last-minute-creations/openfire

Amiga game similar to Fire Power and Return Fire

openfire's Issues

Turrets as bobs in efficient way

Drawing turrets as sprites have some benefits, but the biggest disadvantage is that they are always drawn on top. Since chopper flies higher than turret, they must be drawn as bobs too.

Drawing all turrets every frame is pointless and inefficient, so there's an idea that one turret should be refreshed every frame, so that 50 turrets may be refreshed every second. Also, only turrets in visible area and its neighbourhood should be refreshed.

Undrawing is not really necessary if turrets will have always same tile beneath them - but this needs some additional work on wall tileset

Compile using Bebbo's GCC

Compiling under Bebbo's GCC would allow code cross-check and perhaps give better performance without changing anything in code itself, since VBCC ruins game code on higher optimization levels.

Implement frame skipping

Fire Power ain't running with 50fps but no one cares 'cuz game is fast-paced anyway. It's needed for netplay anyway.

There are two ways to implement this. Let's assume that we need to skip 3 frames:

1. Process everything with 3x bigger deltas - vehicle moves 3x further, then turret rotates 3x further, then projectile moves 3x further. Everything would be done with same steer requests and precise movements wouldn't be possible. Not so fair.
2. Process everything in a 3x for-loop - vehicle moves one time, then turret one time, then projectile, then there goes projectile for another run. It's more fair but needs a bit different bob management so that they'll be drawn only during last logic pass.

I'll go with 2. I'll try to capture steer requests during vblank and put them on list, so that every frame would be processed with corresponding player intents - precise movements should be still possible. Also steer request list should be compatible with net protocol if it's gonna send just other player's steering between frames.

Flicker persists in double buffered mode

Last time I've seen it in snafu map with slow CPU. HUD flickers as it's still single buffered. Vehicles shouldn't flicker, though.

Bridges support

• Placed on shallow on deep water
• Destructible
• Upon destruction revert to shallow/deep water type

Implement bot's targeting on enemies

Bots need targeting on:

• enemy turrets
• enemy vehicles
• walls which are in the way

Better HUD controls in limbo

• Change team
• Change spawn

Reimplement scroll buffer / tile buffer in ACE

For bigger maps, efficient way to store them in memory is needed. ACE has some scroll buffer and tile buffer code, but I guess it's rotten since it hasn't been used for one or two years for now.

Return Fire map import

Write an importer for RFire maps. For legal reasons don't ship them in game, but provide converter.

• Simple 1:1 map conversion from PC
• Scripts for adding OpenFire specific stuff to maps (e.g. override tiles on given coords)
• Determine file format from console so that importing may take place from whatever version player has

compiled .adf please!

would be great having a bootable .adf imagedisk available as well, with the game compiled, for lazy people like me! :D - thanks!

Implement chopper

• Add selectable chopper vehicle
• Implement takeoff/landing anim
• Initial balance - speed, life, ammo, damage
• Implement fuel system
• Better targeting - LMB shoots down, RMB shoots straight.
  Shooting down should be a bit slower as part of speed is in Z direction.

Multiple bot navigation

Currently only one bot on map is supported. Code is needed for bot coexistence aspects, such as:

• collision evasion
• taking different routes
• randomising destination targets

Add capture the flag game mode

• Building containing flag
• Flag pickup and drop by jeep
• Scoring points