Building physics

[[46] pushit [2]]

I'm sure all of you have seen the insanely cool Strider video and was just wondering about the part where the strider bends down and blasts the walkway connecting the two buildings (really really awesome).

My question is whether or not that was a scripted event? I was driving along today (thinking about HL2 of course) and got all excited wondering whether or not you will be able to destroy buildings. Think about it... a bunch of combine soldiers shooting from under a roof, you take a rocket launcher and blow the ceiling on to them (or at least parts). And it would be cool, if say the strider didnt destroy that walkway, tried to walk under it, and you blew it up on top of it...would be pretty sweet. I have heard the Source engine makes everything interactive/destructable...but does that include larger objets like buildings..?

 

[Esquire]

it's highly doubtful buildings will be destroyable. Little things like unimportant bridges are likely to be destroyable partially.

 

[ncr100]

When designing levels, you have to manually crack the buildings into pieces and I gather, indicate that the cracked components are blow-uppable.

 

[Epsi]

But although the potential exists for the world to get all broken up in certain pre-set places, if it actually will is as likely to be determined by the actions of the AI or the player than pre-done scripts.

 

[[46] pushit [2]]

I'm not saying be able to destroy entire buildings, I jsut it woudl be cool if posts and certain parts of buildings could be destroyed (like awnings and stuff.)

 

[chriso20]

I'm not saying be able to destroy entire buildings, I jsut it woudl be cool if posts and certain parts of buildings could be destroyed (like awnings and stuff.)

Little probs like awnings and most flimsy things will definately be destructable

 

[InvaderScooge]

Yes, specific parts will be destroyable but they will not be significant to any level design. I don't think the strider stuff is scripted but I am sure that the strider AI is programmed to know where the breakable stuff is around it so it can cut a path through. Like blowing up a bridge in its way. Which means that most likely everytime you play a part of the game with a strider the first few things destroyed will always be destroyed. Unless you manage to kill it really fast.

 

[Lanthanide]

It depends how much realism the mapper has put into the map. Whether Valve has had a strict "all non-essential building parts can be deformed/destroyed" rule or not isn't known. Basically there are 3 ways something like this can go:
Building parts are put into separate groups (awnings, flagpoles, window shutters etc)
1. An entire group is fully industructible on all buildings
2. Some members of a group are destructible in certain situations/buildings, but not others.
3. All members of a group are always fully destructible in all situations.

#2 is the most likely outcome, but it just depends how the maps were made. If they made specific prefabs and used them over and over again, 3 is very possible (although this tends to make the game more monotonous). What's more likely is they'll use a mixture of prefabs and individually designed set-pieces for the buildings to make some more unique, and it's these unique ones that are most likely to fall into category 1 (and therefore overall, category 2).


So, to sum it all up: It is entirely -possible- that most things will be destructible, but whether or not it actually happens is impossible to tell right now.

 

[Vegeta897]

Nice answers guys.

That about sums it up. The fact that the Strider (or any other monster or NPC) can figure out how to get somewhere, or do something, and uses the physics and destructable stuff to do it.

That is SO freaking awesome.. I hope Valve kept this true...

 

[frozensun]

My guess is that it's scripted. That could just be because I'm playing HL1 right now...

 

[rrm]

I'm sure all of you have seen the insanely cool Strider video and was just wondering about the part where the strider bends down and blasts the walkway connecting the two buildings (really really awesome).

My question is whether or not that was a scripted event? I was driving along today (thinking about HL2 of course) and got all excited wondering whether or not you will be able to destroy buildings. Think about it... a bunch of combine soldiers shooting from under a roof, you take a rocket launcher and blow the ceiling on to them (or at least parts). And it would be cool, if say the strider didnt destroy that walkway, tried to walk under it, and you blew it up on top of it...would be pretty sweet. I have heard the Source engine makes everything interactive/destructable...but does that include larger objets like buildings..?

sorry to burst yoru bubble but that was all heavily scripted. there will be cool stuff like that but not as often as you think, due to reasons people have already said

 

[Jesus Lincoln]

Scripted

 

[Vegeta897]

Scripted

Wow, nice answer.

The thing is, it's not ENTIRELY scripted. The Strider wasn't told to break the bridge. It was told that the bridge COULD be broken. The AI figured out that it needed to break it in order to get through, so it did.

And in that single paragraph, I have summed up all the answers posted in this thread, that you decided not to read.

 

[drummy]

Didn't Gabe claim everything in the e3 demos was not scripted?

Even though people who downloaded the leak said everything in those videos was scripted (for demo purposes), I think the main point was that it all would not be scripted when we would finally play the game (except for key plot points).

 

[ne0_shiny]

Didn't Gabe claim everything in the e3 demos was not scripted?

Even though people who downloaded the leak said everything in those videos was scripted (for demo purposes), I think the main point was that it all would not be scripted when we would finally play the game (except for key plot points).

he probably ment in the final version they were working on

 

[Ownzed]

Gabe said anything in wreckable out there.

 

[Neutrino]

Wow, nice answer.

The thing is, it's not ENTIRELY scripted. The Strider wasn't told to break the bridge. It was told that the bridge COULD be broken. The AI figured out that it needed to break it in order to get through, so it did.

And in that single paragraph, I have summed up all the answers posted in this thread, that you decided not to read.

Yes, but I think he just meant that the ability of the bridge to break was completely scripted. You can't just blow up any building you want. It has to be one specifcally designed for it.

Now that I think about it, I bet that entire event was scripted. Valve isn't going to spend the time to model a destructable bridge for a demonstration movie and then just leave it up to chance whether or not the Strider shoots it.

 

[nadolph]

I remember a quote by a VALVe employee (cant rember who) that said that the broken bridge was NOT scripted. He said they were all suprised when it happened. I will try to find the quote.

 

[nadolph]

Set outside, the creature caught our attention and quickly blew up a portion of a building overlooking an archway. The strider made its way to the arch, realized it was too tall to get through, crouched and did a limbo to scoot under the archway, straightening back up on the other side. None of this appeared to be scripted: We're told this is all real AI and physics, and the movements are completely believable as the creature scoots under the arch.

-- From GameSpy Preview 2003

Im not sure if this means that the arch being blown up was unscripted or just the strider going under the broken arch.

 

[Neutrino]

-- From GameSpy Preview 2003

Im not sure if this means that the arch being blown up was unscripted or just the strider going under the broken arch.

I think it means the strider going under the arch.

 

[Apos]

By "not scripted" they mean that blowing up the bridge is one of many actions that the AI can choose to do, depending on the situation. But that doesn't mean that the strider can dynamically "see" all breakable objects, and then attack them in any given map just by plopping it down and letting it go to work. The bridge most likely has an AI "hint" brush inside it telling the AI that it can be blown up.