Release 0.9.4 NPC visual optimization

TODO.md

@@ -5,7 +5,7 @@ see `AGENTS.md` for the workflow and `MEMORY.md` for the decisions behind these
 
 ## Gap Analysis and 0.x Roadmap
 
-Baseline: **v0.9.3** (2026-11-02). Three playable venues, tutorial/campaign/checkpoint resume,
+Baseline: **v0.9.4** (2026-11-02). Three playable venues, tutorial/campaign/checkpoint resume,
 difficulty/help, audio/accessibility settings, a 24-NPC budget baseline, a complete
 escalation/access/radio loop, shift review, the Blender asset library, 262 headless + 101 Python
 tests, a 21/21 clean screen-design judge and an optional Forward+ Desktop HQ build. This is a strong
@@ -34,7 +34,7 @@ release-candidate foundation, not yet a 0.10.0 release candidate.
 | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
 | Content and balance | 3 venues with validated 12+ event matrices, recovery events and contextual dialogue | External playtest evidence, balance/fairness pass, event-weight tuning and final content lock | Repetition or unfair outcomes survive into the release candidate | 0.10.0 |
 | Dialog/UI | Audited terminology, copy, button states, focus/navigation, modal close, long strings and all 21 screen captures | Keep the capture/compare/judge gate current as content changes | Low; the remaining risk is drift after new UI is added | Complete (0.9.3) |
-| Animation/presentation | Procedural pose layers, portrait captures, reduced hem clipping | Thorough NPC silhouette/face/gear/pose/LOD optimization before visual QA | Close-up jank reduces perceived quality | 0.9.4 |
+| Animation/presentation | Procedural pose layers, portrait captures, reduced hem clipping, 8,000/8,000 NPC cap | Thorough NPC silhouette/face/gear/pose/LOD optimization before visual QA | Close-up jank reduces perceived quality | Complete (0.9.4) |
 | Audio/accessibility | Procedural ambience/SFX, volume controls, captions/reduce-motion settings, searchable Help | Full accessibility/localization acceptance review, audio caption coverage and P0/P1 fixes | Public release cannot claim accessible play | 0.10.0 |
 | Localization | English JSON table, validation and input-generated Help | Pseudo-locale/layout audit and translator workflow sign-off | Text expansion/clipping at release | 0.10.0 |
 | Performance/platform | 24-NPC headless budget (6.9 ms), Compatibility/Web/HQ paths | Target hardware matrix, Web/HQ manual profiling, frame-time/memory evidence | Platform-specific drops or startup failures | 0.9.6 / 0.10.0 |
@@ -44,145 +44,11 @@ release-candidate foundation, not yet a 0.10.0 release candidate.
 | Documentation | Architecture/ADR/status/roadmap ownership established | Final README/changelog/status/TODO/smoke-checklist sign-off and known-limitations page | Docs drift at launch | 0.9.6 / 0.10.0 |
 | Future 0.x | Stable 0.x feature set | Live replay, more venues, VO/music, image-to-mesh props and seasonal content | Scope creep before release | 0.11.0+ |
 
