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An industry like all others -

The gaming industry is no exception in capitalizing on the capabilities of artificial intelligence (AI).

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AI is nothing new -

AI has made the games that everyone knows function the way they do for years, usually used to program NPCs (non-player characters). An example of this is the ghosts that chase the player in Pac-Man.

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The “finite-state machine" -

Characters like these have been programmed to have what designers call a “finite-state machine.” In simple terms, this means that the NPCs follow a script; an “if that, then this” demand.

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Example -

An example of this script for ghosts could simply be “if the game is on, chase Pac-Man.” Another could be, “if Pac-Man swallows a pellet, then the ghosts run away.”

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NPCs and behavior trees -

Developers in recent years have come up with a more sophisticated way of programming these NPCs with a behavior tree. As more levels are added to the tree, the possibilities for the NPCs characters’ behavior grows.

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What does this mean for the player? -

Characters in the games you are playing can make more and more complex decisions as time goes on. The enemy aliens in 'Halo 2,' for example, can work together and coordinate their attacks. They don’t just run into the gunfire of the player.

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Autonomous NPCs? -

The logical next step in gaming evolution seems to be to give all of the characters the ability to learn for themselves and be autonomous. However, there’s a good reason it’s not going this way.

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Keeping the player in mind -

Imagine you are sitting down to play a game. It’s a soccer game, and you are playing against the computer. Now imagine that the NPCs are autonomous. The referee might be entirely against certain players on the pitch, and it would slow down the game or make it less enjoyable for the gamer.

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There's no data saying gamers want autonomous NPCs -

Although this type of gaming sounds like an attractive ‘Westworld’ type of experiment, games are far too difficult and expensive to make for the gaming companies to take risks. The gaming industry is pretty conservative and doesn’t do things for the sake of it.

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For the considerable future -

So games, at least for the considerable future, will be experienced in a form that has been designed and been considered by its developers. Unless developers want people to get lost in some kind of psychotic dreamscape, it won’t happen.

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A CEO's insight -

However, Mitu Khandaker, CEO of Glow Up Games, does see a future where people will “hang out occasionally with this NPC who remembers me.”

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The role of artificial intelligence -

AI is being developed to change games based on the user’s preferences. This is to say that if a player struggles in 'Mario-Kart,' it will learn their level and make it easier to play, rather than just having an easy, medium, or hard mode. The player will be able to enjoy a fresh experience each time.

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AI for creating the map -

AI can generate game assets like rocks, for example. ‘No Man’s Sky’ took this technique to the extreme where the players transverse through a map that was “procedurally generated,” meaning that it wasn’t sketched out ahead of time by designers.

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Will developers be made redundant by AI? -

Even with this, game developers’ jobs are not at stake, at least not yet. NYU professor Julian Togelius commented that the technology is nowhere near creating entire games by itself without developers.

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AI for feedback -

And so, AI doesn’t play the role of creating some bespoke world and characters with complete autonomy. However, it is helping developers to learn about what gamers want and enjoy. Like Netflix recommending what you should watch next, AI technology also “phones home” to developers.

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Virtual reality and gaming -

Giant firms like Facebook, Google, Microsoft, and Sony have invested considerable resources to develop virtual reality (VR) hardware and games. However, VR isn’t going to replace all other forms of gaming for quite some time.

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A VR developer's insight -

After being introduced to consumer markets commercially, Kevin Mack, a VR game developer, said that “when it comes to VR, we’re still in the early days.”

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A niche hobby, for now -

Some challenges have to be overcome for it to be commercially viable and not only be a niche hobby for those with a lot of disposable income or something that people try once at an event.

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Misalignment with gaming values -

Most VR headsets weigh well over a pound (about half a kilo) and must be strapped tightly to a user’s face. It’s not comfortable, and contradicts what the average gamer enjoys: sitting comfortably on a couch while playing.

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It will continue to be niche, but maybe a big niche -

More and more companies are developing the headsets, so it’s only a matter of time before they become affordable. But even when they do, this mode of gaming is socially isolating. Not being able to hear or see anyone in the room isn’t attractive for most people.

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It's very intense -

Furthermore, they are very intense. Enough videos are circulating the Internet of someone diving into a plasma flatscreen TV to know this. Usually, people can’t bear to play them for very long before they’re zapped of their energy and sweaty.

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Augmented reality: A middle ground -

Kevin Mack feels that “VR I think will remain niche, but it could potentially turn into a big niche,” and Mitu Khandaker believes the same. Also, most experts agree that we will start seeing more augmented reality (AR) games.

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Commercial viability -

This is sort of where reality and virtual reality meet. AR is often used in theme parks or for exhibitions. People may be wearing headsets and smell and feel real things around them, but the headsets will augment what they see and hear. So as someone is rubbing a leather material, they might be seeing a dragon.

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Remember 'Pokémon Go?' -

‘Pokémon Go’ is a viral augmented reality mobile game in which virtual images would display over a view of the real world. Streets swarmed with smartphone users searching for Pokémon.

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Approachable and communal -

AR is more approachable for developers than VR, at least for now. AR gets people out of their homes rather than deeper into their headsets. Communities can be built in this way, which is great for the players and a goldmine for businesses.

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5G high-speed Internet -

The rolling out of mobile 5G Internet is expected to have a beneficial effect for augmented reality gaming for obvious reasons–nobody wants to be standing in the middle of the street waiting for their Internet to load.

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Graphics are expected to continue to improve - The graphics in ‘Skyrim’ when it first came out in 2011 were astonishing. Ten years later, when compared to games today, it looks primitive. But just how realistic can games become? It’s unknown. With developments being made all the time in video game graphics, it seems it won’t peak any time soon.

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The future is community -

Looking at the two biggest games of the last five years, ‘Pokémon Go’ and ‘Fortnite,’ gamers have sent developers a message through their behavior. It's that they value community over all else.

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One game, a quarter of a billion users -

'Fortnite' had roughly 250 million registered users in 2020. It would seem that the “digital third place” that has been referred to so much in the past decade is more likely to be a physical playground than an online virtual arena. Augmented reality will also have gamers seeking out more interactions. Virtual reality is also being sought out primarily for social events, and where there is a physical element (like being able to walk), players are spellbound.

Sources: (Built In)(Forbes)

See also: Why the video gaming industry is not what you think

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