[MEGA-ISSUE] Psycho-Med

This article delves into the massive overhaul of the medical system, a project currently dubbed "Psycho-Med." This is the central hub, linking to various sub-threads that address specific issues and features within this ambitious undertaking. Our goal is to provide a clear roadmap of desired features, track progress via linked Pull Requests (PRs), and foster a collaborative environment for developers and contributors. This article outlines the major challenges and proposed solutions for revamping the medical system, ensuring a more immersive and engaging gameplay experience.

HandsComponent Decoupling A Top Priority

Our top priority is decoupling the HandsComponent. This critical issue sits at the apex of our task list for several key reasons. Currently, the HandsComponent's reliance on the Body System creates significant roadblocks, particularly when integrating a new Body System. Ideally, the HandsComponent should function independently, allowing the new Body System to seamlessly add and remove hands. This crucial decoupling is essential for smooth operation and prevents critical testing and debugging in the development environment. Without resolving this dependency, thorough testing and debugging become nearly impossible, hindering our progress in gutting the Body System. Therefore, this issue needs immediate attention and resolution, with potential upstreaming to benefit the broader community. The HandsComponent is vital for player interaction and manipulation of the game world, making its independent functionality paramount. A decoupled HandsComponent streamlines the development process, making testing and future modifications significantly easier. This foundational change paves the way for more extensive modifications to the Body System and its related mechanics.

The Importance of Independent Functionality

An independent HandsComponent enhances flexibility and modularity within the codebase. This modularity is crucial for managing complex systems like the medical framework. It allows developers to work on different aspects of the system concurrently without causing unintended side effects or conflicts. Moreover, a decoupled HandsComponent simplifies debugging. When issues arise, developers can isolate the problem to the HandsComponent itself, eliminating the need to delve into the intricacies of the Body System. This isolation reduces debugging time and complexity, leading to a more efficient development cycle. The HandsComponent, being the primary interface for player interaction, must be as robust and versatile as possible. By decoupling it, we ensure that future changes to the Body System or other game mechanics do not inadvertently affect hand functionality. This stability is paramount for maintaining a consistent and reliable gameplay experience. In summary, decoupling the HandsComponent is a foundational step that unlocks further development possibilities. It promotes modularity, simplifies debugging, and stabilizes player interactions, thereby facilitating the broader Psycho-Med overhaul.

Gutting the BodySystem Reimagining the Core

The next major objective is to completely dismantle the existing BodySystem. This involves a comprehensive overhaul, starting with modifying the base prototypes for mobs and characters to eliminate any references to the BodySystem. This sweeping change includes removing the BodyComponent and any other components that malfunction as a direct result of this removal. The goal here is to rebuild the BodySystem from the ground up, creating a more modular, efficient, and extensible framework. The current BodySystem is deeply intertwined with other game systems, creating a monolithic structure that is difficult to maintain and modify. By gutting the existing system, we create an opportunity to introduce new concepts, improve performance, and address long-standing issues. This overhaul touches upon the very core of how entities interact with the game world, necessitating a meticulous and systematic approach.

The Path to a New BodySystem

The process of gutting the BodySystem involves several critical steps. First, we must identify and remove all components and systems that directly depend on the BodySystem. This involves a thorough code review and testing to ensure that no unintended consequences arise. Next, we must refactor the game's entity prototypes to eliminate any references to the removed components. This step ensures that newly spawned entities do not inadvertently rely on the old BodySystem. Once these preliminary steps are complete, we can begin designing and implementing the new BodySystem. This stage involves defining the core functionality of the new system, identifying the required components, and developing the interactions between these components. The new BodySystem should be designed to accommodate the evolving needs of the game. It must be flexible enough to support new features and mechanics without requiring extensive modifications. This future-proofing aspect is essential for the long-term maintainability of the game. In addition, the new system must be efficient, minimizing its impact on game performance. Optimizing the BodySystem is critical for ensuring smooth gameplay, particularly in scenarios involving numerous entities. Overall, gutting the BodySystem is a complex but necessary undertaking. It lays the foundation for a more robust, scalable, and maintainable medical system. The benefits of this overhaul extend beyond the medical system itself, positively impacting the game's overall architecture and performance.

