thematically set dressed, I began adding mechanics using UEFN’s built-in Devices. Using Team/Inventory Settings, I created three separate teams: one generic team, which all players would initially spawn into, and two gameplay teams, including distinct inventories and health stats. I used Class Selectors, Buttons, and Barriers to create the initial game setup areas.
The core of the game, however, is the beacons. I rigged Buttons to take ten seconds of continuous pressing to activate, then added Guard A.I. spawners and light beams. The lights would change to the Fugitive team’s color upon being activated, and the associated guard would automatically despawn. Conversely, if the guard was killed by a member of the opposing team, the button would be disabled, preventing a Fugitive from hitting it.
Once the level was completely playable from start to finish, I began playtesting with a small group. Several of the placeholder values I had inputted while setting up the level, particularly for player and guard health, made the level severely unbalanced; increasing the fugitives’ and guards’ health fixed most of the major balance issues during playtesting. I also found that although beacons were scattered throughout the building, players were unsure of where to find them and how to tell if a beacon had already been activated or disabled.
Adding markers to the minimap for the beacons helped with some of the navigation issues. I also changed the guard spawn patterns so that they would spawn closer to their respective beacons.