UFO ai patch

[kyrub]

This is a small AI patch for UFO Enemy unknown, Windows CE /// 1.4 DOS version. It should have visible effect on AI combat performance, making it generally more dangerous to player. The improvement should be most noticeable in close-combat action, on terror-sites or in Alien ships. The Aliens should now represent bigger danger to player's tanks and armored units, as well as to his psi-defense tactics. The battles should be more intense in general, with more shots fired, more grenades. More alien danger!

The patch does *not* change any game mechanics, alien or weapon stats.

Download here [both CE and DOS versions].

Features
- Aliens use a lot more of autoshot and snapshots, aimed shots only on long distances
- Alien energy spending problem fixed
- Aliens more likely to use grenades with many targets
- melee aliens are no more shy of > 3 X-com soldiers
- melee aliens will be a lot more decisive
- AI psi targetting is more random
- AI may attempt to psi attack even a relatively psi strong unit
- non-aggressive Aliens will try to snipe you more often
- the Aliens trying the base assault should be much more aggressive
- panicked Aliens can pick up their weapons again

This work is heavily indebted to other people:
Seb 76, Xusilak, Volutar, BombBloke

 

[hoverdog]

 

[Gord]

So how's the game coming along anyway?
I've played 2.1 for a while, but IIRC that version was still a bit incomplete.

Is it possible to complete the game now?

Edit: Nevermind, I read the title and supposed this was about UFO:AI...

 

[Trash]

Man, there is just no stopping to you.

EDIT: Crap. I never got the CE edition to run. This won't work on the dosbox version, right? Oh well.

 

[Overweight Manatee]

Fuck yes, this sounds good. AI was definitely one of the weakest points of Xcom.

Any chance to get this working on TFTD as well? Though...

- Aliens more likely to use grenades with many targets

...they would probably rape any xcom group with those sonic pulsars if they actually used em well

- non-aggressive Aliens will try to snipe you more often

Can you explain this feature a bit? It sounds like you are letting aliens shoot beyond their visual range just as players love to use abuse exploit the fuck out of.

 

[Destroid]

Yeah it's funny that what is regarded at the codex as one of the best strategy games of all time, barely had any tactical AI at all.

 

[Malakal]

Damn, kyrub man you rock. This is exactly what this game needed. Keep up the good work!

 

[thesheeep]

I usually play XCOM: Apocalypse*, is the (unpatched and/or patched) AI in Enemy Unknown comparable to that? Or easier/harder?


* I just like to raid drug dealers for profit

 

[DwarvenFood]

Damn, kyrub man you rock. This is exactly what this game needed. Keep up the good work!

 

[DakaSha]

I may be a newfag but I don't see how kyrub doesn't have a special title or some shit.
Somebody called him a true patriot:

 

[Gondolin]

Respect for kyrub.

 

[commie]

kyrub has no need for titles like other attention whores. He's like Three Dog, behind the scenes, fighting the good fight in his own inimitable way.

 

[chzr]

awesome!



still, few questions - is it combatible with dos version (if not, why/will be)? will you eventually improve it further? and also, do you plan making similar improvement for tftd?

 

[dragonfk]

I may be a newfag but I don't see how kyrub doesn't have a special title or some shit.
Somebody called him a true patriot:

This!

Last modder who was given special title was Drog and personaly I think kyrub does much, much better job than our resident psycho.

So someone do something about it ! :looks at DU:

 

[hoverdog]

Don't do that, he might snap and we'll have double the alts we have now, which means like 100% of users.

 

[kyrub]

Hey hey, no stupid worship, or I quit.
Remember? Disassembling is my kind of game. No altruism, I just like to break the codes. And to feel mental superiority over the programmers, hehe.

(Plus, this is quite a humble patch. And 90% was made by Seb76, the one-who-started-it, author of UFO extender. I just put the finishing touches... Voila.)

 

[DakaSha]

Hey hey, no stupid worship, or I quit.
Remember? Disassembling is my kind of game. No altruism, I just like to break the codes. And to feel mental superiority over the programmers, hehe.

(Plus, this is quite a humble patch. And 90% was made by Seb76, the one-who-started-it, author of UFO extender. I just put the finishing touches... Voila.)

Yes but it isn't in your hands. You have no say in this. your 'job' is to just keep doing what you do
No seriously thanks kyrub. No matter what the reason ^^

 

[Awor Szurkrarz]

I usually play XCOM: Apocalypse*, is the (unpatched and/or patched) AI in Enemy Unknown comparable to that? Or easier/harder?

The XCOM3 AI is horrible. It can't manage AP properly.