BodySystem Casualties MegaIssue Addressing the Impact

This section serves as a vital link to the "BodySystem Casualties MegaIssue," a comprehensive list of all systems and components affected by the removal of the BodySystem. This list, while not exhaustive, is meticulously organized to reflect the anticipated order of importance in addressing these casualties. It is a living document that will expand as we uncover more dependencies and code interactions. Understanding the scope of these casualties is crucial for effectively managing the Psycho-Med project. Each casualty represents a potential challenge, requiring careful consideration and resolution. The MegaIssue serves as a central repository for tracking progress, discussing solutions, and coordinating efforts across the development team.

Navigating the Casualties

Our approach to addressing these casualties is methodical and prioritized. We begin by identifying the most critical systems and components, focusing on those that directly impact gameplay or core functionality. For each casualty, we conduct a thorough analysis to determine the root cause of the issue and the potential solutions. This analysis often involves code review, debugging, and experimentation. The goal is to develop a robust and maintainable solution that integrates seamlessly with the new medical system. Communication and collaboration are essential throughout this process. The MegaIssue provides a platform for developers to share their findings, propose solutions, and solicit feedback. This collaborative approach ensures that all perspectives are considered and that the best possible solutions are implemented. As we address each casualty, we meticulously document our progress in the MegaIssue. This documentation serves as a valuable resource for future developers and helps to maintain a clear understanding of the system's evolution. In summary, the BodySystem Casualties MegaIssue is an indispensable tool for managing the complex task of overhauling the medical system. It provides a centralized location for tracking progress, coordinating efforts, and ensuring that all affected systems and components are addressed effectively.

Body The Essence of the Physical Form

What truly constitutes a "body" within the game's context? This fundamental question lies at the heart of our BodySystem overhaul. While sprites effectively render visual representations, the current BodySystem struggles to define and manage the abstract concept of a body. In order to progress with this project, we must redefine what a Body is, what information it should store, and the precise functions of its associated components and systems. This conceptual redesign is crucial for creating a more intuitive and efficient medical system. The existing BodySystem lacks a clear purpose, leading to convoluted code and inefficient interactions with other systems. By starting with a fresh perspective, we can develop a BodySystem that aligns with the game's design goals and gameplay requirements.

Reimagining Body Functionality

Our vision for the new BodySystem involves a more modular and flexible structure. We aim to create a system that can easily accommodate different body types, injuries, and medical conditions. This requires a clear separation of concerns, with each component responsible for a specific aspect of the body's functionality. For example, a BodyComponent might manage the overall structural integrity of the body, while other components handle specific aspects like circulation, respiration, and digestion. The new BodySystem should also provide a robust API for interacting with other game systems. This API will allow developers to easily access and manipulate body-related data, enabling the creation of new gameplay mechanics and medical treatments. In addition, the new system should be designed with performance in mind. We will explore various optimization techniques to minimize the impact of the BodySystem on game performance, particularly in scenarios involving numerous entities. Redefining the Body is a foundational step in the Psycho-Med overhaul. It provides the conceptual framework for all subsequent modifications and ensures that the new medical system is both robust and extensible.

Organs The Building Blocks of Physiology

The current BodySystem treats organs as almost an afterthought, which needs a significant change. They are surprisingly not as critical as one might expect, but their replacements are paramount. Our goal is to develop a system where body parts and organs are virtually indistinguishable in terms of functionality. Ideally, an organ should possess the same capabilities as a body, with the primary distinction being its physical slotting – whether it fits into an arm slot or not. This unified approach simplifies the codebase and promotes modularity. However, we also recognize the importance of preserving the game's unique elements, such as the ability to transform characters into bizarre forms. Therefore, we need to strike a balance between realism and gameplay fun when designing the new organ system. The organ system is crucial for simulating the complexities of the body's internal functions. It impacts various aspects of gameplay, including metabolism, blood circulation, and the effects of medical conditions.

