Highguard: Level/Game Designer
Every level shown is a product of the whole team, with other departments designing and implementing assets.
While I led the design of the following areas, ideas from other designers, artists, and other devs contributed to the final product.
While I led the design of the following areas, ideas from other designers, artists, and other devs contributed to the final product.
Studio: Wildlight Entertainment
Released (Steam, PS5, Xbox Series S/X): January 26, 2026
My Role: August 2024 - Present Day
About the Game:
Highguard is a Free-to-Play, FPS Raid Shooter game that emphasizes teamwork and shooting skills. Players play as Wardens with abilities to help them fight in large maps over control for the Shield Breaker, a device that breaks enemy base's shields, initiating a Raid to destroy their base to win.
My Contributions:
Level Designers at Wildlight are fully responsible for their entire map/base, taking their levels from concept through to ship, working with various departments to bring the map to life at the highest quality possible while maintaining the environment's core designs.
I have designed and shipped (in order of most recent releases):
I've been part of the design team at Wildlight since August 2024, where I prototyped and designed various style of bases and large map designs (open world & POIs), aiding the design team to create Highguard's core Raid mode, and realize what type of level designs worked best for our game while it was being developed.
As we were building the game from the ground up while experimenting with different level designs for the game, we (Level Designers) had to remain agile and adjust designs on the fly as the game and core mode was simultaneously being developed. This created a dynamic development cycle where level design helped influence the mode's rules and systems as it was being made. It was like building a moving train while the railroad was also being built a few feet ahead. It was a fun challenge building a new IP with the team!
In early days, we experimented with lots of unique designs/themes to find what type of layouts worked best for our bases and larger maps/POIs (and IP as a whole). Feedback from the team became important to parse through and fully understand at a deeper level as feedback could be referring to the mode, geo, and/or both.
Released (Steam, PS5, Xbox Series S/X): January 26, 2026
My Role: August 2024 - Present Day
About the Game:
Highguard is a Free-to-Play, FPS Raid Shooter game that emphasizes teamwork and shooting skills. Players play as Wardens with abilities to help them fight in large maps over control for the Shield Breaker, a device that breaks enemy base's shields, initiating a Raid to destroy their base to win.
My Contributions:
Level Designers at Wildlight are fully responsible for their entire map/base, taking their levels from concept through to ship, working with various departments to bring the map to life at the highest quality possible while maintaining the environment's core designs.
I have designed and shipped (in order of most recent releases):
- Cloudreach (base)
- Soul Well (base)
- Summit (large map)
- Dragonfall (Large Map, Unreleased)
I've been part of the design team at Wildlight since August 2024, where I prototyped and designed various style of bases and large map designs (open world & POIs), aiding the design team to create Highguard's core Raid mode, and realize what type of level designs worked best for our game while it was being developed.
As we were building the game from the ground up while experimenting with different level designs for the game, we (Level Designers) had to remain agile and adjust designs on the fly as the game and core mode was simultaneously being developed. This created a dynamic development cycle where level design helped influence the mode's rules and systems as it was being made. It was like building a moving train while the railroad was also being built a few feet ahead. It was a fun challenge building a new IP with the team!
In early days, we experimented with lots of unique designs/themes to find what type of layouts worked best for our bases and larger maps/POIs (and IP as a whole). Feedback from the team became important to parse through and fully understand at a deeper level as feedback could be referring to the mode, geo, and/or both.
I will do in-depth design breakdowns for all Large Maps & Bases I designed for Highguard on their own dedicated page as I have the time to complete them
Large Maps
Large maps in Highguard are the open environments the bases spawn in and players loot and fight around over control for the Shield Breaker, the giant sword you plant at your opponent's base to start a Raid. Each large map offers 3 POIs (Points of Interests) that the Shield Breaker can spawn at.
Each POI offers more loot chests and Vesper (match currency for vendor) for players to Loot and fight over, which encourages POIs to act as main attractions for players to migrate to to farm supplies for the fight over the Shield Breaker and Raids that follow.
Each POI offers more loot chests and Vesper (match currency for vendor) for players to Loot and fight over, which encourages POIs to act as main attractions for players to migrate to to farm supplies for the fight over the Shield Breaker and Raids that follow.
Summit
Summit is set high in the snowy mountain in the Lost Continent. Once ruled by a powerful queen, her resting place is still guarded by giant Gollum sentinels.
