BATUHAN BEKCIOGULLARI
Level Designer & Game Designer
© 2026 Batuhan Bekciogullari. All rights reserved.
CONNECTED
Thanks for reaching out!
Your message has been sent successfully,
and I’ll respond as soon as I can.
Dear Mailman
LEVEL DESIGN & ENVIRONMENTAL- STORYTELLING
Story Summary
On a cold, snowy night, you arrive on a secluded island as the new mailman. But this is no ordinary delivery.Before handing over each letter, you must read them, immersing yourself in the personal stories and
secrets of the villagers. As you peek through windows and explore the empty streets, you uncover fragments of their lives, heartbreak, loss, and secrets.The deeper you delve, the more you realize your role is not just to deliver letters but to unravel the unsettling truths hidden within this silent, snow-covered village.
Context
UNIVERSITY PROJECT
MAY 2023 - JULY 2023
FIRST-PERSON HORROR
PC
UNREAL ENGINE 5
TEAM SIZE: 6
Responsibilities
LANDSCAPING THE ISLAND
BLOCKOUT THE ISLAND
FLOWCHART
POINTS OF INTEREST
SET DRESSING
LIGHTING
The Island
Landscaping
Developed the world of Dear Mailman, a fictional winter island inspired by Swedish landscapes.
Sculpted and iterated terrain in Unreal Engine 5 from blockout to final polish.
Incorporated authentic elevation shifts and hillside village layouts.
Used verticality to enhance depth, layering, and environmental storytelling.
Controlled sightlines to reveal roads, frame landmarks, and guide navigation.
Balanced environmental authenticity with gameplay readability.
Blockout
Playtested scale/ proportions of buildings and other assets (Handover for 3D-Artists).
Planned out the infrastructure.
Implemented homes and other points of interest
Used Miro to storyboard and iterate level flow before asset implementation.
Guidance
Rodes and Paths
Designed player guidance for a semi-open world structure with free exploration but gated progression.
Implemented a main route using Unreal Engine’s spline tool, with short branching paths to encourage exploration and discovery.
Balanced freedom of movement with structured progression to prevent players from rushing through content.
Ensuring the Storyflow
Each letter contains personal information and stories about the villagers. The players pull out the letters in a destined order; after delivering a letter, the next one is automatically drawn.
Split the island into three sections to mirror the three story acts and each section has only one entrance.
Act 1: Introduction to the village, biggest space on the island to discover hidden details and trigger events.
Act 2: Letters get darker and more serious. Long eerie walk from house 6 to house 7 to build up tension towards the final.
Act 3: Climax of the game. Final disturbing letter, smallest section the give the urgency of wanting to escape. Last cutscene.
Flowchart
Hills, Boulders and Trees are precisely used, not just to decorate the environment, but, most importantly, to obscure content in the distance, which the players are not supposed to go to just yet.
Roads and light posts hint at the right direction and help the player get back on track after wandering around.
The foreground, middle ground, and background give depth to the level, tease future discoveries, and create an aesthetic and intriguing scenery.
All of these features are used to funnel the player along a dedicated path and to keep the planned narrative pacing
(considering things like placing the next house just at the right distance to comfortably listen to the letters).
Flowchart Screenshots are taken in a brighter setting.
Points of Interest
POI´s can be landmarks like the big mountain, buildings like the local church, mundane areas like a parking lot or deliberately placed
worldbuilding details like a hidden bunker. Some POI´s are active gameplay features that aid the player with their orientation,
like the local church up on the hill, and others are narrative hints/ worldbuilding elements.
Set Dressing
Set dressed the level using environment assets from Quixel Megascans and custom assets made by our 3D-Artists.
Lighting
Built up the global illumination to go along with the kuwahara post processing filter present in the game.
Arranged street lamps as practical- and mood-lighting.
Gate Out!
LEVEL DESIGN & GAME DESIGN
Story Summary
Today is just another ordinary day, right? …Right? Well, it turns out that’s not the case.There’s been a malfunction in the facility: the cooling unit has broken down, and it’s your job to investigate.
While you’re on this task, you discover a small robot encased in ice-his name is O.B. After successfully freeing him,
you realize you’ve lost your way back. The only route available isthrough a mysterious “Gate,” a portal to an unknown location. Luckily, O.B. can activate these Gates, and with his assistance, you’ll need to work together to navigate
the bizarre facility and find your escape.
Context
UNIVERSITY PROJECT
OCTOBER 2024ㅤ-ㅤMARCH 2025
FIRST-PERSON PUZZLE-PLATFORMER
PC
UNREAL ENGINE 5
SOLO PROJECT/ BACHELOR
Responsibilities
GYM LEVEL
CONCEPT
SCRIPTING TRIGGER EVENTS
BLOCKOUT
Prototyping
Concept
I wanted to recreate the funny and charming vibe of known puzzle-platformers like Portal and Quantum Conundrum.
With the help of the different mechanics the Interaction System Starter Pack offered, like pressure plates, doors, physics objects, breakable objects,
and other tools, I was able to create a concept that revolved around the small robot Oh-Bi. After saving Oh-Bi, you are forced to team up with him
because he is the only one who can activate and open the gates that lead to the next level. On top of that, Oh-Bi can and has to be used for
the puzzles ahead, so don't leave him behind.