-**Current priority:** map optimization, the **pre-build NPC revisit** and the
-**0.9.3 UI polish** pass are complete (all moved to `DONE.md` on 2026-11-02).
-**0.9.4 NPC-detail** is active; 0.9.5 texture refinement, 0.9.6 integration and
-the 0.10.0 release candidate are queued. The source version is now 0.9.3; no
-release build or tag has been produced for it.
-
-## Patch 0.9.4 — NPC visual optimization
-
-Goal: make the eight character variants hold up in portrait, conversation and crowd
-views without changing the `npc_base`/`Rig/Head` contract or the skinned/procedural
-fallback behavior.
-
-### Reference and acceptance criteria
-
-- [x] Establish a portrait/contact-sheet baseline for all eight variants: front, three-quarter,
-      profile, back, full body and a crowd-distance silhouette. (`capture_npc_baseline.gd`
-      produces 48 frames; `sheet_npc_baseline.jpg` is committed.)
-- [x] Define acceptance criteria for proportions, face readability, hair, hands, shoes, clothing
-      silhouette, gear fit and animation at the gameplay camera height (1.7 m). (Eight criteria
-      in `docs/npc-visual-review.md`; the current 8,000-triangle/8,000-vertex library contract is explicit; the `npc_base` fallback remains 6,000/4,000.)
-- [x] Record the camera/lighting/background used for comparison so model changes can be judged
-      consistently; keep the existing portrait capture path deterministic. (Neutral studio, fixed
-      orbit cameras, no HUD/crowd/animation; commands recorded in `docs/npc-visual-review.md`.)
-- [x] Identify the highest-impact gaps from the current portraits (e.g. face depth, hair mass,
-      neck/shoulder transition, hand/foot shape, coat/dress hem) and rank them by player visibility.
-      (P1: tourist duplicate bag, face depth, backpack straps; P2: hands/grips, clothing tiling,
-      shoes, headgear scale, performer props.)
-- [x] Publish a before/after NPC comparison sheet for review before changing the library.
-      (`sheet_npc_baseline.jpg` is the before artifact; `tools/npc_baseline.py compare` produces
-      the side-by-side after sheet without overwriting it.)
-
-Completed 2026-11-02: 48-frame neutral studio baseline, eight criteria, current fit and
-triangle/vertex measurements, and ranked P1/P2 gaps are in `docs/npc-visual-review.md`. The
-baseline itself changed no character models; the first P1 gear fixes are recorded under Gear
-and equipment fit.
-
-### Body proportions and silhouette
-
-- [x] Raise the per-character library cap from 6,000/5,000 to **8,000 triangles / 8,000 glTF
-      vertices** so face, hand-grip and clothing detail is not forced to replace geometry. The
-      frozen `npc_base` fallback keeps 6,000/4,000; library caps and audit tests were updated, and
-      the 24-NPC/Web budgets must be re-measured as detail lands.
-
-- [x] Audit all variants against a shared human proportion guide (head height, shoulder width,
-      torso length, hip width, limb length, foot length) and correct the worst outliers.
-      (`tools/npc_proportions.py` + `docs/npc-proportion-audit.md`: all eight pass; no skeleton or
-      mesh rescue was needed. Head and broad-build silhouettes are nearest their upper bounds.)
-- [x] Improve the neck and shoulder transition so the silhouette reads as one body rather than a
-      thin post on a hanger. (Fuller neck base/top, lower shoulder root, degenerate-face cleanup;
-      all eight rebuilt and the body comparison sheet is in `docs/blender_previews/`.)
-- [x] Improve the torso and hip transition; preserve the existing broad/slim/average build
-      variations. (Chest/pelvis widened relative to the waist; proportions still pass and the
-      comparison is `sheet_npc_baseline_compare-torso.jpg`.)
-- [ ] Add subtle body-shape variation between variants beyond uniform scaling (shoulder slope,
-      torso taper, hip width, limb thickness) while staying inside the triangle/vertex budget.
-- [ ] Check the procedural fallback and `npc_base` silhouette against the library so the fallback
-      remains a credible offline substitute.
-- [ ] Re-measure LOD 0/1/2 silhouettes and ensure the impostor still matches each variant at distance.
-
-### Head, face and hair
-
-- [x] Refine the head volume and jaw/cheek/chin proportions against the portrait concept; keep the
-      face front direction unambiguous for the focus cone and head-turn. (Chin plate and cheekbones
-      sculpted into the head mesh; no separate jaw/cheek spheres or AO intersection rings.)
-- [x] Improve brow/eye-socket depth and eyelid/iris readability without turning the low-poly face
-      into a noisy mesh. (Recessed sclera, thin upper lid; `sheet_npc_baseline_compare-face.jpg`.)
-- [x] Refine the nose bridge/tip, lips and ear shape; keep the five tint slots and face direction
-      unchanged. (Ala wings, smaller tip, one rounded mouth slot, darker ear concha; all eight
-      rebuilt. `sheet_npc_baseline_compare-face-detail.jpg`.)
-- [ ] Audit hair caps, fringes, side locks, buns and beard silhouettes for gaps, intersections and
-      obvious scalp seams; keep hair color in the tintable slot.
