AI is on top of my list

[reflected]

Buddye,

Are you the Buddye who created the most realistic AI ever, that is, the noe in BoB2? If so, why hasn't Luthier hired you yet? This game could really use your talents!

[buddye]

Originally Posted by reflected

Buddye,

Are you the Buddye who created the most realistic AI ever, that is, the noe in BoB2? If so, why hasn't Luthier hired you yet? This game could really use your talents!

Yes, I am the Buddye who has worked on the BOBII AI and other BOBII applications over the last 6 years. This is a long thread but I have posted some of my experiences and the BOBII approach and conceptual design if interested.

I love COD's graphics and damage model but the AI and game play has a long road ahead to achieve excellence IMHO.

[smink1701]

Originally Posted by buddye

Yes, I am the Buddye who has worked on the BOBII AI and other BOBII applications over the last 6 years. This is a long thread but I have posted some of my experiences and the BOBII approach and conceptual design if interested.

I love COD's graphics and damage model but the AI and game play has a long road ahead to achieve excellence IMHO.

You would think that one of the most important aspects of creating any flight sim...combat or otherwise...would be the modeling of flight simulation...yours and the AI's. HOW could the CLoD team work so hard on getting the cockpit shadows and gauge reflections so amazingly right and the FMs and AI so unbelievably wrong. And why has it taken them so long to address the problem. Don't they play the game???

[robtek]

I don't think they have time to play the game, they are working on it!
And don't exagerate, the faults are relatively minuscule regarding the whole packet!

[smink1701]

Originally Posted by robtek

I don't think they have time to play the game, they are working on it!
And don't exagerate, the faults are relatively minuscule regarding the whole packet!

OK...I probably should have said "Test" the game. Five minutes of playing in SP mode and anyone can see with the AI jumping, juking, waggling, doing multiple rolls at ground level, etc, etc, etc...the combat simulation is not very well simulated. You get behind a bogey and see some of this nonsense and say "Why bother." It's better to just fly around alone in the sky and take in the scenery.

[buddye]

Originally Posted by cheesehawk

That's a gameplay aspect, and I agree is important, but less so than getting the engine underneath working correctly first. The dev's focus has been on that, with the occasional candy being thrown our way (i.e. 109E-4). AI is certainly less important than sounds, or stuttering, or unplayable framerates which have been improved.

I agree that a focused priority approach must be used by the COD developers so progress is maintained with their skills and manpower but if the AI is not addressed the game will only be excellent for the on-line players vs player dog fights. IMHO, COD will never reach its full potiental if player vs AI dog fighting is poor.

I agree that AI should be improved and particularly the FM available to the AI (instant full rudder or ailerons should be eliminated and the max roll speed and other performance parameters should be the same as for the player plane including overheating etc.)

It also needs to get smarter in terms of when to break a fight or a pursuit and when to continue. While in old IL2 they stuck to one's tail forever this is fortunately no longer the case and they break off smarter than in the previous game. However, they lack bite considerably. After a few minutes they just form up and fly home and you can just shoot them down without reaction from them.

Also we need to have the command "cover this flight" (including the task in fmb) better implemented as usually the fighter cover attacks the fighters and drops with them to the deck while actually they should just deter the enemy from attacking the bombers.

But otherwise I think there are also some already good features implemented in the AI. I just had a rolling scissor fight with an AI and it did it quite smartly. So there is hope

[jamesdietz]

"It also needs to get smarter in terms of when to break a fight or a pursuit and when to continue. While in old IL2 they stuck to one's tail forever this is fortunately no longer the case and they break off smarter than in the previous game. However, they lack bite considerably. After a few minutes they just form up and fly home and you can just shoot them down without reaction from them."

This is way too true..its much like the AI in BoBII when it first came out: you just wait til they turn for home for sausage & mash ( or frites) and pick them off one by one. They only seem mildly annoyed when one of their fellows falls away into the Channel & then resume their happy droning home,This is the time to hit them instead of the dogfight when both them & their aircraft are able to do crazy StarWars manuevers that I cannot possibly follow at 14-24 FPS!!!
It does create bad habits tho ,when going back to Il-2 where the AI are way more intelligent while their aircraft are limited to the rule of physics in the real world.

[oho]

One thing that's very annoying is the eyes in the back. I want to surprise a fighter from behind and not that he's always evaiding as soon as I'm less than 300 yards away.

[He111]

Originally Posted by buddye

Yes, I am the Buddye who has worked on the BOBII AI and other BOBII applications over the last 6 years. This is a long thread but I have posted some of my experiences and the BOBII approach and conceptual design if interested.

I love COD's graphics and damage model but the AI and game play has a long road ahead to achieve excellence IMHO.

I remember BOB 1 .. it's AI was so great, experienced Stuka pilots were almost impossible to hit, they'd turn into you, use their slow speed to frustrate and confuse! .. i loved it!

But I also remember defiants rolling like barrels downhill, surely that's not historic! .. gunner would be sick all over their turrets! LOL!

Hopefully COD will allow each user to create their own scripted AI ? .. hopefully ..

.