Download PDF w/ Lessons 1-51 [LAST UPDATED: 11/22/11]
Join like minded level designers on my game/level design blog @ ReachingPerfection.com where I fill you in on many things in the level design world. You can also join our forums to meet other people that enjoy game/level design just as much as you do. ;)
Forge Lesson Index
Lesson 1: First Impressions
Lesson 2: Knowledge is Power
Lesson 3: Path Manipulation
Lesson 4: Perspectives
Lesson 5: Deterrents
Lesson 6: Incentives
Lesson 7: Combat Congestion and Traffic
Lesson 8: Eye Catching
Lesson 9: Perspective Variance
Lesson 10: Spawn Perspectives
Lesson 11: Smooth Spawning
Lesson 12: Path Maps
Lesson 13: Area Introduction
Lesson 14: Essence
Lesson 15: Purpose
Lesson 16: Innovation
Lesson 17: Color Contrast
Lesson 18: Patience
Lesson 19: Threat Zones
Lesson 20: Safe Spawning
Lesson 21: Incentive Weighting
Lesson 22: Rule of Thirds
Lesson 23: Static Perspectives
Lesson 24: Advertising
Lesson 25: Investment
Lesson 26: Nurturing
Lesson 27: Reputation
Lesson 28: Perspective Direction
Lesson 29: Degree of Focus
Lesson 30: Application
Lesson 31: Immersion
Lesson 32: Cohesion
Lesson 33: Continuity
Lesson 34: Peer Review
Lesson 35: Failure
Lesson 36: Simplicity
Lesson 37: Orientation
Lesson 38: Dance Floor
Lesson 39: Dedication
Lesson 40: Foreshadowing
Lesson 41: Consistency
Lesson 42: Polish
Lesson 43: Lasting Impression
Lesson 44: Aesthetic Noise
Lesson 45: Pacing
Lesson 46: Active Engagement
Lesson 47: Kleenex Testing
Lesson 48: Veteran Testing
Lesson 49: Exposure
Lesson 50: Navigation
Lesson 51: Audience
The Short Version... for us lazy folk ;)
The short and skinny of it is that all of the above lessons are level design theories that are used by level designers in order to make their maps play better. Sure anyone can make a map now in Reach, but can you make a map that will get into matchmaking and be better than everyone else's? These lessons cover advanced design techniques that aren't your normal forging tutorials. They will actually improve your map's spawns (Smooth Spawning and Spawn Perspectives), weapon placement (Incentives), and gameplay. I will be updating as I release each of the BNet threads. Use this one as a reference and save it somewhere.
Original Source
The Longer Version for more info
Are you ready to jump into the powerful tool that is Forge 2.0 to start making maps for you and your friends? Did Halo 3's system frustrate you too much to even try it? Do you aspire to get your map into matchmaking? This will get you prepared for all of those.
Let's all admit that with the new Forge system anyone can build a map. No more geomerging, no more interlocking, or any other painful methods. But just because anyone can make a map easily now doesn't mean that the map is going to play well and people are going to enjoy it. I want to help all of you make your maps and gametypes better. I want to help make your maps play well enough to get into matchmaking. You can't even find this much quality map design help at Forgehub, I guarantee it.
I write this series of level design theory lessons called "Forge Lessons" to help all designers make their maps play the best that they can. They will teach you about how to make your spawns smooth, how to place your weapons (and other incentives), how to get your map noticed, how to fully control every step that your player takes, etc. I cover advanced level design topics used by professional level designers in all games... though I may name the techniques differently ;). Eye catching, perspectives, incentives, deterrents, path manipulation, color contrast, innovation, and area introduction are just some of the topics I cover. I write a new lesson about once a week, sometimes slower.
Some of you may need to ensure that I am actually qualified to teach people. My old GT was AZN FTW. I was one of the original 6 members of Forgehub that turned it from a wordpress blog to a vbulletin forum. I created one of the most popular and iconic gametypes in Halo 3, Conquest. I am one of the two designers of Ravinia, one of the 50+ community maps that got into matchmaking. I am also the designer of Affinity in Halo: Reach's matchmaking system. I have taught many forgers and aspiring designers.
These lessons have been used by teachers to teach high school and college game design classes. Several of them have been featured on Gamasutra and various other game/level design sites. But I'm not going to tell you how good they are. I'll let those who support these lessons tell you. Keep an eye on this thread for testimonials of the lessons from all that read them. Many well known figures amongst the Halo community will take their time to stop by here to let you know what they think about these lessons. If you don't want to trust me, then trust what others have to say for them.
I will update the top of this thread with a link to all of the lessons as I post them and reply to this thread when I post a new one, so save this thread somewhere. You can find all of the original postings with summaries of the lessons on my blog @ ReachingPerfection.com:
Forge Lessons
I hope these lessons help you as much as they have helped everyone who has read them. Enjoy my fellow Halo fans!
[Edited on 01.19.2012 11:02 AM PST]