---
title: "Half-Life Alyx: Alarms & Jeff Custom Map"
description: "Personal portfolio project of a custom Half-Life: Alyx map"
image: https://www.nelsonlyx.com/hubfs/HLA_Alarms_and_Jeff/alarms_and_jeff_thumbnailgif.gif
---

# Nelson Lee

### Alarms & Jeff

Custom Half-Life: Alyx Map

# Gameplay Trailer

 

## Overview

- Platform: Half-Life: Alyx Steam VR Workshop ([link here](https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2937523553))
- Timespan: 6 weeks
- Playtime: 15-20 minutes
- Engine: Hammer++ Source 2
- Role: Level Design, Prototyping
- Google Sheet [link](https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1QCbvl-Bu5Cimm7FGfKZpWSX1EIsFO41ckCkyPNhFZI8/edit#gid=0)

 

# Horror; Distract, Avoid and Free the Blind Zombie

## [Deck link here](https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/14F8aaa9Z1jgVzsTWYzTXXkJ10VgEKUgy8xWbiwzBNEw/edit?usp=sharing)

## Scripted Sequence of Horror

 

## Jeff Chases the Player - Providing Player Choice and Agency

![1_room3jpg_lighting](https://www.nelsonlyx.com/hs-fs/hubfs/HLA_Alarms_and_Jeff/1_room3jpg_lighting.jpg?width=1280&height=1080&name=1_room3jpg_lighting.jpg)

*Climatic scene in room 3 where players have 3 lanes to choose.*

*Walkthrough of the 3 lanes in actual gameplay.*

 

## Different Endings - Let the Monster Live or Die

*What happens if the player does not kill Jeff.*

*What happens if the player kills Jeff.*

# Level Walkthrough & Breakdown

 

# Level Intention

Layout of the entire level

Level intention sketch of rooms 1 and 2

Level intention sketch of room 3

Level intention sketch of rooms 4 and 5

Level flowchart part 1

Level flowchart part 2

# Iterations after Playtests

## Gating and respecting Systemic Gameplay

*Before: A player confused by Jeff's behavior - 1:32 to 3:36.*

*After: Jeff will no longer stay put in the spot below the alarms to act as a gate. Instead, an airlock behind Jeff is the new gate, which will the player can unlock after solving a series of puzzles.*

 

## Balancing Level Difficulty after Playtesting

![3_playtest_room1_2](https://www.nelsonlyx.com/hs-fs/hubfs/HLA_Alarms_and_Jeff/3_playtest_room1_2.jpg?width=1280&height=1080&name=3_playtest_room1_2.jpg)

*Before: I could not get a sense of the difficulty level that players expect.  
After: Complexity of puzzles was ramped up and scattered all over the 2 floors*

![3_room2_iteration](https://www.nelsonlyx.com/hs-fs/hubfs/HLA_Alarms_and_Jeff/3_room2_iteration.jpg?width=1280&height=1080&name=3_room2_iteration.jpg)

*Current Iteration of rooms 1 and 2: (left) in shaded view, (right) in full gameplay lighting*

# * *Credits

1. [Hear icons created by Freepik - Flaticon](https://www.flaticon.com/free-icons/hear)