 

[kyrub]

I usually play XCOM: Apocalypse*, is the (unpatched and/or patched) AI in Enemy Unknown comparable to that? Or easier/harder?

The XCOM3 AI is horrible. It can't manage AP properly.

UFO AI is no Gari Kasparov as well. Bear in mind that the patch targets some of the most obvious failures (AI not using the auto, for instance). Then again, if the obvious failures are fixed, probably some more intelligent features show up... Gollop brothers certainly were not stupid. What does an alien do when it is wounded and faces battle against the odds? When it faces too many enemies? When it attacks an enemy base? When it has some good cover? All these questions are in the code. Sadly, whole AI "cooperation" feature is missing. AI will never plot an ambush (unless the turn = 21, but that, eh, is another story), it will never coordinate. As Destroid said, UFO was not about a great AI at the first place.

still, few questions - is it combatible with dos version (if not, why/will be)? will you eventually improve it further? and also, do you plan making similar improvement for tftd?

- DOS: it does not work now. If anybody hands me a dos 2.0 or 2.1 (whichever is preferrable) exe file (geoscape and tactical), I'll make it. Obdata.dat would be handy too, to check if it is identical. (use PM if interested)
- improvements: unsure, or very few. There are a lot of X-com remakes on the way. They can surely do better.
- TFTD: now, that is an interesting question. The guys who made it, were probably clever in designing the game so that the AI shortcommings are hidden. The AI cannot use auto fire (Sonic weapons) = main improvement is gone. AI using more snap shots is questionable (snap shots have high %TUs in TFTD, sic!) - one of the TFTD horrors in early game is that the AI seems to hit (and kill) with every shot. That's because of Aimed shots. Other AI improvements are valid and I can easily put them in the game. Not sure anybody needs non-shy Tentaculats, however. :D

 

[Awor Szurkrarz]

I usually play XCOM: Apocalypse*, is the (unpatched and/or patched) AI in Enemy Unknown comparable to that? Or easier/harder?

The XCOM3 AI is horrible. It can't manage AP properly.

UFO AI is no Gari Kasparov as well. Bear in mind that the patch targets some of the most obvious failures (AI not using the auto, for instance). Then again, if the obvious failures are fixed, probably some more intelligent features show up... Gollop brothers certainly were not stupid. What does an alien do when it is wounded and faces battle against the odds? When it faces too many enemies? When it attacks an enemy base? When it has some good cover? All these questions are in the code. Sadly, whole AI "cooperation" feature is missing. AI will never plot an ambush (unless the turn = 21, but that, eh, is another story), it will never coordinate. As Destroid said, UFO was not about a great AI at the first place.

There's a difference between a not great AI and a completely dysfunctional AI.

X-Com 3 has a dysfunctional AI. When I encounter enemies in Apocalypse they usually do retarded shit like running back and forth until they run out of AP, going prone and then getting up again, etc. shit that serves no purpose.
I practically gave up on X-Com 3 when I saw a group of enemies doing it when they had entropy missiles which could easily fuck up my agents. They just ran back and forth and went prone/got up.
When they actually attack they usually walk and autofire at the same time which makes them miss almost all of their shoots.
Aven brainsuckers often run towards my soldier, then run back and run towards my soldier again, losing all their AP just before the soldier.

I often have situations when I should lose some men, but I don't because the AI behaves in a completely retarded way.
It's fucking horrible.

It's not a question of tactics or strategy or cooperation. Even just standing there and firing aimed shoots with devastator cannon or running towards my soldiers in a straight line would be enough to make the game much more challenging.
Even if they would have great tactics and strategy and cooperation they would fail because the behaviour of individual enemies is so fucking retarded.

 

[Overweight Manatee]

Xcom 1 AI still did that fairly often. Chryssalids would happily run away from you, then run at you and end up standing on the same place they were at the beginning of a turn except without any AP.

 

[Malakal]

Xcom 1 AI still did that fairly often. Chryssalids would happily run away from you, then run at you and end up standing on the same place they were at the beginning of a turn except without any AP.

Quite true, just check all of the LPs we have here... Some rather small tweaks and more agressivity would improve the game a lot. This is why this is so welcome.

 

[Awor Szurkrarz]

I wonder why they programmed it like this.

Also, there's one important difference. In X-Com 1 there was powerful reaction fire. In X-Com3 it's often replaced with reaction retrat.

 

[Trash]

Because after UFO: Enemy Unknown the entire franchise went into decline with the games becoming progressively worse.

 

[GarfunkeL]

Excellent work kyrub!