How do I calculate the direction vector between two points for character movement in my 3D game?

Calculating Direction Vectors for Character Movement

Understanding Direction Vectors

In 3D game development, a direction vector is essential for character movement as it defines the pathway along which a character should navigate or look. It is typically derived by subtracting the coordinates of the starting point (origin) from the destination point.

Mathematical Calculation

To calculate the direction vector between two points P1(x1, y1, z1) and P2(x2, y2, z2), use the formula:

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Direction Vector = P2 - P1

This results in a new vector V(dx, dy, dz) where:

• dx = x2 - x1
• dy = y2 - y1
• dz = z2 - z1

Normalizing the Direction Vector

Often, it is useful to have a unit vector indicating only the direction, not magnitude, which you can get by normalizing the vector:

Length = √(dx^2 + dy^2 + dz^2)
Normalized Vector = (dx/Length, dy/Length, dz/Length)

Implementation in Godot

In Godot, you can easily implement this using GDScript. Here’s how you perform these calculations and apply them:

var start = Vector3(0, 0, 0) # Example starting point
var end = Vector3(10, 5, 3)  # Example destination
var direction = (end - start).normalized()

Using this direction vector, you can move the character as follows:

velocity = direction * speed * delta
global_translation += velocity

Considerations for Character Movement

• Ensure characters handle interpolation smoothly to avoid jittery motion during updates.
• Maintain consistent frame rates to prevent unexpected movement speed fluctuations.
• Integrate this with your character controller logic to handle inputs or AI-based navigation effectively.