podcast 5 : battlefield

[hoetje]

Hi,

Ca has released podcast number 5.In this edition, a Ca-member is talking about the battlefield experience.More important,you hear CA talking about the improved AI! So,all go check at http://www.totalwar.com/index.html?p...medieval2/3/3/

[Spino]

I have my mp3 headphones jacked into my monitor here at work and am listening to the podcast now. Wow, lots of discussion regarding the AI; this is the most detailed and in-depth response regarding AI I have ever heard from a CA employee.

Here are some select passages regarding the AI...

Battle AI has developed incrementally since Rome. Example: Cavalry will now behave more logically. They will make more flanking maneuvers and better analyze the enemy army composition and select targets for maximum effect. This also applies to heavy infantry & archers.

- Overall expect better unit target selection and army cohesion (units sticking together as a whole).

- Crossing defense (bridge battles & river crossings) - AI will analyze its army composition and strength and that of your army along with the number of crossing points and plan its defense or assault accordingly.

- Missile heavy armies (or those with a decided advantage in missile units over the enemy) will delay melee combat as long as possible so as to take advantage of its missile troops.

- Missile poor armies (or those with a decided disadvantage) will attempt to engage in melee combat much more quickly.

- Siege AI has also undergone radical changes. Street fighting, wall defense, unit selection and placement and multi-ring logic (i.e. the 'rings' of walls surrounding a castle or city) have all been improved. Example: If a player's artillery begins pounding a specific tower then the AI will anticipate an attack in that area and will remove archers from the walls and replace them with infantry. Regarding street fighting the AI will determine choke points and dispatch heavy infantry to defend them. With multi-ring castles the AI will determine when is the best time to deploy back and guard the next ring to maximize the damage inflicted on the player.

[TB666]

Oh the AI sounds great.
Also the guy that gets interviewed is hilarious

[Little Legioner]

Oh the AI sounds great.
Also the guy that gets interviewed is hilarious

He was so excited I supposed that he'll attack to interviewer for several times.

By the way podcast was good on AI but overall battle speed never spoken

[Dooz]

Wow, if all that is true, I think we got ourselves a game here. As for unit speeds, this video might give a better idea of how that's coming along.

https://forums.totalwar.org/vb/showp...&postcount=122

Personally, I thought it looks pretty decent. Didn't notice any overly fast units or anything that would piss me off. Maybe M2TW is gonna be something special afterall?

[Lord Adherbal]

well this certainly was the most interesting podcast so far, and probably the most interesting bit of information about MTW2 we got so far. Obviously we'll still have to see it in action, but they mensioned a lot of improvements that we asked for (army cohesion, proper use of missile weapons, picking reasonable target for each unit). The only thing they didn't mension is suicidal generals :P

now lets hope the battle speed as acceptable too, because if it isn't then I don't think those improvements will have much actual effect. But atleast mods would benefit from it.

[Monarch]

"Did I hear you say ROOOOOCKKEETT LAUNCHERS!!!!"

"FOR KING AND COUNTRY!"



God, this is pure comedy gold, the interview and the, shall I say, enthusiastic? CA dude.

Oh, but the game does sound great

[TB666]

When he did his grunt or what ever when he talked about how the battles feel I was rolling on the floor laughing.

[sunsmountain]

Excellent and funny, at least they're thinking about these things, now to program it right... hope they have enough time left to tweak it juuuuuust right.

[Myrddraal]

This is great. I seriously didn't think they'd talk about the AI since anything they say can only be subjective, but its good anyway!

[hoetje]

I really think that all people who criticize the ai,should dl this podcast.If they don't,and they still whine about the ai,then they have no longer any right to speak:D

[parcelt]

I am at work and can't listen to it. Any other interesting details in there somebody would like to share?

Thanks!

[Midnight]

That's very encouraging! Sounds as if the battlemap AI's going to be a lot more logical this time around.

If they manage to significantly improve the campaign map AI as well, I'll be very happy.

[Silver Rusher]

Thank you CA... thank you. You have answered the pleas of the community, and most importantly, you may shut up the whiners a bit...

First thing I will do when I get M2TW is try a battle using Parthian tactics and see if I can bowl over the enemy with very few casualties as I was consistantly able to do in RTW. That is the one basic test the AI will have to pass.

[poo_for_brains]

what are Parthian tactics?

[Ibn Munqidh]

Anyone else getting an error message whilst opening the file with winzip? I cannot open the file

[lars573]

light Missile cav+ a few Knights and nothing else.

[Silver Rusher]

lars573 got it pretty much right, except instead of Knights think Heavy Cavalry in general.

Now that we have received some reassurance about the battlefield AI, will the Campaign map AI be good enough to ensure that the battle AI in the campaign will have a strong enough army on the field to begin with? The recruitment pools look promising in providing that.

[Lord Adherbal]

battle AI is way more important then campaignmap AI. Obviously it's best to have both. But challenging battles will make the game stand or fall. Campaignmap AI is much easier to program though. Aslong as it follows a decent building order, and keeps it's armies together it should do ok.

[Furious Mental]

Fingers crossed

[Silver Rusher]

battle AI is way more important then campaignmap AI. Obviously it's best to have both. But challenging battles will make the game stand or fall. Campaignmap AI is much easier to program though. Aslong as it follows a decent building order, and keeps it's armies together it should do ok.

Well as I am a big-time autoresolver (yes, it's true) I beg to differ. But then again you are a big time battler (it would seem so anyway). I guess I mostly autoresolved in RTW though to make the game more fair on the AI but I won't have to do that anymore.

[Divine Wind]

"It makes you go ...awwwwwwwwww...fantastic!"



Great interview, very positive news! Looking forward to the next podcast now!

[TB666]

Great interview, very positive news! Looking forward to the next podcast now!

Actually this was the last CA podcast

[Lord Adherbal]

Well as I am a big-time autoresolver (yes, it's true) I beg to differ. But then again you are a big time battler (it would seem so anyway). I guess I mostly autoresolved in RTW though to make the game more fair on the AI but I won't have to do that anymore.

I bet that makes the game more challenging, but then why not play something like Hearts of Iron or something that has a much deeper campaign and better AI?

[Furious Mental]

Lame. Oh well it was a good one.

Incidentally the guy in the pod cast refers to a crazy Italian 144 barrel ribauldequin exploding, suggesting that it isn't in the game. But if you see some of the screenshots of Leipzig GC it looks like there is a ribauldequin in the game (as well as an organ gun), if not with 144 barrels.

[poo_for_brains]

He said that multi-barrelled guns are in the game, but not the 144 barrel gun. They seem quite eager to show that the game is not going to be ridiculously unrealistic - whenever he mentions the rockets etc. he keeps stressing that they are very scarce within the game.

[Silver Rusher]

I bet that makes the game more challenging, but then why not play something like Hearts of Iron or something that has a much deeper campaign and better AI?

The reason I don't play them is because I haven't got them and can't be bothered to get them. Actually, I was meaning to get EU2. Maybe I will someday.

[sunsmountain]

Actually, I was meaning to get EU2. Maybe I will someday.

comes recommended

[Doug-Thompson]

I'm glad a guy who likes having fun so much is working on improving the AI.

I liked the comments on the terrain. Other options besides putting all my troops on the highest hill would be nice. Multi-ringed fortifications sound great, too.

[GodWillsIt]

what are Parthian tactics?

I think that they are talking about Cav. Archers shooting and retreating just out of range of any other units...they had it in Age of Empires II (I think)


EDIT: woo hoo that=member status