Game level designer Richard Gray dies after decades in game development

Video game designer Richard Gray, known online by his handle Levelord, has died, Kotaku reported. News of his death was shared online by his wife, according to Kotaku. Apogee Entertainment and individuals close to Gray also confirmed the news. [1]

Gray was an American video game designer who was best known for designing levels for three-dimensional video games. He was one of the two principal level designers on Duke Nukem 3D alongside Allen Blum, and also designed levels for SiN and Quake. [1][4]

Gray did not begin creating maps in games such as Doom until he was 35 years old, Kotaku reported from a 2016 interview. He joined the Duke Nukem 3D development team at 3D Realms in his 40s. During the development of the expansion for Duke Nukem 3D, he left 3D Realms to co-found the studio that became Ritual Entertainment. [1][4]

Ritual Entertainment worked on the first mission pack for Quake, titled Scourge of Armagon. Quake was originally developed by id Software and published by GT Interactive in 1996. Gray spent his later years living in Moscow. [1][3][4]