Gameplay Designs:
Each team's base is placed on the highest points of the map, resulting in up-hill battles during the Intercept Phase (where players fight over and try to plant the Shield Breaker at their opponent's base).
Cover leading towards each base is staggered in a way to allow for Offensive & Defensive frontlines to fight between, allowing Defenders to hold select defensive vantage points to watch over key lanes. Forcing Attackers (team with SB) to move up on key moments where they have an advantage over the enemy. The map design also allows Attackers to change routes and force the Defeenders to have to rotate to cover another route towards their base.
Each team has an elevated bridge that overlooks half of the map, overlooking Queen's Crypt and one of the entrances into Gollum Forge. These bridge have 3 ziplines leading up to the bridge's left, center, and right platform. One zipline on each bridge leads directly into Queen's Crypt for a quick, yet exposed route between the two locations.
Summit's POIs:
Gameplay Designs:
Each team's base is placed on the highest points of the map, resulting in up-hill battles during the Intercept Phase (where players fight over and try to plant the Shield Breaker at their opponent's base).
Cover leading towards each base is staggered in a way to allow for Offensive & Defensive frontlines to fight between, allowing Defenders to hold select defensive vantage points to watch over key lanes. Forcing Attackers (team with SB) to move up on key moments where they have an advantage over the enemy. The map design also allows Attackers to change routes and force the Defeenders to have to rotate to cover another route towards their base.
Each team has an elevated bridge that overlooks half of the map, overlooking Queen's Crypt and one of the entrances into Gollum Forge. These bridge have 3 ziplines leading up to the bridge's left, center, and right platform. One zipline on each bridge leads directly into Queen's Crypt for a quick, yet exposed route between the two locations.
Summit's POIs:
- Queen's Crypt
- Gollum Forge
- Frozen Shrine
Dragonfall (Unreleased Map 7)
Dragonfall (temp name) was slated to be Highguard's 7th large map.
Taking place shortly after a largescale battle where a massive human army, with the help from Wardens, fight and kill a giant dragon as they reclaim a key part of the Lost Continent. This was to be depicted as an animated trailer for the Season, and Players would fight along and within the dead dragon and a crashed Airship Blimp that the dragon took down in the fight.
The theme I pitched for this map was "Giant Kaiju Battlefield" where remnants of the largescale battle would scatter the still burning battlegrounds as POIs and key cover/game play environments, enforcing a strong, immersive theme that created memorable gameplay spaces unlike any other map in Highguard, or anything offered in other FPS games.
Dragonfall's POIs:
Gameplay Designs:
Dragon POI:
Being able to design the dead dragon as a key playable part of the map and not just an aesthetic piece to look at in the vista was very important. I worked closely with Leads, Environmental Artists, and Narrative to figure out how to make the dragon an achievable POI that didnt feel gross to play on and inside of.
The solve was having the arrows that killed the Dragon turn the Dragon to a hardened rock material, so instead of walking on flesh, it was solidified rock flesh and bones, with a bright yellow crystallization, giving the interior of the dragon belly and throat a mesmerizing cave feeling.
For the most unique playing map possible, I designed the Dragon's mouth to be an elevated sniping position that overlooked the entire center of the map. Players used the teeth as cover, and the lip as an exterior deck that connected ziplines to each team's side of the map and one to a neutral middle combat area, for predictable ways up to the mouth quickly, encouraging varying options to win fights around the elevated Dragon positions.
These strong vantage points and elevated positions on the Dragon created fresh engagements types for Highguard unique to this map, which demanded mastery in the map's design (cover placement, line of sight blockers, frontline engagement designs, and Player routing options) that gave players on the elevated positions an advantage, but weren't impossible to overcome and fight back from on the key areas they overlooked.
Designing for Better Intercept Engagements:
With the goal of creating a map that mainstreamed the Intercept phase, allowing planting and intercepting the Shield Breaker in the open world more predictable to strategize around and actionable, the design of the map revolved heavily around clearer frontlines for Attackers, the team with the Shield Breaker, and Defenders to push up and back from as Attackers pushed towards their base.
The shorter distance from the POIs to each Base allowed planting the Shield Breaker a more achievable task off good plays, and easier for Defenders to retake the Shield Breaker from Attackers when they could out play them.