Organs as Modular Components

Our vision for the new organ system involves treating each organ as a modular component with specific functions and properties. This approach allows us to easily add new organs, modify existing ones, and create complex interactions between them. Each organ will have its own set of properties, such as its structural integrity, metabolic rate, and susceptibility to damage. These properties will influence how the organ functions and how it responds to external stimuli. The new organ system will also support the concept of organ damage and repair. Organs can be damaged by injuries, diseases, and medical conditions, impacting their functionality. Players will be able to repair damaged organs through surgery, medication, and other medical treatments. The ability to replace organs will also be an option, further enhancing the realism and complexity of the medical system. Designing a modular and flexible organ system is essential for creating a realistic and engaging medical simulation. It lays the foundation for a wide range of gameplay possibilities and allows us to accurately model the effects of various medical conditions and treatments.

Metabolism The Engine of Life

With the demise of organs, metabolism has also ceased to function. This presents a significant opportunity to reimagine how metabolism works within the game. Our ideal scenario involves different organs metabolizing reagents in unique ways, and also possessing the ability to store reagents. This opens up exciting possibilities for more intricate overdoses and a wider variety of overdose effects. The metabolism system is vital for simulating the body's chemical processes. It influences how drugs, toxins, and other substances interact with the body, and how they are broken down and eliminated.

Dynamic Reagent Processing

In addition to differential organ metabolism, we envision organs having the capability to transform reagents and release them into the bloodstream. This feature would enable delayed chemical reactions, adding a new layer of depth to chemistry interactions. For instance, a reagent might undergo a transformation in the liver before being released into the bloodstream, triggering its effects only after a specific delay. This dynamic reagent processing would create more realistic and unpredictable chemical reactions, making chemistry more challenging and rewarding. The new metabolism system should also take into account factors like body size, organ health, and genetic predispositions. These factors can influence how effectively a person metabolizes reagents, leading to variations in drug responses and overdose effects. Designing a sophisticated metabolism system is crucial for creating a realistic and engaging medical simulation. It influences a wide range of gameplay scenarios, from drug use and overdoses to the effects of diseases and medical conditions.

BloodStream The River of Life

The BloodStream system, while partially functional without the BodySystem due to its role as a reagent container that causes blood loss damage, is effectively broken due to the absence of metabolism. We must revisit and refine this system to create a more realistic and dynamic simulation of blood flow and reagent transport. Our ideal BloodStream would metabolize differently from its current state, adding complexity and interest to chemistry interactions. The BloodStream is the body's primary transport system, carrying oxygen, nutrients, hormones, and other essential substances throughout the body. It also plays a crucial role in removing waste products and toxins.

A Dynamic Chemical Transport System

Our vision for the new BloodStream system involves a more sophisticated simulation of blood flow, pressure, and viscosity. The system should accurately model the effects of injuries, diseases, and medical conditions on blood circulation. For example, a hemorrhage would cause a decrease in blood volume and pressure, while a blood clot would obstruct blood flow. The BloodStream should also play a more active role in reagent transport and metabolism. We envision different regions of the bloodstream having different metabolic properties, influencing how reagents are processed and distributed throughout the body. This localized metabolism would allow for more precise control over drug delivery and the effects of other substances. In addition, the new BloodStream should interact closely with other systems, such as the respiration system and the organ system. This integration would create a more holistic and realistic simulation of the body's internal functions. Reimagining the BloodStream is essential for creating a compelling medical simulation. It forms the foundation for a wide range of gameplay possibilities, from treating injuries and diseases to managing drug overdoses and chemical exposures.

Respiration The Breath of Life

The Respiration system is entirely non-functional without the BodySystem, necessitating a complete refactor. Ideally, the lungs should function as gas storage organs, responding dynamically to the surrounding pressure environment. A realistic simulation would prevent breathing in high-pressure environments and cause explosive decompression upon exposure to low-pressure environments. The Respiration system is crucial for sustaining life, providing the body with oxygen and removing carbon dioxide.

