Moving Check Zones - Devs Please Read, it's brilliant!

[PatrickAWlson]

OK, maybe I'm overselling a bit, but hear me out.  I already have this in PWCG.  I call them virtual waypoints  (VWP).  A VWP is effectively a moving check zone that consists of ten or so MCUs MCUs.    To make VWPs work I have to drop one every KM or so along an intended path, so a PWCG mission will have thousands of them.  PWCG mission text files approach or exceed 800,000 lines.  Possible to do procedurally.  Impossible to hand make a mission like this.

 

Business case:

Much greater replayability in hand made single and campaign missions.

Much greater variability in career missions.

Why?  Because what happens is not always the same.  The path the player takes will actually change where and how things spawn.  Also allows AI entities to come to the player in addition to the usual player goes to them.

 

What is it?

A check zone that can be associated with waypoints.  Just like a plane, the checkpoint is moving from WP to WP at the indicated speed.  It goes away when triggered (or maybe not - that can be optional).

 

Why is this a good thing mechanically?

It removes CPU consuming entities from the mission until they are needed, while still allowing them to move along a path.  It is also conceptually simple.  A mission editor will be able to describe a path in just a few minutes, making this sort of thing an option for those using the ME  to create missions.

 

Oh, and PWCG mission files would be reduced by about 700,0000 lines.  Honestly not a big deal for me.  The software is doing it for me.  But still, it would be nice to open a PWCG mission in the ME and not be greeted by many thousands of green lines.

 

Challenges:

Entities must be able to spawn at the trigger point.

The target MCU must be changeable at different locations.  If this was not implemented then you would have a flight spawning in the middle of its route and immediately turning around to go to its starting waypoint - not good.

 

I have always believed that VWPs were the single biggest differentiating factor in PWCG missions.  The make everything dynamic, so much so that when I play a PWCG mission I have no idea what will happen, even though I wrote the software.  A moving check zone would simplify the process to the point where people making hand crafted missions could do the same thing.

 

Not trying to suggest that this is easy.  It's not.  It is another stateful entity with dynamic elements.  However, I am hoping that the similarity to a plane allows reuse of existing algorithms.  Whatever the case, there it is.  Hope this sparks is useful.