This map was AWESOME to design and play, mixing a great theme with truly unique gameplay for a PvP experience unlike any other, and elevated Highguard's Raid Mode to new heights (no pun intended).
I will post more about this unreleased map in the future, with videos of the map from internal playtests, to show how the map really played and how it executed a strong theme into a balanced multiplayer environment.
You can check out more pictures/info about this unreleased map here from one of the Environmental Artist's ArtStation post: Jobye-Kyle Karmaker
Taking place shortly after a largescale battle where a massive human army, with the help from Wardens, fight and kill a giant dragon as they reclaim a key part of the Lost Continent. This was to be depicted as an animated trailer for the Season, and Players would fight along and within the dead dragon and a crashed Airship Blimp that the dragon took down in the fight.
The theme I pitched for this map was "Giant Kaiju Battlefield" where remnants of the largescale battle would scatter the still burning battlegrounds as POIs and key cover/game play environments, enforcing a strong, immersive theme that created memorable gameplay spaces unlike any other map in Highguard, or anything offered in other FPS games.
Dragonfall's POIs:
- Dragon Belly
- Dragon's Mouth
- Crashed Blimp
Gameplay Designs:
Dragon POI:
Being able to design the dead dragon as a key playable part of the map and not just an aesthetic piece to look at in the vista was very important. I worked closely with Leads, Environmental Artists, and Narrative to figure out how to make the dragon an achievable POI that didnt feel gross to play on and inside of.
The solve was having the arrows that killed the Dragon turn the Dragon to a hardened rock material, so instead of walking on flesh, it was solidified rock flesh and bones, with a bright yellow crystallization, giving the interior of the dragon belly and throat a mesmerizing cave feeling.
For the most unique playing map possible, I designed the Dragon's mouth to be an elevated sniping position that overlooked the entire center of the map. Players used the teeth as cover, and the lip as an exterior deck that connected ziplines to each team's side of the map and one to a neutral middle combat area, for predictable ways up to the mouth quickly, encouraging varying options to win fights around the elevated Dragon positions.
These strong vantage points and elevated positions on the Dragon created fresh engagements types for Highguard unique to this map, which demanded mastery in the map's design (cover placement, line of sight blockers, frontline engagement designs, and Player routing options) that gave players on the elevated positions an advantage, but weren't impossible to overcome and fight back from on the key areas they overlooked.
Designing for Better Intercept Engagements:
With the goal of creating a map that mainstreamed the Intercept phase, allowing planting and intercepting the Shield Breaker in the open world more predictable to strategize around and actionable, the design of the map revolved heavily around clearer frontlines for Attackers, the team with the Shield Breaker, and Defenders to push up and back from as Attackers pushed towards their base.
The shorter distance from the POIs to each Base allowed planting the Shield Breaker a more achievable task off good plays, and easier for Defenders to retake the Shield Breaker from Attackers when they could out play them.
This map was AWESOME to design and play, mixing a great theme with truly unique gameplay for a PvP experience unlike any other, and elevated Highguard's Raid Mode to new heights (no pun intended).
I will post more about this unreleased map in the future, with videos of the map from internal playtests, to show how the map really played and how it executed a strong theme into a balanced multiplayer environment.
You can check out more pictures/info about this unreleased map here from one of the Environmental Artist's ArtStation post: Jobye-Kyle Karmaker
Bases
Bases are skirmish-sized maps that players defend and attack during Raids. Bases are the environments within the dome that Players fight within to plant and blow up the objectives.
Each Base has 3 objectives:
Each base offers various destructible walls that Players can rebuild and Reinforce with Iron, making them harder for Attackers to destroy. These destructible pieces were made with a kit all bases are designed with.
With different themes and layouts, bases offer a wide range of possibilities and unique playstyles. Early base exploration during Highguard's development led to a lot of realizations for the game's lore and IP's narrative.
Each Base has 3 objectives:
- Two Generators: Results in base receiving -35 health upon detonation and has 40 second timers
- Anchor Stone: Results in automatic win if detonated but has 80 second timer with no checkpoints
- No checkpoints = if defused, even at 1 second, timer for when it is replanted will reset to 80 seconds
Each base offers various destructible walls that Players can rebuild and Reinforce with Iron, making them harder for Attackers to destroy. These destructible pieces were made with a kit all bases are designed with.
