** AI Demo ** - project demonstrating the different "shades" of AI - levels of AI as per course text - also demonstrated: - the lives/gameover pattern - a skeleton of the central executive game loop - orchestrating player and AI movement and collision detection. * Controls * - Game start displays 1 "simple", random AI NPC twittering about. Lives/gameover fully functional for collision testing. Arrow keys to move player character. - Spacebar to enter demo proper. 2 NPCs are displayed. Press number keys to switch between AI modes. - Press 1: "Simple" AI - the two bats twitter about randomly. - Press 2: "Average" AI - the bats takes account of the player state - they zone into your location and chase you (without screen wrap). Hard to play, and the bats start to "sync" - Press 3: "Bit of both" - half the time they chase, half the time they jitter. A little more natural pursuit, and, with scenery obstacles, more believable. Scratch's randomisation weaknesses still leads to synchronisation though. - Press 4: "Better" AI - the two bats work in collaboration in a "pincer movement", swinging wide to trap the player. In this mode, AI difficulty can be set: "A" for harder AI, "Z" for easier - displayed bottom left. With a value of "0.0001", bats will just circle the player, "0.1" and they will hunt you down in tandem. "Best" AI not demonstrable until a full game framework is in place, so that the AI can take player progress into account. Be our guest.
Code is home grown and fully biodegradable. Scratch the Cat and Stephen the Bat are stock Scratch characters. Development time is approx. 1 lazy evening.