-- [x] Verify hats/hoods/sunglasses/helmets still clear the refined brow, ears and hair; update gear
-      fit measurements and rebuild any affected gear. (Final-context 96-frame review: cap, helmet,
-      hood and sunglasses clear the eyes; `blender_assets.py fit` clean; no rebuild needed.)
-- [ ] Check face readability under day, evening and LATE lighting and at the portrait capture’s
-      shallow depth of field.
-
-### Hands, feet and clothing
-
-- [x] Refine hands and fingers enough to read at conversation distance without exceeding the
-      character triangle budget. (Wider palm, two-segment bent fingers with rounded tips, separate
-      thumb; optional `--view=hand` capture and `sheet_npc_hands_compare.jpg`.)
-- [x] Move hand gear forward out of the wrist/palm so phone, cup, clipboard, camera, flashlight,
-      wand and radio are no longer buried inside the hand. (`HAND_ITEM_FORWARD`, 4 cm; new capture
-      sheet `sheet_npc_hands_grip_compare.jpg` and regression assertions.)
-- [ ] Add finger curl/thumb contact for the hand items and judge the umbrella/sign grips against the
-      new palm/finger geometry.
-- [x] Audit shoes/boots for silhouette, grounding and contact with the floor; preserve the
-      responder and firefighter footwear language. (Rounded toe/heel caps; boots keep the black
-      rubber language; all eight rebuilt, grounding and proportions still pass.)
-- [ ] Improve clothing layer transitions at collars, cuffs, plackets, waistbands, pockets, badges
-      and reflective bands; remove obvious z-fighting or floating detail.
-- [ ] Add believable fabric folds/wrinkles at elbows, knees, waist and hems where the extra
-      geometry pays off in portraits; keep the fixed detail materials and five tint slots intact.
-- [ ] Re-check coat/dress/skirt hems during walking, blocking, sitting and turning; eliminate
-      visible leg-through-hem clipping and floating hems.
-- [ ] Verify outfit tinting on all five contract slots and fixed-colour details (hi-vis, leather,
-      steel, patches, plastic, rubber) remains unchanged.
-
-### Gear and equipment fit
-
-- [ ] Run the Blender `fit` report for every character and all head/back/chest/hand gear; record
-      head-band, skirt/hip clearance and inner-face clearances.
-- [ ] Re-fit caps, beanie, hood, sunglasses and firefighter helmet against the refined face/hair;
-      ensure eyebrow/ear clearance and a readable face with the hood up.
-- [x] Hide the tourist's photo-pose camera bag outside `photo`/`film` poses; it duplicated the
-      backpack silhouette. (`photo_prop_visible_for_pose()` plus regression test.)
-- [x] Refit the backpack straps as flattened bands that follow the torso instead of rods partly
-      buried in the chest; rebuild the GLB, bake AO and confirm in the before/after sheet.
-- [ ] Re-fit shoulder bag and SCBA tank against the revised torso/hips; fix remaining strap and
-      tank intersections and keep attachments outside the body silhouette.
-- [ ] Verify lanyards, radios, phones, cups, clipboards, umbrellas, cameras, protest signs,
-      flashlights and wands sit correctly in the hand/grip and do not float.
-- [ ] Add regression checks for gear attach parents, head/back silhouette clearance and hand-item
-      grip; rebuild affected GLBs, bake AO and re-import.
-
-### Poses, animation and performance
-
-- [ ] Review idle, walk, warning, blocking, recognition, refusal, phone, clipboard, photo, film,
-      sit, panic/flee and responder poses for pops, foot sliding, floating props and head-turn
-      overshoot.
-- [ ] Add or refine short negotiation/reaction transitions (comply, argue, leave, recognize,
-      block) without changing the seeded pose/outfit determinism.
-- [ ] Re-measure the skinned-avatar frame cost at 16/24 NPCs and the LOD/impostor thresholds;
-      record triangle, mesh and draw-call changes before raising any cap.
-- [ ] Ensure the procedural fallback still passes the pose, target and crowd behavior tests after
-      the model changes.
-
-### Verification and handoff
-
-- [ ] Rebuild the affected Blender assets, AO maps, manifest and review sheets; run
-      `blender_assets.py audit`, `fit`, character imports and the full Godot test suite.
-- [ ] Recapture the portrait, character gallery and crowd-distance shots; compare old/new and run
-      the Python screen-design judge.
-- [ ] Update `docs/blender-assets.md`, architecture/status, `MEMORY.md` and the changelog with the
-      new budgets, limitations and rebuild commands.
-- [ ] Exit: all eight variants pass the portrait/readability criteria, gear and hems no longer
-      clip in normal play, the 24-NPC budget remains green, and the visual judge has no unexplained
-      regressions.
+**Current priority:** map optimization, the **pre-build NPC revisit**, the
+**0.9.3 UI polish** and **0.9.4 NPC visual optimization** passes are complete
+(all moved to `DONE.md` on 2026-11-02). 0.9.5 texture refinement, 0.9.6
+integration and the 0.10.0 release candidate are queued. The source version is
+now 0.9.4.
 
 ## Postponed — Patch 0.9.5 — Texture and material refinement