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Include issue comments in issue-mode agent context #68

@wwind123

Description

@wwind123

Feature request

Include GitHub issue comments in agent-loop issue mode so agents see the full issue discussion, not only the original title/body.

Motivation

agent-loop issue <number> currently risks implementing only the original issue text while missing later comments that refine, narrow, expand, or supersede the original request.

This caused a concrete workflow problem in issue #64 / PR #65: a later issue comment reframed the requested feature from a strict “plan-first then implement” flow into a broader discussion/triage mode where implementation should be optional. The implementation appears to have followed the original issue body and missed or deprioritized the later comment.

For agent-driven issue work, comments are often where the real design decision happens. The coder and reviewers should see that discussion before coding or reviewing.

Proposed behavior

When running:

agent-loop issue 123 --repo OWNER/REPO

the tool should fetch and include issue comments in the task context passed to the coder. Planning/review prompts should also have access to the same context when relevant.

Suggested context format:

GitHub issue #123

Title:
...

Body:
...

Comments, oldest to newest:

Comment by USER at 2026-05-17T09:00:00Z:
...

Design notes

  • Preserve chronological ordering so agents can see how the request evolved.
  • Include author and timestamp metadata.
  • Make clear in the prompt that later comments may refine or supersede the original issue body.
  • Avoid unbounded prompt growth. Reasonable first version options:
    • Include all comments up to a size cap.
    • If capped, keep the newest comments preferentially and clearly say older comments were omitted.
    • Later enhancement: summarize long discussions into local agent memory.
  • The same issue context should be used for normal issue implementation, plan-first mode, and any future discussion/triage mode.
  • Tests should cover that issue comments are fetched and included in coder prompts.

Non-goals

-- OpenAI Codex

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