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Predictive Catch-Up

Overview

Predictive Catch-Up aims agents at a future target position instead of the target's current position. The runtime multiplies target velocity by prediction time, optionally adds extra time from the agent's own distance to the target, then clamps that offset by max prediction distance.

In motion, this makes fast enemies cut off moving targets instead of trailing behind them. It is useful when a player is often running sideways or kiting and you want some enemies to feel like interceptors.

It changes pursuit feel quickly, but the prediction is intentionally simple: current velocity only, no obstacle awareness, no interception math.

Parameter Reference

Advanced Parameters

All parameters here are advanced — leave at defaults unless you have a reason

Use Predictive Catch-Up

  • Visible effect — Agents aim ahead of the target instead of behind it.
  • Gameplay effect — Creates interception and flanking pressure.
  • Increase when — Fast enemies should feel smarter against moving players.
  • Decrease when — Simple shamblers or pure horde behavior.
  • Pitfalls — On slow enemies it can look pointless or strange.
  • Technical effect — Adds the predictive pursuit pass. It also affects goal facing priority.

Prediction Weight

  • Visible effect — Higher values commit harder to leading the target.
  • Gameplay effect — Harder kiting and stronger cut-off behavior.
  • Increase when — Prediction is visible but too weak to matter.
  • Decrease when — Agents overshoot or overcommit to stale movement.
  • Pitfalls — Weight 0 still leaves the pass enabled and can still mark the agent as target-aware.
  • Technical effect — Scales steering toward the predicted point.

Look-Ahead Time

  • Visible effect — Larger values aim farther ahead along target velocity.
  • Gameplay effect — More aggressive interception.
  • Increase when — Targets move fast and enemies still trail behind them.
  • Decrease when — Agents lead too far and miss when targets juke.
  • Pitfalls — Large values amplify noise from sudden target direction changes.
  • Technical effect — Seconds ahead used for the predicted position.

Max Look-Ahead Distance

  • Visible effect — Prevents extreme far-ahead aiming.
  • Gameplay effect — Keeps prediction believable and controllable.
  • Increase when — Fast targets need some lead but not absurd overshoot.
  • Decrease when — Prediction should be tightly conservative.
  • Pitfalls — 0 effectively disables the cap, which can be risky on very fast targets.
  • Technical effect — Caps the planar prediction offset regardless of target speed.

Distance Look-Ahead Factor

  • Visible effect — Farther agents aim farther ahead than nearby agents.
  • Gameplay effect — Helps rear agents cut off movement instead of joining a tail behind the target.
  • Increase when — Large swarms still string out behind moving targets even with normal prediction time.
  • Decrease when — Prediction becomes too aggressive or too many agents swing wide in front.
  • Pitfalls — This is still approximate and velocity-based. High values can make distant agents over-lead when speeds change suddenly.
  • Technical effect — Adds extra prediction time from the agent's planar distance to the target using a cheap speed-aware approximation based on current agent speed and target speed. A value of 0 preserves the old shared prediction behavior.

Practical Usage Guidance

Use this for sprinters, flankers, flyers projected onto planar motion, or elite melee enemies that should punish constant lateral movement. It can also help ranged rushers feel smarter without needing full navigation.

It works best when combined with Approach And Surround at moderate strength. The surround behavior still gives the crowd structure, while predictive catch-up lets some enemies challenge kiting more effectively.

Avoid pairing large Look-Ahead Time or high Distance Look-Ahead Factor with high Trail Behind Moving Target. They push in opposite directions: prediction aims ahead, trailing biases behind. The combination can work in moderation, but the result turns muddy quickly.

Gameplay Interpretation

This behavior reduces the "train behind the player" effect and adds interception pressure.

Used sparingly, it creates standout enemy types. Spread across the whole horde, movement becomes harder to read and harder to counter.

Quickstart — tune in this order

Tune Look-Ahead Time first. That is still the main feel-defining parameter. Add a small Distance Look-Ahead Factor only if farther agents are still visibly lagging behind the target path. Then set Max Look-Ahead Distance to stop unreasonable leading at extreme target speeds. Adjust weight last.