Suggestion: Better A.I.

[VoidingNixx 39]

I am resorting a deleted post.  Why this post was deleted is beyond me.  So, I'm revising it just a tad and posting on a different section.

 

Suggestion:  Fix A.I. so it works properly.

 

Ok, first, to start off, lemme get this off my chest. This has to be the WORST AI ever used in a game, which is being used as the current Zombie A.I. I know this is alpha, but still, I feel that anything put into a game should only improve it towards the finished product, not set the game back and purposefully annoy people with a poorly thought-out concept.

 

The respawning would be fine, if it were random, gradual, and happened at a longer range. How it is currently is just idiotic. Now, don't all go "they've acknowledged this" or "they tweeted about different changes", because I do not care about 'what might be', but only care about 'what is'. Currently, the Zombie respawn is just about game breaking.... there is NO WAY to kill them without respawn and instant aggro onto your character. You hit them with an axe, they respawn, you shoot them, they respawn, they kill themselves off a cliff, and guess what, ZOMBIES RESPAWN!

 

You get whacked once and possibly break your legs, you are screwed, because it's a never-ending cycle unless you can out-run them. You need a second to bandage? The area looks clear? NOPE, RESPAWN RIGHT BEHIND YOU!!

 

So, before I get to my story of why this game is nearly unplayable for me at this point, I'll give a video which sums up the current Zombie A.I. and respawning, which I think should be addressed immediately... but that could just be me.

 

So, story time now...  I'm in this jail, its location will remain withheld, and I hear zombie aggro, and I think they're coming for me. I drop my 2nd primary and come out of one of the jail rooms with an axe, only to encounter a player, bleeding heavily, with 2-3 zombies on his butt. He is slinging an M4, and now I'm worried. I run out of the jail and take cover, pulling out a pistol for a "close encounter." Running back into the jail for my dropped M4, I pass my contact in crouched position on top of the steps. We exchange words, and he said something like, friendly friendly, do you want supplies?  We've all heard this before, am I right?

 

I run out of the jail just worried about gettin' out of the first floor, where I have no cover. He has the high ground and positioned in a spot which I cannot take even if I wanted to do so. I run out to the forest outside just glad I'm not riddled with holes and my pristine autumn hunter pants are still pristine. I lay in wait, hoping that after a few minutes, I will be safe, and able to continue on my journey of collecting food and water to prolong my existence... however, this is not the case. I hear gunshots... one... two... a few more in succession. Mr. M4 is firing at something. A few seconds later, I see a figure come running down the hill not even 200 meters from me. Phew, he is shooting zombies, hasn't seen me, and I still feel kind of safe. He drops one zombie, two zombie, three and four, he seems to be enjoying himself... I feel happy that someone can find such amusement in the zombie apocalypse... it makes me feel as if there is still hope...

 

After about a minute, he is still in the area. I feel myself gettin' a bit nervous again. Did he see me run this way? Is he hunting me? Is Mr. Friendly M4 not so friendly afterall? The only comfort I find is the fact that I have a bit of cover which I can observe from, and hopefully stay safe until he has a fill of slaughtering zombies. Then, *WHACK*, what is this? I am randomly hit by a zombie. Wait, another zombie aggros from afar. It appears that Mr. M4 is causing respawns on me just being in the area. My safe haven, my stealthy cover, is gone. I have become a target with two zombies chasing me, which were not previously in my area. He is fully geared and at this point can probably see me clearly and shoot me in my back. Tactics, stealth, cover, all goes out the window. Zombies coming from out of nowhere makes it where I should have just ran up behind the guy and took a mouth full of 5.56, because just being in the area of zombie killing means, there is no escape for you as well.

 

Anyways, this was my experience today. It was very aggrevating that I had retarded zombies aggroing onto my chracter, which was prone and not even moving, from someone 200-300 meters away killing zombies like crazy. I don't mind that zombies are fast, I do not mind if zombies attack in numbers or if they hit hard... what really irritates me is the fact that they spawn next to me and aggro on me, when they weren't originally there. If they're gonna respawn and instantly aggro, it should be on the person who is killing them.

 

All-in-all, I just wanted to express my feelings on the issue of the A.I. and respawning of Zombies. It's a horrid system, and I'm pretty sure if a little bit of common sesne went into it to begin with, it would be 1,000x better. Yes, it's alpha, but why add such a stupid system to begin with? Is this what they're planning for the full game, is non-stop respawning of zombies next to players? Where once you have aggro, you are locked down fighting zombies until someone else pops you with a long range?? Bad system is bad...

[Shingara 1]

I agree with you that AI is horrible in the game, but i feel its something that is not going tobe addressed until they actualy get some guys or girls in todo the work on AI that really know how todo it. I think the main reason why people dont want bandit AI's in game is simply for the fact they do not trust the devs tobe able to do it properly and that any enemy npc would be insta kill equal to an aimbot.

Edited April 1, 2014 by Shingara

[Geckofrog7 1168]

They're fixing it atm. I must say I wish they'd fixed pathfinding before adding respawn, but patience is key. 

If you're finding it frustrating, maybe wait a month or two, or even wait until beta, it will be 9999999x better, believe me.

 

Also, stealth is much better than speed/firepower when facing zombies. However, I do realize there's some moments where stealth doesn't work, in that case, it's good to have friends to back you up.

Edited April 1, 2014 by Geckofrog7

[Shingara 1]

Im not 100% they know how to fix or do it, enviroments and stuff i think they have a handle on, but coding AI im not sure. They are only just getting a handle or so they are sayin on walls and floor geometry. But as you say gecko this is an alpha and is tobe expected.

[OrLoK 16188]

Hello there

 

No need to repost existing posts.

 

Closing.

 

Rgds

 

LoK

http://forums.dayzgame.com/index.php?/topic/182234-post-patch-zombie-feedback/

 

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