Add Ink Combat hub to Dev Archipelago

[felixwalberg]

Add a scene ink_combat_test.tscn that walks the player through the different variations of ink combat in Threadbare. Each section of the scene is "replayable" via the repellable levers. Only one section can run at once.

Resolves #2539

[felixwalberg]

Also wondering if the scene I made should be modified so that all the barrels are visible in the same frame... I mentioned this in a signpost, but it might add unnecessary difficulty.

[github-actions]

Play this branch at https://play.threadbare.game/branches/endlessm/dev-archipelago-ink-combat/.

(This launches the game from the start, not directly at the change(s) in this pull request.)

[felixwalberg]

@wjt @manuq @jgbourque Going to leave this as a draft for now, but I have made some changes (currently in ink_combat_test.tscn) to address some of the feedback from last week's build review. It isn't completely the same as the proposed "arena" where everything is firing at once, since some of the examples might get messed up running simultaneously (e.g. the fragile barrels were getting broken before the Player can make it to that section). It is all reachable within the same scene with a little less running. However, I would be open to moving things closer together if that is preferred. I could also look at adding some logic to levers to activate certain throwing enemies and certain combinations of the barrels.

https://play.threadbare.game/branches/endlessm/dev-archipelago-ink-combat/#dev/repel/ink_combat/ink_combat_test

There are still things to do, but wanted to continue this discussion on how best to display the ink combat mechanics.

• Add script to activate the fragile barrel throwing enemy based either on completion of previous section or player entering an area2d (which I think is a better option to avoid hiding stuff behind progress gates)
• Add a similar concept for the sequential completion
• Decorate/make the borders look nicer
• We could possibly add levers in each section that could "reset" the enemy/barrels for repeated practice

[jgbourque]

I really like the idea of levers for an in game reset of the mechanic/challenge etc. That way there can be extended playtesting of an idea without having to restart the scene necessarily.

I also like the idea of the player entering an area as an option to activate whatever components are set up to interact with there rather than progress gating!

[felixwalberg]

Some major changes have been made here since the last time this was open for review! Now the majority of variations of ink combat are showcased within one scene. The user can activate a section to experiment with one mechanic at a time. Not complete "sandbox" freedom, but more inclusive than the last version!

[felixwalberg]

I am open to suggestions on a better way to handle the "sections"! A lot of the logic is deferred due to issues with replacing ThrowingEnemy nodes mid attack animation. It follows the general idea of only include the nodes in groups if they are within the chosen section. Rather than adding a "stop" or idle logic, I just reset them (sometimes you might want to reset mid combat vs after completely filling the barrels).

[felixwalberg]

This is still an issue that I would love to get another pair of eyes on! Without a timeout delay, there is some call happening too early, resulting in enemies that don't activate their attack. I assume there is a function call later that should be deferred, but I was having trouble resolving this!

This also makes the initial delay 2 + ThrowingEnemy.throwing_period seconds, which can feel like a long time! Maybe we need an indication that the section is starting.

[wjt]

The two states of the levers are visibly different: there is a lit-up "on" state and a darker "off" state. So, just an idea: you could use the "on" state as the visible indication. When one lever is switched to the "on" state, set all the others back to "off". When the fill game logic reports that the game is "completed", set the currently-"on" lever to "off".

(I'll look at the logic in more detail.)

[felixwalberg]

After the build review today (Aug 13), the following changes have been made:

• Add comments to top of scripts (ink_combat_test.gd, ink_combat_section.gd, and ink_combat_fragile_section.gd) indicating this is not necessary to make ink combat levels
• Reset current_target_index and enable randomization of the BarrelUnlockSequence section so each reset gets a fresh (and working) sequence
• Modify the vase_destruction_tracker.gd logic for the FragileBarrel section (now breaking all barrels defeats the StoryWeaver and filling one barrel is enough to win)
  • Add checkpoint to this section for respawning after defeat
• Darkness now follows player direction in teleporter transition

Some other notes from the review that might be relevant:

• We could (in a later change) modify the InkDrinker to start firing projectiles immediately, since a delay can be implemented with a timer node but not the other way around
• We want a way to spawn InkDrinkers, which would simplify this scene. Each section could trigger a spawner of a set of enemies, clearing the rest of the scene
• The fragile barrels have collisions enabled even after breaking. They exist on the player and the projectile collision layers