Capstone Update 16: Blink and you'll miss it

It has been quite a while since my last post. I've gotten a lot of work done since then, so I've decided to split my post into two parts. In this first part, I'll discuss the changes to the monster's AI, and in the second part I'll talk about graphics some more.

I've made several major changes to the monster's AI to make it more dangerous and unpredictable. The first change is the ability to 'blink'. When the monster is trapped or otherwise unable to reach the player, it can now teleport to designer-specified points called 'blink nodes', favoring nodes that are close to the player, but not to close to be unfair. This gives the monster more options, and makes it more challenging to trap.

Another major change that I've made is making the monster more resistant to the flashlight. The player's flashlight no longer marks them as 'safe' when in the dark, and the monster will now attack them. If the player sees the monster and reacts quickly, it can still be warded off with the flashlight. However, if it gets close enough then the flashlight becomes ineffective and the player will be forced to fumble with a flare to escape. This rewards careful play, and prevents the player from being 100% safe for most of the game.

Lastly, I've made the monster change speed based on its state. This not only makes it seem more dangerous, it also makes it very difficult to chase and kill, as we found some testers liked to do. Combine that with regenerating health similar to what the player has, and the monster is suddenly much more dangerous than it used to be.

Now, the monster is much more dangerous. On the visual side though, it's still a bit of a cute fluff cloud. In my next post, I'll discuss the steps that are being taken to fix that.