Skijoring
Skijoring is a fast-paced co-op arcade skiing game where players are strapped together, crash into each other, and race downhill to escape an oncoming avalanche. Inspired by stylish arcade racers like Mario Kart DS and Hydro Thunder, the game celebrates split-screen chaos, momentum-driven movement, and playful competition.
Project Info
Tools: Unreal Engine, GitHub, Figma
Team Size: 16
Duration: September 2025 - present
Role: Game Designer
Designed and built a full playable level, Skijora Borealis, from initial concept and Figma prototype through Unreal Engine implementation
Sculpted terrain using Unreal’s Landscape tools and implemented splines, foliage, and PCG components
Created multiple viable paths with strategically placed slaloms, scoring gates, and obstacles to support risk–reward decisions
Iteratively playtested and balanced routes while collaborating with other designers to maintain consistent difficulty, flow, and fun across levels
Developmental Process
Skijoring started as a summer game jam, with myself joining later in the fall. I created my own unique level using a previously established level design pipeline. I began by exploring layout ideas in Figma, which allowed for my initial experimentation with branching paths. Once the layout felt solid, I moved into Unreal Engine to block out terrain. After, I added gameplay elements like splines, foliage and PCG components as well as scoring elements. Frequent playtesting helped solves issues with uneven difficulty between routes, and collision or landscape bugs.
Iterative Level Design: Repeated cycles of playtesting and team feedback were used to refine terrain, routes, and scoring elements, improving balance, clarity, and overall player experience
Level Design Pipeline: Level development progressed from early sketches and Figma prototypes into Unreal Engine blockouts and final environmental dressing
Results
Designing Skijora Borealis was my first experience building a large level in Unreal Engine. Through this project, I developed a stronger understanding of how Unreal Engine specific terrain works. I was also pushed to think critically about readability, player choice, and fun works while going through a level at high speeds. I also continued to strengthen my ability to collaborate with a large multidisciplinary team. I left the project way more confident in Unreal and better equipped to design levels in the engine.
Documents Used
Level Prototype (Figma): Used to plan layout, branching paths, and pacing before engine implementation
Level Design Pipeline Doc: : Referenced to guide new level creation and maintain consistency in structure, difficulty, and readability across all levels
Skijora Borealis gameplay
