I’ve created a monster!! + Dinosaur List for CC2

Today I recreated the Gatherer AI. I’m quite surprised to see that he is running around doing things as he should without too much testing – I slimmed down the code (HEAPS) from the other game, optimised it, and modified it to fit the new engine, and after a few quick fixes he’s happily dragging carcasses around and ripping out berries.

I’ve centralised the actions and code between Craig and other cavemen so that conflicts and visual flaws are minimised. Instead of gatherers having a unique code for walking and ducking that’s different to Craig, they simulate key presses according to their actions, to ensure they act just like Craig does. For instance, a caveman can no longer move unless his image is the walking animation – there is no exceptions. The restrictions on when they can perform certain actions is very strict, and clear, and I’ve filled gaps to ensure that a caveman doesn’t stop doing things just because he is too restricted. This also assures minimal redundancy of code and faster performance.

In other news, I’ve laid down a pretty good idea of what dinosaurs we’ll be implementing into Caveman Craig 2. At the moment, there are 5 herbivores, and 5 carnivores, plus a few ‘background dinosaurs’ that will be present but not on the actual battlefield.

Herbivores
Stegosaurus – Huge and hard to take down.
Pachycephalosaurs – A fiesty herbivore who charges into anyone who attacks him.
Triceratops – He’s back and more irritating this time!
Parasaurolophus – The loudest dinosaur ever discovered. These guys run in herds and are hard to hit.
“Herbivore” – No scientific name as such. This is the green dinosaur you see in the original Caveman Craig.

Carnivores
Velociraptor – They still leap on you, and they still eat you.
Allosaurus – A taste of the t-rex. Eats cavemen whole, but is a bit slower in its attack (though runs fast).
Compsognathus – Attacks cavemen in huge packs and hangs until either they or the caveman dies.
Tyrannosaurus Rex – This big ol’ grumpy beast still roams the prehistoric land in CC2.
Dilophosaurus (Jurassic Park style) – A bit like a frilled-neck-lizard except freaking scary, and spits poison at cavemen.

Also present – brachiosaurus, pterodactyl.

I am still going through all the suggestions you guys have (and good suggestions they are) to revise the list.