I am very pleased to see this feature very high up in the voting system. I am wondering whether, when it get to #1, the team will take the opportunity to expand on theme by reworking the character AI in general. I really hope so because, along with performance, this is probably one of two areas that really need improving a great deal before I am prepared to start sharing my levels with friends (unpaid testers/critics).

My brother briefly had a look at a level I'm working on today. He never play computer games and knows little about them but the one thing he did say was he thought the enemies seemed a bit stupid and not very aggressive or realistic in how they behave. I think the fact that he is a complete gaming virgin and still noticed a glaring issue is very telling.

I would implore the GG team to take this opportunity to really go all out on AI when they come to implement this feature because only then will our games really start to come alive!

Tell me a game where the AI is not stupid
For real, all AAA title have stupid AI. COD,Battlefield,FIFA,.... but I know what you mean. But there is no perfect AI. There is just AI that fits in a specific situation and a game engine is not a place where AI is easy to implement, because everyone need something different. We need someone that sit on his chair and just code AI. And even then I could not promise that there will be a smart AI. We make a big step from FPSC Classic to GG with the AI, sadly a lot of things are hardcoded, but it works.

AI is a big field, and will not be perfect for years. I promise

But there is also a good news:
We have a community and there will be a lot of AI scripts which maybe fit your level needs

All i am going to say is that no matter what game engine you use, everyone will need some sort of programming knowledge/experience (unless they are happy using out of the box scripts).
To make a game your own and unique and for AI to behave the way you want them to you will need some understanding of programming logic and the language the engine uses. The whole point of game engines is not to write a complete game for you, they merely provide you with foundation tools to develop quicker (e.g. GG is great for instantly generating maps). Every GG/Unity/Unreal etc etc user will need to bring their own game to life by learning LUA or whatever scripting language the engine uses. Game making is not easy and is not an overnight adventure. If we all made games using the standard AI scripts, every game AI will behave the same way in every game that is produced in whatever game engine you use. In TGC's defence, they can only provide the end user basic AI scripts to get the user started, it would take long term development to create an AI script that covers every scenario and caters for every user's needs. Serious users need to take a basic script and learn how to adapt the way AI behaves using programming logic for the way they want it. There is no getting away from it if users want their game to stand out. TGC could provide a thousand scripts and there will always be "thanks for 1000 scripts, but they don't do want I want them to do".

there's definitely more intention for more AI but it's not something that will happen instantly with the current limits.
cover zones are a nice idea but personally the idea of covering my entire map in them just so the AI will hide seems like a lot of unneeded effort, would be much more sensible if we could get a way to determine object dimensions and rotation and then it can be all handled in the background.

also AI can't really fire over obstacles right now anyway (anything above waist height is counted as a blocker and anything below is so ineffective as cover it isn't worth it) so it really isn't very "smart" for them to hide anyway.

i'm very curious to know what you would consider smart AI though, maybe they just need more dangerous weapons to make the gameplay more interesting? some grenades to remove you from cover or maybe some system where they will run away and use medkits to heal if there is cover nearby?
i do agree they could do with some sort of "team work" but i'm not sure how that would be achieved to fit a general game for everyone.
as for aggressive, right now all they do is charge at you and fire until you die... i'd say that's pretty aggressive

I'm trying to get my head around Lua but it doesn't come naturally. What would be good would be a built-in AI generator tool. Maybe a bit like the properties panels. Maybe you could set every aspect of a character's behaviour in minute detail and make each one unique.

Also, I look forward to better and more varied animations.

To answer SmallG, I just think the characters currently behave in a slightly robotic fashion. Often they will run up to the player and just stand there. Plus they don't react to getting shot or otherwise hit - no flinching, no chest clutching, nothing - until they suddenly ragdoll and die which I accept looks cool. Overall, I'd just like to see a bit more life breathed into them. I know it's really hard to achieve, partly because we're so used to seeing real people move and interact that we notice anything that's slightly unrealistic.

It'd be nice if they could react according to which part of their body was injured. You might this is asking to much, but I remember in Goldeneye on the N64 (many moons ago), the characters would actually grab a leg if shot there. Also, headshot kills are a nice reward for good marksmanship, especially when using a sniper rifle. Also, perhaps the 'random' command could be used a bit more in the stock scripts to give the illusion that each instance of the same character is actually unique. I feel that, although of course the GG user should be responsible for putting their own stamp on AI, most of the above could be built into the characters as a basic starting point,

For me AI is appalling in general. NPC's will often get stuck in trees or other oddly shaped entities. Sometimes they will slide along the floor rather than animate. They get blocked by all sorts of obstacles even if the one in question is meters above their heads. They can't navigate stairs or even slopes. They can't attack on a non flat surface. They get stuck on one another. They shoot off into the distance through all scenery. They lose their heads when loaded more than once in a standalone (CC ones). They are really, really dumb in general.

I probably forget other issues. You get the point. AI for me is up there with speed. Both are essential for games design. AI being more important for a good game, but obviously not if it is running at 10 FPS or less. Hell many gamers these days would say 30FPS is not acceptable these days.

I agree. AI needs a really big overhaul. It is terrible.

Well I have seen worse,....just,...LOL.



Yes,.....I think we all agree with that,.....so,......back to waiting again,.....as if two and a half years is not
enough,,.....but hang in there, we are all in the same boat, I think it will be worth it in the end,....hopefully ,
if not, TGC will have some explaining to do, won't they.? LOL.