Minigame Robot Christmas -|Map of the Week #6|

[Strilanc]

Most of your complaints can be answered with "I focused more on the fun-to-watch than the playability.".

Getting the expansion rate just right is difficult because jackbots become much more efficient once you hit a critical number of them [they suddenly form into a production line instead of all harvesting then all returning], and of course your first expansion is much closer to trees.

The cpu requirements of blink-communication scale up quite quickly, requiring a low food limit. Generally the game progresses like this: you expand to 150 units as quickly as possible, trying to harvest the middle and protect your corner. The other players will need to clear-cut their corners to keep up with the middle-winner, and then they starve.

The unnecessary blinks are probably the bots relaying a message from another bot. I tried to avoid multiple building types because I was going for simplicity in the AI. An offensive bot is a good idea since it could probably be done by just making the bot try to continue wandering in the same direction.

Firebots analyze a random nearby unit each cycle, if it is an enemy bot they cast a 0-damage flame strike on it.

 

[WindexIsBack]

Perhaps learn a little from bateria?

Bacteria has the tendency to turn to change directions when it moves, discouraging moving around in circles.
I forgot how exactly it's done, but it's a survival trait that made the bateria travel further distances (and thus finding more food)

 

[SerraAvenger]

Perhaps learn a little from bateria?

Bacteria has the tendency to turn to change directions when it moves, discouraging moving around in circles.
I forgot how exactly it's done, but it's a survival trait that made the bateria travel further distances (and thus finding more food)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brownian_motion

Actually bacteria are moving almost randomly, only influenced by chemicals in their environment. Hostile units, trees and allied units could be used as "chemicals" here.

The map sounds awesome, I'll take a look at it asap.

 

[WindexIsBack]

Hmm, I remember reading awhile back that something tended to move in one direction followed by another as a survival trait.

 

[Daskunk]

Most of your complaints can be answered with "I focused more on the fun-to-watch than the playability.".

I am aware of that, but I didn't think it would ruin the fun to watch part to expand it in other areas, and some of my ideas were meant to help the fun-to-watch part anyways. In any case, if you chose to keep this as a small project, then I can understand that.

Getting the expansion rate just right is difficult because jackbots become much more efficient once you hit a critical number of them [they suddenly form into a production line instead of all harvesting then all returning], and of course your first expansion is much closer to trees.

I never really got to try it against other people (except one guy who got bored really fast) so I'm not sure about this. Myself, I cleared out the trees REALLY close to my base, but not my whole corner, then I started building a lot more.

The cpu requirements of blink-communication scale up quite quickly, requiring a low food limit. Generally the game progresses like this: you expand to 150 units as quickly as possible, trying to harvest the middle and protect your corner. The other players will need to clear-cut their corners to keep up with the middle-winner, and then they starve.

I would have to try it with real players to see. My problem was the computer enemies were incompetent, so they let theirs overgrow. Even using max food, I didn't have enough jackbots to bust through the thick wall of tree's they made. I couldn't kill all of my jockbots, because the computers let spiders and treants stack up as well. I had unlimited money practically, so I tried killing all of my elfbots, so I could build even more jackbots, but even then I didn't have enough (that’s when I found out the shared hotkeys...)

Firebots analyze a random nearby unit each cycle, if it is an enemy bot they cast a 0-damage flame strike on it.

Ah. I wanted me to be able to cast it, so I could break a hole the tree wall, like I was talking about above, but that would probably be to imba.

 

[Strilanc]

I was doing this as a 'time near christmas' project, but I'm essentially done with it 'til the interest bites me again.

If someone else wants to work with it, they can feel free to. The code is a bit gory in some places, though. [eg. the same struct used for all the bots, and it's called "Jack"]

 

[Jolly chap*]

I was doing this as a 'time near christmas' project, but I'm essentially done with it 'til the interest bites me again.

If someone else wants to work with it, they can feel free to. The code is a bit gory in some places, though. [eg. the same struct used for all the bots, and it's called "Jack"]

What! Why?! At least change the hotkey for elfbot and recylce, 'coz they're both the same. And maybe improve the AI to a moderate amount, 'coz they don't train any new bots, from what I can see. Not sure if it's just me though.

 

[Siretu]

I absolutely LOVED this game. I can't explain how intrested I got by the AI.

I was thinking you could add radio antennas that forward blink signals and got a bigger blink sight range that others. Maybe you could use the workshop to forward orders.

Like you got a spellbook at your workshop, in it you got one ability for every blink. You then use it on a nearby radio antenna. For example, you use red(help) and use it on an antenna close to lots of Jockbots. They'll go to the base and protect.

Also if the blink from the antenna reaches another antenna, the new antenna will forward the message too.