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Now you see it… Now you don’t

Now you see it… Now you don’t. Introduction to Game AI. What is AI?. Some terms. AI is. a philosophy an abstraction a tool. Philosophy . People do things based on rough goals and sketchy plans – modifying their behavior when problems or opportunities arise. Abstraction .

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Now you see it… Now you don’t

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  1. Now you see it… Now you don’t Introduction to Game AI

  2. What is AI? Some terms

  3. AI is... • a philosophy • an abstraction • a tool

  4. Philosophy • People do things based on rough goals and sketchy plans – modifying their behavior when problems or opportunities arise.

  5. Abstraction

  6. Tool: Finite State Machine start end

  7. Tool: Planner state goal

  8. Tool: Agents

  9. What is Game AI? Some Context

  10. Environment • Big projects, getting bigger • Dynamic worlds/systems • Time is still an issue

  11. Problems • Sensing • Reacting • Locomotion • Expressing

  12. People • Programmers • Designers • Players

  13. Goals: Programmers • Intelligent, coherent, reactive behavior • Consistent, accurate sensing

  14. Goals: Designers • Extensible, flexible code • Intuitive interface

  15. Goals: Players • Coherent • Believable • Entertaining! Fortress of Solitude: “If they worked properly, they’d be tools - not toys”

  16. Currently • Slow progress on • sensing • reacting • Problems crop up in • code • interface

  17. State of the Art Game AI Today

  18. State of Game AI? • “State machines and hierarchical AIs. The simple rules-based finite- and fuzzy-state machines (FSMs and FuSMs) continue to be the tools of choice for developers, overshadowing more "academic" technologies such as neural networks and genetic algorithms.” – Woodcock 2001

  19. Finite State Machines • Systems, Sub-systems and Sub-Sub systems • Proliferation of nodes = slower code • Changes in Agent design = chaos • Schizophrenic behavior = common • Difficult to debug

  20. Rule-Based Systems • Special Cases made easy • Scripting can be tedious • Debugging can be difficult • Flexibility? Extensibility?

  21. Hierarchical AI • Commanders, Middlemen, Drones • Lots of reasoning • Lots of inter-level communication • What does the user see? • Best in strategy contexts?

  22. Other approaches? • Black and White, Creatures, The Sims • Neural Net • Learning/Reinforcement • Transparency? (why?) • Transitions? (how?)

  23. Other approaches? • Thief I & II • Complex Sensing • Brooksian, Distributed AI • Scalability? (how many brains?) • Intuitiveness? (which brain?)

  24. More Recently • Optimizations • Blackboard Systems (NOLF 2) • Broadening scope • Diagnostics (DX 2) • Expressive Characters (HL 2) • Paul Eckman

  25. SPORE • Agents • Systems • Content OH MY!

  26. Recent Issues • New systems and genres introduce new problems... • Dynamic Path Planning • Strategic Team-based AI • Massively-Multiplayer AI • Procedural Animation/AI

  27. Next-Generation AI? • Will new technology engender new and improved techniques? • Will new problems have clear, simple solutions?

  28. What about Middleware? Game AI In a Box?

  29. Middleware • Animation • Locomotion Control

  30. Middleware • Behavior Control Systems

  31. Middleware • Structural Organization/Interface

  32. Middleware • Logic

  33. Middleware • Workflow integration

  34. Interface

  35. Editors

  36. Middleware • Prove it! • AI Implant: Unreal, various games • Targeted Applications • Dynamic environments (Physics) • Crowds (Pathfinding, animation) • Agents (Planning, Learning) • Genetic Algorithms

  37. Looking Forward Juicy AI Problems

  38. Dynamic Game Adjustment • Difficulty • Pacing • Story • Characters • The future looks... complicated!

  39. Natural Language Generation • Context-aware conversations • Common-sense responses • Dynamic phrase generation • Procedural Content Generation & Management

  40. Expressive Characters • Memory • Feelings • Independent goals

  41. Persistence • Character Changes, World Changes • Player is on stage

  42. Theory “There are no character classes in Project Ego, only personality styles that evolve according to the decisions you make. Your character will age as time progresses, and the actions you take put an idiosyncratic spin on his or her appearance. Early wounds will show up later as scars. Lethargy will manifest as a little extra blubber around your middle, and anaerobic exercise will show up in the form of Olympian muscles. Even more important than your looks, your reputation will depend on the kind of life you lead. The incredible freedom of gameplay allows you to pursue every occupation from dashing hero to indolent bum to mischievous cutpurse.”

  43. Reality? “Most quests fall into typical RPG trappings … to make them more interesting, Fable allows you to 'boast' at the Boasting platform. There are usually only four or five pre-determined boasts available for any one quest, and you can't mix and match… Again, if you didn't know about it before, you're better off than those of us who expected the boasting to be more user-controlled…. And even if you boast like a maniac, you probably won't have too hard a time accomplishing your task because Fable is oddly easy... Part of that is due to the game's uninspired enemy A.I; bad guys pretty much just beeline for you if you're within range. The diversity is thin, featuring basic variations on only about a dozen types of monsters. You'll fight a lot of the same things over and over again.”

  44. Design vs. AI “Perhaps the biggest question about Fable is its replay value. There's obviously no multiplayer here, so it all boils down to how much the story branches based on your alignment. The answer, unfortunately, is very little. While there are a few different ending sequences based on a combination of your alignment and one very large decision you make towards the end, you won't need to play through the whole thing again to see 'em because the game actually allows you to change alignment mid-stream by simply going to the good or evil church and making donations. Whoops! Sort of takes the value out of making bad decisions when you can pay for instant repentance, eh?”

  45. How would you build it? • Persistent beliefs about the main character • Clear presentation of change/progress • Characters that remember events • Gossip? • Grudges?

  46. Wrapping up What we covered...

  47. Game AI Then • Big talk • Plenty of proposed ideas • Republic • Black & White • Fable • Few successes (much debated) • Halo AI • Oblivion?

  48. Game AI Now • Gamasutra/Game Developer • AI Programming Wisdom • Journal of Game Development • AIIDE

  49. Game AI Tomorrow • Maybe it’s you?

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