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Post by Snowflake on Mar 4, 2017 20:07:47 GMT -5
You know you're my hero, right?
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ZPOC
Mar 4, 2017 21:32:05 GMT -5
Leon35 likes this
Post by Hanyoutai on Mar 4, 2017 21:32:05 GMT -5
I really enjoy games that have independent NPCs that you're supposed to 'work' with, even if it's as simple as following them around. I was really excited to see that other Shieldy slide out from behind the building, and the subsequent reaction of our red shieldy. Very nicely done.
Also agree with the way the pilot picture is handled. Frankly, while its an interesting-ish concept for the anime, it's not so great from a gameplay perspective where keeping your screen clear is rather important to not getting shot in the face (a plot point that can go conveniently ignored in an animated series.) This is a much more logical choice to go with.
Probably one of my favorite progress videos yet. So many nice things added that'll bring a lot to the game, including the core explosions/warnings.
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ZPOC
Mar 5, 2017 10:36:54 GMT -5
via mobile
Post by Leon35 on Mar 5, 2017 10:36:54 GMT -5
From a technical aspect alone, I am impressed that your game handles all of its lighting so well. I cant see any noticible frame rate drops during combat!
I love all the changes. Masteruflly done.
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ZPOC
Mar 5, 2017 12:50:22 GMT -5
Post by CISsuperdroid on Mar 5, 2017 12:50:22 GMT -5
Wow, I am certainly impressed with the combat thus far! I never really got a good feel from the training video, but man, this is VERY nice!!!
The sliding mechanic is certainly useful in the rather cramped city-quarters, and I liked the momentum from the disabled Zoids who were shot down while running. Their ragdoll effects were pretty fun, too!
My one criticism thus far with the mechanics in general would still be that the hangtime from jumps still seems too long to me, regardless of mass/surface area/air resistance. Still, this is all fine work; keep it up!
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Post by Snowflake on Mar 5, 2017 20:51:20 GMT -5
I think the reason hangtime looks so long is because of the scale. When you see an airplane take off it looks like it's way, way too slow.. because it's the size of two and a half blue whales. If it moved at the same "body-lengths per second" as, say, a bird flying, it would be going into orbit
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ZPOC
Mar 6, 2017 18:02:51 GMT -5
Post by CISsuperdroid on Mar 6, 2017 18:02:51 GMT -5
Lol, I see what you mean- since during that jump, it's all relative to Zoid-sized objects (high roads, town streets), and without recognizable objects to compare to (cars, people), it SEEMS like a really long time, when obviously Zoids are huge.
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ZPOC
Mar 6, 2017 19:29:42 GMT -5
Post by lordofdragons on Mar 6, 2017 19:29:42 GMT -5
Lol, I see what you mean- since during that jump, it's all relative to Zoid-sized objects (high roads, town streets), and without recognizable objects to compare to (cars, people), it SEEMS like a really long time, when obviously Zoids are huge. Use the trees then try guessing from how high up you both jumped down from
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ZPOC
Mar 7, 2017 0:01:42 GMT -5
Post by Vig on Mar 7, 2017 0:01:42 GMT -5
Oh the glass buildings are so beautiful I love the city environment! With the raised roads it feels like I'm in an episode of fuzors.
The computer zoids are such characters, keep going down that path! The reaction of the Red Blade liger after it's friend was shot lmao, Genosaurer was like a cute companion or team mate until blown away to which of course, I must say was a very nice destructive scene, so many parts blow off in that beam there, very impressive.
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ZPOC
Mar 7, 2017 12:30:42 GMT -5
cougan likes this
Post by lordofdragons on Mar 7, 2017 12:30:42 GMT -5
Oh the glass buildings are so beautiful I love the city environment! With the raised roads it feels like I'm in an episode of fuzors. The computer zoids are such characters, keep going down that path! The reaction of the Red Blade liger after it's friend was shot lmao, Genosaurer was like a cute companion or team mate until blown away to which of course, I must say was a very nice destructive scene, so many parts blow off in that beam there, very impressive. Let's say it's by far not the last you've seen of Reavon and his Geno... but more I won't say right now.
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Post by lordofdragons on Mar 12, 2017 13:16:51 GMT -5
For those interested in Engine Technology (or getting a bit of insight how the Drag[en]gine works, the engine behind ZPOC) a little video about "Constructed Textures".
This could be used for example by Modders to create variations of zoids. ZPOC will be fully modable by the way. I don't like games that can not be modded.
