Recently I have been working on prop models for my mod: The Nightmare Chronicles
And I decided that it might be useful to provide some insight into the process of placing prop models to make a level look and feel more interesting.
Building inviting virtual worlds can be difficult. Beginning level designers have a tendency to forget about details that help make a video game level feel more alive. Basic maps are entirely brush geometry and are not particularly attractive like fy_iceworld (no offense to the make of that map, it is still fun to play on). Something that can help make a level much more realistic or intriguing is prop models. The simplest form of these is crates and barrels. They can break up long hallways and provide cover but they are often overused. However, some well placed props can really liven the place up. Take for instance this room:
It is rather bleak and empty. This makes it feel unnatural and bland. It doesn't draw the player in, which in this case helps set the mood, by making the player want to escape from the room. But normally you want the player to want to explore an area. You don't want people running from your game because it was uninteresting. Scattering some models around can create a feeling of natural clutter, like an attic full of lost treasures that people will want to dig through and explore every corner.
In the above picture, there is a virtual smorgasbord of interesting models that make the spaced look almost lived in. Proper prop placement will make a game level look real while poor prop placement will make it look fake and dead. A good rule of thumb is to have some models at random angles or slightly unaligned from the perpendicular grid. People always move things and leave them randomly. Tables and chairs should never be perfectly straight. For example, If you are making a mall food court some tables should have 5 chairs while others have 3 or 4, some tables can even be missing all the chairs around them. This is because through normal use, people will drag chairs to other tables to accommodate larger groups. And lets face it, People are lazy, so they don't put them back. So having chairs strewn about in random bunches in a game level help to make it feel more real.
Another things that really helps sell the idea of a game world being alive is to have moving things in it. The world is not static, people and animals are always moving, cars and trucks are always on the move, and even plants are blown around in the breeze. If you have the time to add some dynamic models to your level it, is well worth it and will help create a level of polish that will make your work stand out from the static crowd of amateur level designers.
So to sum up:
1: add some models, even if its just crates.
2: knock shit over, people are messy and your level design should be too.
3: stuff moves and so should things in your levels
