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[azmodean]

There are several reasons simply making the reality bubble dynamic is problmatic. Inrough order of importance:
1. Making it a constant simplifies a crapton of code, if it were dynamc there are inumerableplaces in the code that would have to make adjustments based on the configured vaue. In the worst case,significant parts of the code would have to be rewritten to support it.
2. Providing consistent game experience on different computers is a major issue. This isn't like in minecraft where adjusting chunk distance mostly influences what the game looks like, if you can adjust the view distince you can at a minimum see and avoid enemies from further away.  I'm sure there are other instances where it would make the game significantly different forpeople who can afford to increase reality bubble size a lot.  We want to make everything work for all the players.
3. As girlinhat points out, the benefits of increasing bubble size increase roughly linearly, the costs increase roughly exponentially. There WILL come a point, and sooner than you think, where you hit a performance wall. IMO that performance wall is most likely far short of where we'd see transformative changes to gameplay.

Now, more sophisticated forms of dynamism, like effects continuing when off-map and being ableto interact with enemies off-map are both things we want to suport.

We have a model in place for ongoing effects being udated when they're loaded, we just need to streamline how that works a bit and apply it uniformly.
As for shooting things off-map, we need to get hordes working properly before even looking into it, but having a sniper mode where it dynamically loads submaps outside the reality bubble just while you're aiming a long ranged weapon is something I'd like to support.

[guessingo]

How are z levels coming along?

[Angle]

Isn't there already basic z-level support? I know there's a mod for experimental multi z-level buildings that works pretty well.

[Girlinhat]

Isn't there already basic z-level support? I know there's a mod for experimental multi z-level buildings that works pretty well.

It's caves in the sky, basically.  Not great, there's no interaction between levels, but it looks like tall buildings if you don't peer too closely.

[Orange Wizard]

Is there a reason why you don't change map tiles from - what I assume they are now - (x, y) to (x, y, z)? I know there's a lot more going in the background, but doing the 3D thing in a similar manner to DF seems the most straightforward to me.

[Angle]

I don't think that'd be all that much different from how things're done now, really. It'd mostly just make things more complicated, because a lot of code would have to be rewritten and no new functionality would be added with just that code.

What they're really looking for, I gather, is having multiple z-levels that you can interact with at once. Like things that can drop onto you from above, things you can climb, things that will try to climb after you, that sorta thing.

[Leatra]

How are the NPCs in the new version? What are the differences? I heard pretty cool stuff can happen with static NPCs but I turned them off while generating the world and I'm quite far into the game. Maybe I'll turn spawning NPCs on but they had a tendency to fuck things up for me quite a lot in the past.

[Rilder]

Static NPCs I think are pretty cool now with like refugee camps and such out there, the random npc spawning though I leave off because the last time I tried it, they were a bit boring, basically spawning somewhere near you and either immediately being a fight or just sitting there doing nothing for eternity. (Or you recruit them and they steal some of your shit if you have a base)

Isn't there already basic z-level support? I know there's a mod for experimental multi z-level buildings that works pretty well.

It's caves in the sky, basically.  Not great, there's no interaction between levels, but it looks like tall buildings if you don't peer too closely.

Caves in the Sky sounds like it would be a great name for a Post Rock band.

[guessingo]

Isn't there already basic z-level support? I know there's a mod for experimental multi z-level buildings that works pretty well.

It's caves in the sky, basically.  Not great, there's no interaction between levels, but it looks like tall buildings if you don't peer too closely.

I saw that. has there been any progress on integrating this into the game? lack of z-levels have been an issue for a long time.

[Angle]

So is it just me, or do zombie animals spawn WAY too much in the latest experimental? I stepped outside, and immediately had to deal with a grim howler. After that, it was a Decayed Pouncer, then an antlered horror, then a series of zombie dogs, and finally a Zombear. And that was in a handful of map tiles...

[Leatra]

Static NPCs I think are pretty cool now with like refugee camps and such out there, the random npc spawning though I leave off because the last time I tried it, they were a bit boring, basically spawning somewhere near you and either immediately being a fight or just sitting there doing nothing for eternity. (Or you recruit them and they steal some of your shit if you have a base)

Random NPCs don't do stuff like that?

I guess I'll turn static on and random off in my next game.

[Graknorke]

I just realised my character has been getting by eating primarily rice and beans, smoking weed for morale bonuses, and investing a lot of time into either trying to create more sustainable living or crafting skills to expand the horizons of what I might be able to achieve.

The Walking Stereotype.

[Angle]

...I'm not familiar with that stereotype, actually. Which one is that?

[TheBronzePickle]

Neo-hippies. The ones who believe the Man's trying to keep us down by keeping technology away from the people. Shit like perpetual motion devices and sources of infinite clean water and food and such.

[n9103]

Neo-hippies... huh. So that's what they call crazies that aren't crazy enough to lock up. TIL.