Defining Mob Behaviors By Mob Age
2006/05/04
For me, changing the appearance of mobs isn't enough to give me the perception of a well-realized animal ecosystem in a game world. For whatever reason, the appearance of a thing means far, far less to me than the behavior of that thing. Of course I like pretty; that's just not what matters most to me.
So I just wouldn't care much that Mob X has different age-based appearances. It would be a minor addition to the worldiness of the game, so I wouldn't mind it, but it wouldn't excite me.
What would excite me would be if the behavior of a mob changed according to the maturity of an individual mob of that type.
Assuming a world with Juvenile, Mature, and Aged versions of a mob, it's fun to imagine them displaying different behaviors in different circumstances. Maybe something like:
|
NORMAL |
THREATENED |
ATTACKED |
INJURED |
Grazer |
|
|
|
|
Juvenile |
play |
run to parent |
defend |
escape |
Mature |
graze/patrol |
defend |
defend |
escape |
Aged |
rest/graze |
defend |
escape |
escape |
|
|
|
|
|
Predator |
|
|
|
|
Juvenile |
play |
investigate |
defend |
escape |
Mature |
rest/patrol |
attack |
attack |
escape |
Aged |
rest |
defend |
escape |
defend |
|
|
|
|
|
Semi-intelligent |
|
|
|
|
Juvenile |
investigate |
attack |
run to parent |
escape |
Mature |
patrol |
attack |
attack |
defend |
Aged |
rest |
defend |
attack |
escape |
|
|
|
|
|
Humanoid |
|
|
|
|
Juvenile |
play |
investigate |
run to parent |
escape |
Mature |
patrol |
investigate |
attack |
defend |
Aged |
rest/patrol |
defend |
defend |
defend |
If distinctive behaviors like these were implemented (especially with a little bit of randomness), the game world would feel vastly more dynamic.