CosmicClash/TODO.md

# TODO

Deferred work, in rough priority order. The current architecture (ShipAction/ShipController seam, Arena/GameMode split, code-driven spawning, group-tagged ball/goals) was chosen specifically so these bolt on without rework.

## AI opponent (reinforcement learning)

The training pipeline is built — see `TRAINING.md` (self-play PPO via the vendored godot_rl_agents bridge, JSON policy export, in-game GDScript inference, eval ladder). Remaining:

- [ ] Run the generation-5 handling/intercepts/league/teamplay curriculum described in `TRAINING.md`; promote later checkpoints as `medium`/`hard` only after they clear the match and behaviour gates. The orchestrator now requires three independent paired evaluation seeds for each promotion decision; the current Stage 6 league run remains blocked on its recorded regression/telemetry results.
- [ ] Extend generation 5's moving aerial-intercept states with wall plays and rebound scenarios after Stage 5 establishes a productive-air-touch baseline. The opt-in wall-play/rebound state generator is now implemented and enabled for the next Stage 6 league command; training evidence is still required.
- [x] Design team-credit rewards and paired 2v2 evaluation before enabling the deferred teamplay stage. `team_touch_credit_weight` is zero by default and `evaluate.py --team-size=2` provides the opt-in paired evaluator; Stage 7 remains disabled pending recorded 2v2 behaviour gates.

## Presentation / AAA polish

The largest gap between this and a AAA-feeling product is presentation, not code. Sequenced after the above for pragmatic reasons, but this is the highest impact per hour.

- [ ] **Audio — authored sound design remains open.** A dependency-free procedural `AudioManager` now provides safe UI/countdown/impact/goal hooks, an engine tone pitched/levelled from local thrust and turbo state plus a rising-edge turbo cue, and is wired into kickoff, goal, ball-contact, and menu events; replace the placeholder tones with authored engine/turbo/impact/wall/goal/crowd/music assets after selecting distributable files and mixing them on real hardware.
- [ ] **Custom font remains open.** A shared real `Theme` resource now styles the HUD/menu surfaces; select and bundle a distributable font so the UI no longer relies on `ThemeDB.fallback_font` at 10-13 px.
- [ ] **Video settings are implemented; profiling/visual QA remains.** `video_settings.gd` and the settings menu expose graphics presets, AA, vsync, FPS caps, resolution scaling, glow, and brightness, with preset-gated SDFGI/SSIL/SSAO/shadows. The remaining gate is measuring the preset ladder and image quality on low/mid-tier reference hardware in the live editor; no further control wiring is implied by this TODO.

## Multiplayer (long term)

The single tracking document is **[`multiplayer-next.md`](multiplayer-next.md)** — architecture decisions, implementation evidence, and the current checklist all in one place. Server-authoritative multiplayer, prediction, ENet dedicated hosting, and the Phase 6 exported-server Docker/CI verification are implemented; the remaining gates are captured there.

Phase 7 begins with optional GodotSteam bootstrap and a transport boundary; direct-IP ENet remains fully supported. Graphics controls are now implemented separately through the preset/vsync/FPS-cap/resolution-scale work described above; the remaining graphics gate is real low/mid-tier hardware profiling and visual QA (see §5.5 in the multiplayer tracker).

**Tasks 0.1–0.15, 0.18–0.25, 0.27, 0.29 are done** (see the Phase 0 table in `multiplayer-next.md` for what each one actually changed — several deviated from the original plan for concrete GDScript/Godot reasons recorded inline). Remaining, all blocked on **0.15b (profile, on reference hardware, in the live editor — not done)**: 0.16 (camera to `_process`), 0.17/0.17b/0.17c/0.17d (graphics presets, vsync, resolution scaling), **0.26 (bake the arena GI to retire SDFGI — the largest frame-time win available, costs no image quality since the arena is fully static)**, and 0.28 (physics separate-thread prototype, flagged as the riskiest task in the phase). These need a human at the editor with real hardware to profile and eyeball, not further code changes.

- [ ] Possible v0.2 split-screen: spawn one `ship_camera_rig` + viewport per local player (camera is already outside the ship scene to allow this). Unrelated to online play.

### What's left to actually finish multiplayer (human-actionable)

Everything below needs a person — hardware, a design decision, an external account, or hands on a controller — not more code from an agent working alone. Full detail for each is linked; this list exists so nothing falls through the cracks. Ordered roughly as it blocks.

- [ ] **Decide the join-signing design for the Phase 8 root blocker.** No real deployment can advance a match past `PROCESS_READY` today because nothing calls the (fully built and tested) assignment-publishing path in production — it needs a join-signing key shared between allocator and game server, roster-digest computation, and per-player authorization construction, deliberately flagged rather than built pending this decision. See `multiplayer-next.md` §0 ("the actual current root blocker") and §8.31.
- [ ] **Phase 4 playtest at ~100 ms RTT** — does the ship/ball feel local, do contact corrections read as bumps or glitches? Every numeric gate is green; this is a feel judgment no metric can answer. `multiplayer-next.md` §0, gate A.
- [ ] **Phase 5 3v3 gate** — a full 6-player match start to finish, with a mid-match disconnect and a late joiner. Only verified so far at 1v1 plus a two-bot CI match. `multiplayer-next.md` §0, gate B.
- [ ] **Phase 6 external gate** — run the exported Docker server and clients from separate real machines over the internet, then play a full match (controlled test only, since defect C below is still open). `multiplayer-next.md` §0.
- [ ] **Acquire a project-owned Steamworks App ID and coordinate with Valve** — hard prerequisite for Phase 7 (browser, verified tickets, bans, production credentials, ticketed Hosted Dedicated Server SDR) and therefore for Phase 8. `multiplayer-next.md` §0, Phase 7; `STEAM.md`.
- [ ] **Supply custom GodotSteam client/server build templates** and pin them in `steam-dependencies.lock.json` (`COSMIC_CLASH_STEAM_CLIENT_GODOT` / `COSMIC_CLASH_STEAM_SERVER_GODOT`) — `make verify-steam-templates` refuses a stock Godot binary until these exist. `STEAM.md`.
- [ ] **Reference-hardware profiling (task 0.15b)** in the live editor on real low/mid-tier hardware — blocks 0.16, 0.17/0.17b/0.17c/0.17d, 0.26 (arena GI bake), and 0.28 (physics separate-thread prototype). Covered above; listed again here because it also gates Phase 5.5's graphics QA gate for multiplayer sign-off.
- [ ] **Stand up the live Kubernetes cluster and Agones deployment** for Phase 8 — provider-portable manifests exist, but nothing has run against a real cluster; needs the provider-specific deployment overlay (network, DNS, secrets) per `docs/MATCHMAKING.md`.
- [ ] **Give Phase 8.48 its own Compose smoke fixture** so the allocated-mode flow stops depending on `compose.phase6-smoke.yml`'s hardcoded port, first-come slots, and `--max-matches=2`. `multiplayer-next.md` §0 task table.
- [ ] **Release-evidence and human sign-off gates for Phase 8 production launch** — once the above are done, someone needs to actually run and sign off the production-shaped checks `multiplayer-next.md` §7 lists as infrastructure/production-dependent.

Defect **C** (slot reservation keyed on display name alone — real, demonstrated, exploitable during the 30 s disconnect window) is not its own action item: it is fixed for free by the Steam auth tickets in task 7.4 above, so nothing to do until Steam identity lands.