Everything starts from an idea. It can be a cool story, a gimmick, or a strong emotional experience. Something relevant to the game.

Once I have the idea, I outline its story to summarize its beginning, goals, conflicts, major plot points, and ending.

I define the key elements - characters, environments, objectives, obstacles, requirements, interactions, and rewards.

I involve other departments to plan the scope - art, programming, audio, writing, level design, QA, and project management.

Once the scope is set, I start the writing process - story beats, descriptions, dialogue, lore items, environmental storytelling.

I move on to mapping the layout and the key objects - start area, NPCs, trigger points, interactions, obstacles, key enemies, etc.

I build the blockout to confine the player's movement on the map. This results in a fully playable level/quest that needs to be tested.

I spice the level up with challenges, enemies, obstacles, rewards, secrets, and collectibles - all while accounting for the balancing needs.

When the level works and feels fine, I replace the blockout with actual assets - key world elements, landmarks, large objects.

Next, I beautify the environment with biome objects - trees, extra lights, vegetation, props, critters, VFX, SFX, ambiance, & decorations.

The last step is to elevate the quest's soul - add NPC barks, puns, behaviour patterns, extra interactions, music, and easter eggs.

Even if the level/quest works properly, we playtest it to "feel" it. Is it fun? Boring? Too easy? Too hard? We iterate until we like it.