Rotate to a new direction the short way instead of spinning around

A turret or character told to face 10 degrees when it faces 350 degrees often swings the whole way round. Here is how to pick the shorter turn every time, how to turn at a limited speed without overshooting, and what to do when the target is exactly behind.

Why this works

A direction is a place on a circle, and on a circle there are always two ways to get from one place to another. People expect the shorter one. So measure the turn after folding it into a half circle, and every blend and every turn limit follows.

When not to use it

Don't use it when the long way is the point, such as a wheel that must turn a full round, a dial that counts turns, or a spin attack. There, keep the angle as a growing total and don't fold it.

In the full entry

• What to build, step by step
• Starting values and the reason for each
• 4 common mistakes and the fix
• 24 lines of example code with 4 checks that pass
• How your AI shows you that it works

Say this to your AI

Use the Spielerando entry "Rotate to a new direction the short way instead of spinning around" (read_entry turn-the-short-way-around-a-circle) in my game. Build it step by step, and show me how you checked that it works.

Or skip this and connect the MCP: your AI then finds all of this by itself.Connect the MCP