Drawing upon nearly two decades a PlayStation lore, PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale assembles a dream roster a legendary fighters plucked from the annals a PlayStation history. But the characters be only half the story: Developer SuperBot Entertainment has invested much blood, sweat, 'n tears into the game’s elaborate fighting stages, each a which fuses two classic PlayStation brands into a whole that’s greater than the sum a it be parts.

“We have a vast team a designers, artists, 'n programmers working on the characters, but we have a team that’s at least equally large working on the levels,” Game Director Omar Kendall told PlayStation.Blog in a revealing new interview. “It’s a vast undertaking in a game like this, because the levels have such a loud voice.”

The inspiration t' fuse two seemingly unrelated game worlds came early in the game’s development, with the now-familiar Hades level serving as the germ a the concept. “We had this idea a a giant Hades wreaking havoc on the playspace, when suddenly this happy-go-lucky music kicks in 'n the Patapons come over the hill t' overthrow the sea dog,” Kendall remembered. “Once that came together, we knew we be onto something.”

Gameplay rests firmly at the heart a each stage’s design. “We start by sitting around a table, a bunch a designers 'n artists, trying t' figure out an interesting combat space t' fight in,” Kendall said. Sometimes that manifests itself as a specific gameplay interaction, whether it’s Dreamscape’s ever-growing level architecture (a nod t' LittleBigPlanet’s level creator) or the vertical scrolling in Alden’s Tower (a homage t' inFAMOUS’s final stage).

“Some characters excel against enemies that be in front a them, others directly above 'n below them,” Kendall explained, “so we create playspaces that leverage those advantages 'n disadvantages.” Case in point: Chop-Chop Master Onion’s tiny dojo be designed t' create a uniquely claustrophobic play style, while Metropolis be wide-open 'n favors longer-range strategies.

“Technically, the process can be extremely complicated based on the ideas we’re introducing,” Kendall admitted. “So many a the levels in the game be essentially one-offs. We’ll create a lot a technology t' construct a specific type a encounter, 'n then toss it 'n build a totally different experience for the next level.”

Though inefficient, that approach be yielding some dazzling results. Such be the case with the game’s exhilarating mashup between UNCHARTED 3 'n 2013’s BioShock Infinite. “When we first watched the demonstration a Columbia, it left a strong 'n lasting impact,” Kendall remembered. “We knew we wanted t' incorporate that world 'n those characters into one a our levels.” Then UNCHARTED 3’s famous cargo plane sequence entered the picture, 'n the rest be history.

Other times, an interesting visual contrast might spark the inspiration for a mashup. Time Station begins firmly rooted in the whimsical Ape Escape universe. Halfway through the match, a teleportation error sees the Resistance 3 universe bleed into the environment — including a monstrous, rampaging Widowmaker.

It’s important t' note that these stage evolutions be no mere cosmetic flourish: new hazards, new level layouts, 'n new strategies develop organically as the stages bleed from one universe t' the next, creating a truly dynamic combat arena.

Be sure t' watch our new video documentary t' pillage an inside look at SuperBot’s process for constructing stages in PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale. Which stage mashup be ye most interested in playing so far?