# Polako I > [!INFO] Level Design Doc > **Designer**: Nikita Stulikov > **Teacher**: Kim Nutter > **Sequel**: [[NEPOBJEDIVI/ENVIRONMENTS/Levels/Polako II|Polako II]] > **Drafts**: [[Polako_ Drafts & Ideas]] (for internal use) > > ![[ATTACHMENTS/MAPS/Polako_I/In-Game/Top-down_Screenshot_NoMountain.png]] ## Overview Map ![[ATTACHMENTS/MAPS/Polako_I/ExteriorOverview.jpg]] ## Mission Description *"Polako"* is a popular Balkan expression translating as "calm down" or "haste makes waste". The game's **story** is a reversed Odyssey: the player character journeys across contemporary Southern Europe to discover what "home" means to them, and create it. Each level is a new location with an odd, comedic premise that follows the "stranger than fiction" theme. The current **mid-game level** starts as the character comes to after a sun-stroke, in an old town. In a half-dream, it seems to the character that they’re talking to cats. But the cats don’t understand English, and believe the character is an alien. “Polako,” the cats meow. The **goal** of the level is to infiltrate an “alien ship” and fly home. By the end of the mission, the player reaches the “flying saucers,” which turn out to be an oddly shaped brutalist hypermarket. The heatstroke heightened the character’s social anxiety. When exposed to crowds, the level will restart from the last checkpoint (**enemy AI**). The level references the Montenegrin walled town of Kotor, known as the “Town of Cats.” Tiny but culturally diverse, it features Roman, Byzantine, and Renaissance **architecture** from the 6th to the 19th centuries. In the second part of the mission, the player reaches the industrial and brutalist outskirts built during the Yugoslav communist era. Notably, the old town’s assets can be reused in the modular design of the brick brutalist districts. The level is brightly **lit** by the burning midday sun, follows a realistic **style** and uses a vivid subtropical **palette** of lush foliage, terracotta roofs, and sun-bleached limestone. The **pacing** leads the player from Renaissance architecture into uninviting industrial and then grim brutalist districts. To ensure **multiple solutions**, there are 4 balanced challenge lanes leading to the game's objective. Each features unique, thematically cohesive **traversal challenges**, including enemy AI, mazes, locked doors, item collection, stealth infiltration, pursuit, and parkour. For details, please see the dedicated walkthrough map for each lane. #### **ToDo** - [ ] Avatar should be talle - [ ] Add NPCs for the mountain lane - [ ] Ensure the player cannot pass through objects - [ ] Fix camera clipping ## Walkthrough Maps ##### Overview ![[ATTACHMENTS/MAPS/Polako_I/Interior_Overview.jpg]] ##### Lane A (Tourist): [[ATTACHMENTS/MAPS/Polako_I/Walkthrough_LaneA.jpg|Map A]] ##### Lane B (Dog): [[ATTACHMENTS/MAPS/Polako_I/Walkthrough_LaneB.jpg|Map B]] ##### Lane C (Hermit): [[ATTACHMENTS/MAPS/Polako_I/Walkthrough_LaneC.jpg|Map C]] ##### Lane D (Amphibian): [[ATTACHMENTS/MAPS/Polako_I/Walkthrough_LaneD.jpg|Map D]] ## Reference ![[ATTACHMENTS/MAPS/Polako_I/Reference_Board.jpg]] ### Literary Reference **Games** - MGS, Gloomwood, Splinter Cell - [Odd Town](https://store.steampowered.com/app/2688780/Odd_Town?snr=1_25_4__318) (immersive sim in a semi-open world, a small town) **Story** - [The Man from Earth](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0756683/) (2007)