No, not those kind of escort. That will come later.
Finished incorporating the path finding AI with the combat AI. So now it's possible to have "escorts" that will follow you and attack nearby enemies. Implemented a couple more AI commands as well, such as attack ground, move to position, and follow.
After some testing I found that in most cases, only 2 commands are needed: attack ground (this works as hold position as well by targeting at your feet) and escort/follow me. So for now I am just going to bind "1" to "attack pos" command and "2" to "escort me" command.
Up next: a hub area and area transitions.
Pincer attacks are the first thing that comes to my mind. AI that is able to avoid it can be too smart and if many can't it can get repetitive fast. No idea how to face this problem, tho.
ReplyDeleteI think the dungeons don't need area transitions. Although more exigent on the PC it will give a more fluid experience. A harder boss in a small dungeon can be a nice hit'n'run challenge and too many artificial cuts would kill this option. Also a fallen enemy moaning like crazy would naturally make more enemies come to see what's so good. In my opinion architecture must be well planned when inserting cuts or not. Cave-in built dungeons shouldn't have very segregated areas (Skyrim makes a huge mistake in this area, natural for its gameplay but still ugly) while some buildings can be a very clear sucession of rooms. Good to "obrigatory" fights as randon and obrigatory can often end up in disaster.
The size of the party is a main factor when building commands. Separating the party in teams to charge or escort makes sense even if just two teammates. The definitions of following distances and if there is the posibility of friendly fire is also to be taken in consideration. As there are weapons it is a very sensitive topic (a naginata slash being used by a escort damaging you would drive anyone mad).
If architecture enters in the scheme of things then music must be also begin to be shaped. I like what Monster Girl Quest done to cut costs as it used public versions of classic pieces in some castles and cities. If the idea is some less sofisticaded world there are pieces of soundtrack from old movies that do well too (old makes it public in most countries, right? Copyright sucks). Open libraries are a wonderful source also.
Escorting can also take away some of the excitment while still being useless against tougher opponents (or even getting in the way). But hey I'm pessimism
Can I kiss the escorts?
ReplyDeleteThat will cost you extra.
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