that's because you didn't approach the game from the beginning as OO development...
...exactly, that was a big fault of mine,... as you know, I first
started this game with 3DRad, then when I jumped into B3d I began to
port all the game-code without thinking in OO way,
the level culling system was the first I did in B3d without
even knowing good enough the language, therefore
it is not generic at all but since it is already done and working good, I'm not
going to re-code it :)
why the limit of 6?
I is not that I have a limit, I could create a hundred if I
wanted to ... the problem is the fps of course ... I mean,
a medium range PC won't handle more than 6 at a time, there
can be many more in the level but if more than ~6 detects
you and start fighting against you then the code for the AI
takes too much time ... and so on ...
... I'm NOT using LinePicks at all, I'm using a kind of "detection-bullets" system which
is also coding in my not perfect OO style :)
... each enemy shoots 2 types of these bullets,
one detects the walls and the other detects grates and glass,
this way the enemies can see you through transparent and semitransparent materials,
when an enemy detects you, he start fighting with some logic,
he shoots you the real bullets, he follows you with a pathfinding code (A* in 3D), sometimes
he will detect a wall to crouch behind it, if you go out-of-sight the enemy will remember
the last position where he saw you and he will go to that place and if doesn't see you again
then he "jumps" to patrol mode again ...
... also when there are more than one enemy fighting with you, another simple logic-code
is scanned so that the enemies won't try to attack you from the same place so that they will
be distributed around the scene and so on ...
... at the same time if you kill an enemy a ragdoll version of that enemy is created ...
... and all of this being done for 6 enemies start asking for too much processor power and
my intention is making a game for medium-PCs or above ... :)
Paolo.
ps... arrgh , "pointers", "pointers", ... I hear about them
from time to time and don't know any idea about what they are ??? :)