Zetheros
Developer
Hey Exanimates,
Adapting the AI to the new movement has proved to be a much bigger and more interesting task than we anticipated. The rate at which AI can make and apply decisions was massively increased and so were the possible tactics. Unchecked this gave the AI very jittery behaviour and uncovered quite a few problems that we weren't aware of, both specifically and generally in the way it was making decisions. There was quite a lot to investigate and address and we had to make the AI consider its options much more carefully and properly commit to them. We also found it necessary to introduce important core changes in behaviour for different types of creatures.
We've been iterating on this for a few days with some public tests and the updated AI is definitely much more varied and interesting in its behaviour, resulting in some engaging combat that feels much less repetitive, which was one of the main goals with the new movement system. A lot of work has been put into the AI, but we're realising now how much it was being held back by some fundamental issues. The combat is very open ended and AI here is far from an exact science, so we'll be observing and tweaking things over time. As always your feedback is very welcome and useful.
Some have reported an increase in difficulty at least on the higher skill levels. A general increase in difficulty is not our aim, but the way we design the combat AI is to first make it as strong as we can, and then reduce its effectiveness in terms of tactics, prediction, accuracy etc. If we have a higher ceiling to work with then we can reserve this for special encounters and combatants of rare exceptional skill, which is something we always really wanted, but couldn't quite pull off.
We will inevitably make adjustments as we observe the AI more over time, but it's in a good place now and we're super happy with all the changes and just how much fun we've been having with the combat, it really is a huge change for the better. The latest build is fresh off the line from last night, but it seems to be solid and so we're ready to properly move on.
Have a great week!
-the BM team
Adapting the AI to the new movement has proved to be a much bigger and more interesting task than we anticipated. The rate at which AI can make and apply decisions was massively increased and so were the possible tactics. Unchecked this gave the AI very jittery behaviour and uncovered quite a few problems that we weren't aware of, both specifically and generally in the way it was making decisions. There was quite a lot to investigate and address and we had to make the AI consider its options much more carefully and properly commit to them. We also found it necessary to introduce important core changes in behaviour for different types of creatures.
We've been iterating on this for a few days with some public tests and the updated AI is definitely much more varied and interesting in its behaviour, resulting in some engaging combat that feels much less repetitive, which was one of the main goals with the new movement system. A lot of work has been put into the AI, but we're realising now how much it was being held back by some fundamental issues. The combat is very open ended and AI here is far from an exact science, so we'll be observing and tweaking things over time. As always your feedback is very welcome and useful.
Some have reported an increase in difficulty at least on the higher skill levels. A general increase in difficulty is not our aim, but the way we design the combat AI is to first make it as strong as we can, and then reduce its effectiveness in terms of tactics, prediction, accuracy etc. If we have a higher ceiling to work with then we can reserve this for special encounters and combatants of rare exceptional skill, which is something we always really wanted, but couldn't quite pull off.
We will inevitably make adjustments as we observe the AI more over time, but it's in a good place now and we're super happy with all the changes and just how much fun we've been having with the combat, it really is a huge change for the better. The latest build is fresh off the line from last night, but it seems to be solid and so we're ready to properly move on.
Have a great week!
-the BM team
