Cathedral - Unreal Tournament level

Level Design: Magnus Jakobsson
3D artist: Mikael Karlsson

Cathedral is a completely symmetrical map for Unreal Tournament, mainly designed for "Capture The Flag" matches, intended for experienced player with good reflexes.

It quite a small map as far as Unreal Tournament CtF maps go, with only about 100 meters between the flags. The map is designed for quick close quarters combat, with multiple parallel paths and the ability to quickly switch betweens these paths.

The middle path is the shortest path from flag to flag, but has the highest level of threat, tension and tempo, as the player is exposed from al sides, as well as from the top corridors.

The bottom and top corridors, which flank the middle path, offer a lower level of threat, but the tempo and tension are still very high, as enemy players can appear quickly from other paths.

Finally, the side paths are the longest way around and mostly allow players to catch their breath a bit, as well as offer them a more sneaky approach.

Choosing a cathedral theme for this map had some advantages as level design is concerned. Firstly, because there is no large central area where most encounters would occur, players will meet at all places on the map, which requires them to quickly find cover where they can. A cathedral full of archways and pillars is really handy for this. Secondly, this straight simple layout also guides the player towards the flag and back.

The side rooms as well as the sniper rooms are intentionally left for players to discover by themselves. Both require players to slow down order to discover them and the only indication of an entry point into the sniper room is a seemingly malplaced elevator pad.

The flags are also placed in such a way that both attacking and defending players are exposed to enemy fire, forcing defending players to constantly move and thereby decreases the defenders' ability to camp near the flag.