Only with Oh-Bi at their side are the players able to escape.
Gym Level
For this project I used the Interaction System Starter Pack by Koalafied Dev from the Unreal Engine Marketplace as a starting point.
Tested out different ways to utilize items and mechanics.
Evaluated time budget and scope for a four month long production period.
Scripting
Trigger Events
Made basic sound trigger events for sound effects and voice line cues.
Developed the Gates using data layers, each containing all assets for a level, creating an environment transition effect when passing through the gate.
Workflow
Text First
I adopted Steve Lee’s approach of designing the level in text first to overcome the “blank canvas” problem at the beginning of every design process.
This is a fast and direct method to get into a design flow.
The end result may vary, but it is a good way to get an overview of the mechanics, ideas, and themes.
Level 1
GOALS
Create a level for my designproject
Create something for my portfolio
Showcase level design skills, such as:
Gameplay and idea implementation
Scripting
Narrative and puzzle design
The level should be short (approx. 2–4 minutes)
ELEMENTS
Pressure Plates
Synced Buttons
Grabbable Objects
Breakable Objects
Slots
Oh-Bi (companion/object)
SEQUENCE
The level starts with the player falling into a prison
The player and Oh-Bi. are trapped inside
The player sees a glass barrier but cannot pass through it
Oh-Bi.: “I’m trapped and I can’t get out on my own”
O.B. hints that the glass can be broken
The player breaks the glass with Oh-Bi
The next room becomes visible
Around the corner, there is a locked door
The door is visually connected to a pressure plate
Placing Oh-Bi on the pressure plate opens the door, but behind it is a wall with a slot
Oh-Bi needs to go into the slot but cannot stay on the pressure plate
The player must find a replacement for Oh-Bi
Open the door
Insert Oh-Bi into the slot
The level ends with the player and Oh-Bi escaping from this room
Level 2
GOALS
The player gets a mysterious impression of the next room/ level before reaching the gate
Upon passing through the gate, the player is surprised by how the two rooms are interconnected
Oh-Bi must be part of the puzzle
A more complex puzzle
Level 2 should have a sandbox feel
Light platforming elements
Multiple layers and/or floors
ELEMENTS
Oh-Bi
Smashable Glass
Pressure Plates
Gun
Slots
Platforms
SEQUENCE
The player stands in front of the gate
Looks through it and gets an impression of the next room (R02)
The player walks through the gate
(R02) loads
The gate door closes
(R01) unloads
(R02) is activated
Oh-Bi falls down on the other side of the gate
The player is now on the other side of the gate in (R02)
Picks up Oh-Bi
Turns around and sees the rest of the level
Walks past the gate
Realizes that the initial impression was misleading
Explores the level to find the next gate
Blockout
Built up base level structure using Unreal Engine 5's modeling tool and the text-based design as a guide.
Iterated upon different scales and spacing of the level while considering the timing for sound triggers.
Constructed an interlocking level design for a smooth transition.
Reignbreaker
GAME DESIGN INTERNSHIP
Story Summary
"In Reignbreaker, players wreak havoc on a dystopian kingdom as Clef, a child soldier turned anarchist rebel.From deep within the gothic sprawl of the Queen’s domain, Clef smashes through legions of hostile high-tech
medieval machines to breach the inner sanctums of the Bastion, a giant fortress where the unimaginable riches
of the elite are stored. Players must plunder the coffers of the Bastion, smash the kingdom and become The Reignbreaker."- ©Studio Fizbin
PLAY REIGNBREAKER on STEAM!
Context
INTERNSHIP
OCTOBER 2022ㅤ-ㅤMARCH 2023
3RD PERSON ROGUE-LIKE PC
UNITY
AT STUDIO FIZBIN
Responsibilities
BUILDING MECHANICS
ABILITY & COMBAT RESEARCH
BALANCING ENEMY STATS
DESIGNING HANDOVERS AND COLLABORATING WITH THE DEVS AND ARTISTS
Core Contributions
Overview
During my Game Design internship at Studio Fizbin , I worked on the early-stages of Reignbreaker, an 2.5D action roguelike, focusing on combat systems, gameplay iteration, and mechanic implementation. I had the pleasure to collaborated closely with the Design- and Engineering-Team to develop and integrate new gameplay features using custom Unity tools.
Designed and iterated on core combat mechanics using a custom Timeline-based system
Created and tested greybox combat scenarios and enemy setups to evaluate gameplay flow
Conducted first balancing pass on combat stats
Implemented gameplay features directly in Unity using custom in-house tools
Integrated audio into animation timelines to improve combat feedback and responsiveness
Conducted game design research on skills, builds, and reference games; documented insights in Confluence and spreadsheets
Created detailed design briefings to communicate mechanics and technical requirements to developers
Collaborated cross-discipline with programmers and designers in an iterative workflow
Feature Ownership
Overview
The Peashooter weapon mod concept was provided by the Game Director.
I was responsible for developing the initial design, implementing the mechanic, and iterating on it through playtesting.
Peashooter
Translated a high-level concept into a fully specified gameplay system
Designed and implemented three interconnected attack variants (manual, throw, stomp)
Iterated on mechanics to balance gameplay clarity, system depth, and technical constraints
Implemented the feature using Unity Timeline and custom tooling
Delivered production-ready design documentation enabling efficient implementation
