Dynamic Waypoints
StixNStonz
Join Date: 2006-11-06 Member: 58439Members, Reinforced - Shadow
Join Date: 2006-11-06 Member: 58439Members, Reinforced - Shadow
<div class="IPBDescription">as suggested elsewhere</div>It was brought up in another thread, but I felt it deserves its own here.
Dynamic waypoints; i.e., the commander takes a marine in MS and gives him a waypoint to a hive. Currently, the player would see a waypoint a mile away. Dynamic waypoints could fix this.
My suggestion would be to have a mapper entity. The end result would be that the player would see a semi-transparent 'ending' waypoint, but would be given waypoints en route, perhaps around 4. You dont want too many, but not too few.
The mapping entities would be placed one the map is constructed, and would form a sort of layout web. To do this, I would envision the need for two types of entities; a waypoint location entity, and a fork entity (fork in the road).
The mapper would place the waypoint entities are where actual sub-waypoints will be placed, and the fork entities would be placed pretty much exactly at the turn that separates one route option from another. So, in East Junction on Veil, the Fork entity would be placed right in the middle of the four-way intersection (doors to Topo and C12 on the north and east, route to Double and Dome on the west and south).
That way, when the waypoint system is trying to trace the route from the player to the final waypoint, it can follow the chain of waypoints in the direction towards the final waypoint, and when it hits the fork, it has very distinct angles between the separate routes' waypoints.
The mapper could even potentially number each entity, and even create a notepad document showing the waypoint routes for the main paths. If a web was created as such, it would not take long at all for a mapper to input (3-4-6-12-13) is the route from Marine Start to Cargo hive, etc. You could even have multiple routes for each, and give the player or the comm an option to cycle between routes.
Thoughts? Is this actually feasible from a coding perspective?
Dynamic waypoints; i.e., the commander takes a marine in MS and gives him a waypoint to a hive. Currently, the player would see a waypoint a mile away. Dynamic waypoints could fix this.
My suggestion would be to have a mapper entity. The end result would be that the player would see a semi-transparent 'ending' waypoint, but would be given waypoints en route, perhaps around 4. You dont want too many, but not too few.
The mapping entities would be placed one the map is constructed, and would form a sort of layout web. To do this, I would envision the need for two types of entities; a waypoint location entity, and a fork entity (fork in the road).
The mapper would place the waypoint entities are where actual sub-waypoints will be placed, and the fork entities would be placed pretty much exactly at the turn that separates one route option from another. So, in East Junction on Veil, the Fork entity would be placed right in the middle of the four-way intersection (doors to Topo and C12 on the north and east, route to Double and Dome on the west and south).
That way, when the waypoint system is trying to trace the route from the player to the final waypoint, it can follow the chain of waypoints in the direction towards the final waypoint, and when it hits the fork, it has very distinct angles between the separate routes' waypoints.
The mapper could even potentially number each entity, and even create a notepad document showing the waypoint routes for the main paths. If a web was created as such, it would not take long at all for a mapper to input (3-4-6-12-13) is the route from Marine Start to Cargo hive, etc. You could even have multiple routes for each, and give the player or the comm an option to cycle between routes.
Thoughts? Is this actually feasible from a coding perspective?
Comments
That's one of those things that seems simple but would be really hard to implement in practice. It would be cool if the devs spent time making AI stuff like this because it would make the game more intuitive but it's not "just make an intelligent line". Granted pathfinding is a pretty well known problem, but I'd imagine there'd either have to be non-trivial parsing of maps to make nodes and distances, or mappers would have to include this information upfront. Not impossible by any means, but much trickier than giving the commander chainable straight line wp as suggested.
AI pathfinding would be implemented regardless of whether this feature gets the cut or not. Weldbots are AI controlled units.
I alternatively suggest implementing some sort of compass system or seeing those way points in a larger master map.
There should be an option player-side to turn off dynamic waypoints at will, to replace it with the current 'final destination' waypoint system.
Plus I assume dyn waypoints would only show 1 or 2 waypoints at a time - the 'next' waypoint, and the 'final' waypoint.
<!--quoteo(post=1666197:date=Jan 4 2008, 07:24 AM:name=Dark Rage)--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Dark Rage @ Jan 4 2008, 07:24 AM) <a href="index.php?act=findpost&pid=1666197"><{POST_SNAPBACK}></a></div><div class='quotemain'><!--quotec-->I alternatively suggest implementing some sort of compass system<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->
Isn't that really pretty much the same as a 'final destination' waypoint, that we have now? it's not completely the same, but it works out the same.
<!--quoteo(post=1666197:date=Jan 4 2008, 07:24 AM:name=Dark Rage)--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Dark Rage @ Jan 4 2008, 07:24 AM) <a href="index.php?act=findpost&pid=1666197"><{POST_SNAPBACK}></a></div><div class='quotemain'><!--quotec-->or seeing those way points in a larger master map.<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->
I thought we already had this?
True, if weldbots make it in the final game then automatic pathfinding waypoints such as suggested wouldn't take much more work and would be pretty nifty. That's a pretty big if though because if there's any reason the weldbots wouldn't make the cut, it would be because the pathfinding sucks.
<!--quoteo(post=1666231:date=Jan 3 2008, 10:37 PM:name=Harimau)--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Harimau @ Jan 3 2008, 10:37 PM) <a href="index.php?act=findpost&pid=1666231"><{POST_SNAPBACK}></a></div><div class='quotemain'><!--quotec-->There should be an option player-side to turn off dynamic waypoints at will, to replace it with the current 'final destination' waypoint system.
Plus I assume dyn waypoints would only show 1 or 2 waypoints at a time - the 'next' waypoint, and the 'final' waypoint.<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->
I agree, that way, if a marine skips a couple/all but the last WP they would just clear. I would make it the 'closest' and final waypoints instead of the 'next' waypoint though.
Good point.
<!--quoteo(post=1666287:date=Jan 5 2008, 01:46 AM:name=locallyunscene)--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(locallyunscene @ Jan 5 2008, 01:46 AM) <a href="index.php?act=findpost&pid=1666287"><{POST_SNAPBACK}></a></div><div class='quotemain'><!--quotec-->I agree, that way, if a marine skips a couple/all but the last WP they would just clear. I would make it the 'closest' and final waypoints instead of the 'next' waypoint though.<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->
Fine. The 'next' waypoint, relative to the 'closest', given that the 'closest' is 'behind' you. <img src="style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/tounge.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":p" border="0" alt="tounge.gif" /> (elsewise, the 'closest' and 'next' are one and the same.)
Thing is, you don't want to be back-tracking, even a little (to the 'closest' waypoint, rather than the 'next' one).
So it's like, you don't <b>have</b> to follow these waypoints, but when you need them, they're there, and they're efficient.
but the problem is NS itself, (or perhaps any close-quarters fps)
you've got vents, you've got multiple floors/stories, you've got ladders, and boxes, and other obstacles and props. You've got 3D.
NS is not 2d so it could be harder than expected to make such a system and weldbots. if the weldbots are totally standalone
or you might take 'control' of the weldbot, ie. it isn't so much an autonomous robot given an order, as an advanced remote-controlled welding machine