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Post by lordofdragons on Apr 2, 2017 11:36:45 GMT -5
( >> Twitter post << ) A little something about AI. What I want to achieve here is especially an AI which is not totally stupid or unnaturally god-like like most games have them. I'm looking for a more "natural" aiming behavior. Typically aiming is done by simply adding a random jitter to the aiming direction with larger or smaller angle depending in difficulty settings. This doesn't make sense here since shots leave the barrel where it actually is pointing. Randomly jittering due to "aiming idiocy" feels wrong. So here is how it goes. First weapons have inertia. A small and light weapon can be quickly swung around to point at a target. It allows for players in agile zoids to aim while dashing around. The damage is not too big but such a play-style focus more on dodging attacks than going for high DPS or Tanking. Heavy weapons on the other hand are heavy and swing around slowly. This is due to the mechanics having to sustain the heavy forces acting on the sockets. This is not suitable for hit-and-run style play but more for DPS or Tanking players. You need time to aim but once you are in... oh boy. The other part is configurable skills for the AI. I used for the AI a more natural aiming in that they actually have to align their aiming over time. The difference between a n00b and ace pilot is especially how fast he is able to line up the shots. Also for snipers there is a skill for weak-spot guessing. This is the same as with the player. You have to guess by-eye where the sweat spot is located on a target zoid. The AI uses the skills to "guess" at the weak spot location. Again n00bs have difficulty to correctly guess where this location is while an ace pilot knows well where he has to aim at. Combining the two makes up the basic aiming abilities. Obviously an ace pilot in a zoid with a heavy weapon it is not going to be able to play out his abilities since his elite aiming skills are hampered by the slopy weapon. On the other hand an ace pilot in a agile zoid with a light weapon is going to turn you upside down in a matter of moments. So match-up of pilot-skills, zoid-skills and weapons matters a lot. As always comments welcome.
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ZPOC
Apr 2, 2017 19:00:23 GMT -5
Post by Leon35 on Apr 2, 2017 19:00:23 GMT -5
Correct me if I am wrong, but you are really going above and beyond with this! A lot of these design choices go beyond the scope of a mere fan project. You are coding your AI so that they behave like characters. That level of devotion and attention to detail tells me you either don't realize how talented you are (which also means you don't realize that this tech in a AAA title would be awesome), or that this is more than just a fan project.
If it is the latter, give us a hint. PLEASE.
I may be a mathematician, but I am a horrible coder, so to see stuff like this seems extraordinary to me. But if this is genuinely ordinary, I apologize for overplaying you (I know what its like to have people overplay a skill you have for no reason because they don't understand it).
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ZPOC
Apr 3, 2017 15:17:35 GMT -5
Post by Maethius on Apr 3, 2017 15:17:35 GMT -5
This sounds excellent. Lordofdragons! You know, if you needed it, there is a third "human" aspect to marksmanship.... patience. A low level AI might "panic pull" the trigger, throwing his aim off by squeezing off the round before the sights line up with the ideal point on the target. Also, second guessing might cause a gunner to miss his ideal shot and fire too late, missing the target on the other side.
Just a thought, but it seems you've got it in the bag already!
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ZPOC
Apr 3, 2017 16:19:39 GMT -5
Post by lordofdragons on Apr 3, 2017 16:19:39 GMT -5
This sounds excellent. Lordofdragons! You know, if you needed it, there is a third "human" aspect to marksmanship.... patience. A low level AI might "panic pull" the trigger, throwing his aim off by squeezing off the round before the sights line up with the ideal point on the target. Also, second guessing might cause a gunner to miss his ideal shot and fire too late, missing the target on the other side. Just a thought, but it seems you've got it in the bag already! Something along that line I'm thinking about too. I just don't know yet how this can be done in a simple way. I'm not fond of complicated code. Another skill that will be in it will be "reaction time". This will determine how quick a pilot can react to a sudden change of situation. So stuff like, can you surprise a pilot. This will be also interesting to see how this can be done the easy way. Actually there are quite some possibilities to make the AI not behave like an UT99 bot on GodMode . Let's see where this goes to.
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ZPOC
Apr 4, 2017 12:14:57 GMT -5
Post by Maethius on Apr 4, 2017 12:14:57 GMT -5
Isn't there a degree of simple combat AI in UT2004? There were sliders for aggression, accuracy, reaction speed, objectivity (following the level objective), loitering (protecting a post) etc. I don't think I ever played UT99, just 2004. Holy cow, was that really 13 years ago?! I feel old again....
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