Development on Gloomwood, a stealth-horror immersive sim, is progressing steadily, with the latest preview focusing on significant advancements in rat-centric gaming technology. Developer Dillon Rogers recently showcased videos demonstrating the cheese-seeking AI behavior of Gloomwood’s rat NPCs, a feature highlighted in the January 30th update.
The rats now exhibit behaviors such as sniffing out items, consuming them, and engaging in attacks. Moreover, they have gained the ability to navigate through exclusive rat-only wall apertures. Players can even interact with deceased rats, although only those willing to embrace their inner monster. While the implications of these modifications remain unclear, the essence of the immersive sim genre lies in manipulating game systems to yield both practical and unforeseen outcomes.
These enhancements in rat behavior aim to standardize and enhance the animal behavior systems within Gloomwood, aligning them with NPC actions. This meticulous attention to detail contributes significantly to the coherence of a stealth, observation, and behavior-driven immersive sim like Gloomwood.
Developer Dillon Rogers elaborated on the updates, stating, “The rat (and fishdogs) lure systems have been expanded to enable them to efficiently track down food and other desirable items. Fishdogs will exhibit heightened focus on treats, facilitating player evasion. Additionally, rats can now utilize rat holes for traversal across areas.”
Gloomwood, available on Steam, is a collaborative project between Dillon Rogers and David Szymanski, published by New Blood Interactive.
Recent gaming eras have witnessed remarkable progress in rat-focused artificial intelligence and graphics within video games. Beginning with rudimentary rat interactions in titles like Dishonored and Metro, where rats served as tools and environmental indicators, the evolution has been remarkable. For instance, the basic rat simulations in A Plague Tale: Innocence have evolved into sophisticated rat flood dynamics in its sequel, A Plague Tale: Requiem. Undoubtedly, rats have become a prominent feature in modern gaming landscapes.
