Okay maybe I'm crazy but in theory could the Chrono Cam data not allow for the following untapped and not yet thought of potential; Time Travel... Think about it, if the past system can be rearranged in order from saved data then in theory we could have the data of those 'recorded' units modified in the current game if say a 'time-travel' sniper bot was sent back. Is this in theory a feasible mod based on Chrono Cam or am I totally misunderstanding how it saves data? How much additional work would it take from the moders point of view to link Chrono Cam data to units and also to build a view for said 'time travel unit' that could interact if sent back to a given point? Obviously there are limitations to how this might work. Maybe it could only convey a type of 'semi-healing' time travel? If this can be done would anyone want to work on it?
Any ideas and views on this would be appreciated. While I tried my hand at coding for a short while I by no means would have the skills to write this up.
In case you didn't know about it, there's a whole game based on exactly that premise: Achron Just watching some matches gives me a mild headache. That being said, I don't think a mod like that could feasibly be implemented at this point of time. "Sending" units into the future (i.e. hiding them from the game for a given amount of time) is probably feasible. Trying not to be too defeatist, given you can rewind and branch timelines, simulate them at an increased speed and merge the results into the game currently in progress, something like that might just be possible. Probably slightly more realistic to develop at this point would be "sending" units back in time by removing them from play, guesstimating what kind of effect those units might have had and replicating that effect in the ongoing game. For example, a chronobomb unit might work by selecting an area and time in the ChronoCam and removing all units that still exist in the present timeline from the game. Then you could add all units that would have been destroyed by them back to the game with their last orders intact. Still, quite the clumsy solution.
I was told earlier that the client can only comprehend one point in time, so I believe this would require major developer support.
Nope, in fact there is a devpost that I think a call "getWorldView(0)" that PA currently does has that 0 which in fact tells PA the numbers of the world view you want. It was stated that modders may try to get another worldview that should in theory be independent from the first one. I think nobody has ventured there so far. But if that system should actually work it would be possible to build a version of n-screens that has separate chronocams for every view. And probably requires a pretty damn powerful computer xD EDIT: Thinking into the future: If the save/reload feature from arbitrary chronocam points in time is implemented a server mod in fact may allow players to use it while ingame. So you could have some game mode that allows a player to move back time and have the game play from there again. The thing that PA most likely never will have is an engine to somehow merge everything together into one game. PA would just turn back time and play fromm there again, not play at multiple points in time at once.
I didn't know about that game so thanks. Interesting ideas, maybe not what I was thinking but seems like nice ideas.
This is not a client side [only] mod idea. Sorry I should have been more clear because it makes it sound like I am contemplating the impossible.
The idea was a little more nuanced. I was thinking of just one unit going back - and for it to work balance wise would need to really tank a players eco out. I imagine the time this unit has to do something also would have to be limited and for whatever it took out to 'feed back' to the unit it had taken out in the current state of the game. I think this might be possible but maybe only as an actual Uber side expansion - it might involve more than a mod could actually do to the game.
I was thinking about what may be possible without substantially changing how PA works internally from what I understand.
A "Time Bomb" unit might be possible, set it so it jumps the game clock back 10mins when it explodes or even have a charge so you can charge it for longer and jump the game clock further back basically resetting the game :d edit.. Would be good for someone who makes an error early game , but damn would games be drawn out forever....
Had the same idea of combining it with the chronocam feature. Asuming of course that data can even be persisted between those new games, this could be feasible for revers time travel: - Memorize the units being send, and thier target position. - Start a new game from the intended point on the chronocam. - Spawn the units you memorised at the location you memorised. But that is only really an option if that function is very smart (like recognising the new game uses the same map so it is kept instead of a totally new game beign created). A lot simpler implementation of time travel is just teleportation. The chronosphere from C&C Red Allert is such an example. That should be doable with the existing teleporter functions. C&C RA 3 went into a new area by allowing Tanya to go back in time a few moments, undiong movement and damage taken (while leaving damage done intact). It might be doable to give a unit a "history" or just restore it to a previous point in the history.