Lungs as Dynamic Gas Reservoirs

Our vision for the new Respiration system involves a detailed simulation of lung function, including gas exchange, pressure regulation, and the effects of various medical conditions. The lungs should be able to store different gases, such as oxygen, carbon dioxide, and nitrogen, and regulate their concentrations in the bloodstream. The system should also accurately model the effects of pressure changes on the lungs, preventing breathing in high-pressure environments and causing decompression injuries in low-pressure environments. The new Respiration system should also interact closely with other systems, such as the BloodStream and the organ system. This integration would allow for a more realistic simulation of gas transport and metabolism. In addition, the Respiration system should support various medical conditions, such as asthma, pneumonia, and lung cancer, each with its own unique effects on lung function. Refactoring the Respiration system is essential for creating a realistic and engaging medical simulation. It allows us to accurately model the effects of breathing, suffocation, and various respiratory diseases.

Eating and Drinking Fueling the Body

The Eating and Drinking systems are currently non-functional due to the absence of metabolism and the stomach. The primary refactor required is to break down nutriment into food group types and make metabolism for different species less binary. This would prevent food from being a mere nutriment paste that can be injected directly into the bloodstream. A chemistry refactor might be necessary for full completion, but functionality can be restored without it. Furthermore, eating and drinking should be linked to stamina to better penalize players for neglecting these basic needs. The Eating and Drinking systems are fundamental for maintaining energy levels and overall health.

More Nuanced Food and Stamina Systems

Our vision for the new Eating and Drinking systems involves a more nuanced simulation of food digestion, nutrient absorption, and the effects of dietary choices on stamina and health. We aim to move beyond the current system, where food is simply a source of generic nutriment, and introduce different food groups with unique nutritional properties. This would allow players to make informed dietary choices and experience the consequences of their eating habits. The new systems should also account for species-specific dietary requirements. Different species might require different nutrients or have different metabolic rates, influencing their food preferences and dietary needs. The connection between eating, drinking, and stamina should be more pronounced, with players experiencing fatigue and penalties for neglecting these basic needs. A well-nourished and hydrated character should have higher stamina and be more resilient to injuries and diseases. Refactoring the Eating and Drinking systems is crucial for creating a more immersive and engaging gameplay experience. It adds depth to character management and encourages players to make strategic decisions about their dietary habits.

Chemistry The Alchemical Heart

Although not directly tied to the BodySystem, the Chemistry system is in dire need of a major refactor. Early specifics could detract from higher priorities, so a vague and simple list of desired enhancements will suffice:

• Better/More overdose thresholds (exceeding 20u of meth in the bloodstream shouldn't be the sole metric). We need to move beyond meth-fueled 24/7 gameplay.
• More complex and fun chemical reactions (a proper pH system would be a welcome addition).

Pushing for Complex Reactions and Overdose Control

Revamping the Chemistry system is crucial for enhancing the depth and realism of the game. It opens up possibilities for new gameplay mechanics, medical treatments, and character interactions. A more sophisticated chemistry system would allow players to create new drugs, synthesize reagents, and perform complex chemical experiments. The implementation of a pH system would add another layer of realism, allowing for the simulation of acid-base reactions and their effects on various substances and organisms. The current overdose system is overly simplistic, relying on generic thresholds for drug concentrations. A refactor would allow for more nuanced overdose effects, taking into account factors such as individual tolerance, drug interactions, and the health of vital organs. By implementing these enhancements, we can create a more engaging and challenging chemistry system that rewards experimentation and strategic thinking.

Conclusion The Path Forward

The Psycho-Med overhaul represents a significant undertaking, touching upon nearly every aspect of the game's medical system. From decoupling the HandsComponent to reimagining the core BodySystem and refining chemistry interactions, this project aims to create a more immersive, realistic, and engaging gameplay experience. The roadmap outlined in this article provides a clear path forward, highlighting the key challenges and proposed solutions. This is a collaborative endeavor, and we encourage developers and contributors to join us in this exciting journey. By working together, we can transform the medical system into a truly compelling and dynamic element of the game. The future of the medical system hinges on these pivotal changes. Each step forward brings us closer to realizing a comprehensive and richly detailed system that elevates the overall gaming experience. This evolution ensures our commitment to providing a stimulating and intricate world for players to explore and interact with.

Additional context