Slashdot has a story on NERO, a videogame AI project undertaken by the Digital Media Collaboratory and the neuroevolution group at the University of Texas Department of Computer Sciences. In the game, the player trains a squad of rookie AI soldiers to perform battle duties, and unlike the scripted AI used in most titles, these troops learn in real-time, retaining autonomous behaviours, but following tactical guidelines laid down by the player. As the NERO site explains:
NERO introduces a new genre of video game that is only possible with machine learning technology: The player takes the role of trainer and teaches a team of novice soldiers the skills for battle. When sufficient skills have been acquired, players can take their teams to battle mode where their skills are tested against teams trained by other players.
Although this is a fascinating use of advanced AI, I think 'new game genre' may be over selling it somewhat - NERO, instead, sounds like a cross between Pokémon Colosseum and Full Spectrum Warrior. Which, come to think of it, would rule.
And anything that improves the current state of game AI would certainly be welcome - especially when it comes to squad-based games. I've been playing Call of Duty: Finest Hour recently and there's a mission (one of many actually) where you have to charge into a building and clear it of enemy soldiers. Well, I stormed in first with about four AI soldiers behind me, and after taking out a German lurking at the top of some stairs, came up against a lone chap firing from a small room. I waited outside for him to reload, but my AI squad bundled in immediately and started to strike him about the face with the butts of their rifles. I thought, 'fine, they can handle this, perhaps they might actually shoot him eventually', so I ran out, cleared another room and then went up another flight of stairs. When I returned several minutes later I found that my platoon of crack AI infrantrymen were still chasing the German soldier around the room trying to hit him with their rifles, only now there were only two of them because he'd shot the rest.
Clearly that isn't right.
So what have been your most amusing experiences with failed AI?