With different themes and layouts, bases offer a wide range of possibilities and unique playstyles. Early base exploration during Highguard's development led to a lot of realizations for the game's lore and IP's narrative.
Soul Well
Soul Well is an ancient fortress built upon a ritual relic. With an elevated altar for strong sightlines, fortified subterranean room, and a hardened rear keep, this forsaken fortress is capable of claiming even the strongest of souls.
Gameplay Designs:
Soul Well is a symmetrical base with varying elevation for a fortified highground for Defenders that overlooks all objectives.
The two generators are located in the front two buildings of the base, while the Anchor Stone is kept in the back building that stretches across the back of the base, for a long, open corridor fight.
The center, ritual altar acts as an elevated stage for Defenders to use as a vantage point, as well as navigate between all objective locations quickly from an elevated position.
Gameplay Designs:
Soul Well is a symmetrical base with varying elevation for a fortified highground for Defenders that overlooks all objectives.
The two generators are located in the front two buildings of the base, while the Anchor Stone is kept in the back building that stretches across the back of the base, for a long, open corridor fight.
The center, ritual altar acts as an elevated stage for Defenders to use as a vantage point, as well as navigate between all objective locations quickly from an elevated position.
Cloudreach
Cloudreach is a Blimp Hangar base.
This base has a large airship docked high above the ground, with the Anchor Stone in the cargo hold of the ship itself. The deck surrounding the airship overlooks the entire area, giving defenders an elevated position to snipe from, but allows quick repositioning to both generator rooms, where combat quickly turns close quarters.
There are small ventilation shafts leading to both Generator locations, allowing Defenders to keep Attackers off the Generators from the safety of their elevated positionings with well thrown grenades, which feels awesome to pull off!
Gameplay Designs:
Defenders are strongly encouraged to stay on their elevated vantage points to keep Attackers at bay around the parameter of the base, with the key positioning being on the airship and Generator buildings' roofs for optimal success and key Lines of Sight.
As Attackers have to cross wide open spaces overlooked by the Defender's elevated vantage points, I had to design the base with critical cover and frontlines players engage from so the base wasn't impossible to attack. I placed buildings along the parameter of the base that Attackers are encourage to break into & engage from, creating critical engagement spots for Attackers to fight from and safely make their way to the back of the base, where the Generators are located.
The Generators are located on the ground level in close-quartered buildings with long corridor hallway fights, changing the base's engagement style from open, longer lines of sight to more close ranged engagements around the objectives.
In order for Defenders to successfully watch over the generators from their elevated positions, I designed small grenade ventilation shafts that lead to both Generator locations. Defenders can throw grenades into the openings near their elevated positions that drop grenades at the generator locations, killing or heavily damaging Attackers planting on their generators for a easier time clearing them out as they make the transition into the objective buildings from their high ground.
This base has a large airship docked high above the ground, with the Anchor Stone in the cargo hold of the ship itself. The deck surrounding the airship overlooks the entire area, giving defenders an elevated position to snipe from, but allows quick repositioning to both generator rooms, where combat quickly turns close quarters.
There are small ventilation shafts leading to both Generator locations, allowing Defenders to keep Attackers off the Generators from the safety of their elevated positionings with well thrown grenades, which feels awesome to pull off!
Gameplay Designs:
Defenders are strongly encouraged to stay on their elevated vantage points to keep Attackers at bay around the parameter of the base, with the key positioning being on the airship and Generator buildings' roofs for optimal success and key Lines of Sight.
As Attackers have to cross wide open spaces overlooked by the Defender's elevated vantage points, I had to design the base with critical cover and frontlines players engage from so the base wasn't impossible to attack. I placed buildings along the parameter of the base that Attackers are encourage to break into & engage from, creating critical engagement spots for Attackers to fight from and safely make their way to the back of the base, where the Generators are located.
The Generators are located on the ground level in close-quartered buildings with long corridor hallway fights, changing the base's engagement style from open, longer lines of sight to more close ranged engagements around the objectives.
In order for Defenders to successfully watch over the generators from their elevated positions, I designed small grenade ventilation shafts that lead to both Generator locations. Defenders can throw grenades into the openings near their elevated positions that drop grenades at the generator locations, killing or heavily damaging Attackers planting on their generators for a easier time clearing them out as they make the transition into the objective buildings from their high ground.
