Gamers Don't Actually Want Smart AI

GameXplain Writes: "While videogames may have evolved leaps and bounds in terms of graphics, some argue that enemy artificial intelligence has remained relatively stagnant. That is to say, enemy AI is shiny-looking, but still pretty dumb. Kind of like supermodels (AKA the things that you will never have a chance at). The case for this may very well be true, but we're not here to talk about that argument. I am asserting that gamers, unbeknownst to even themselves, do not even want smarter AI."

[Hellsvacancy]

I do, hopefully Hitman V will hav TOP notch enemy AI

[andresegers]

We'll see--the AI's always been pretty wonky in Hitman.

[HolyOrangeCows]

I definitely want to see AI improve. With a few exceptions, I agree that AI HAS remained pretty stagnant.

[ilikestuff]

agreed i want ai so smart it hacks the game and kills me when i have the game paused and im taking a piss, thatd be badass.

i just had a random idea, itd be sweet if an enemy saw you sneaking or something and didnt shoot you right away but instead hed sneak up behind you and try to melee you, something like that. itd be badass

[CombineElite]

First off turn the difficulty setting up past the Newbie setting and in most games you will see an increased level of AI if the developers use great techniques.

Aimbots and NPC's that can soak up bullets like a sponge are cheap as well as always countering your moves in fighting games.

STALKER and Half LIfe 2 have very difficult AI on higher settings as well as Arma 2.

No aimbots
no bullet sponges
they will flank you
surround you
they use great cover techniques
they use grenades to flush you out or blow up your cover
retreat and regroup tactics
making too much noise while exploring will cause the AI in STALKER to hide behind objects and ambush you.

Ai is like graphics or control it depends on how much effort the DEV puts into it for a great game.

[Kingmitch23]

I find the problem in that is the sponges are so numerous that the few games with amazing AI are hard to find. I always used to beat campaigns on medium-high but after enough bullet sponges i just want to get to the end of the campaign.

STALKER is one of my favorite games (and prob fav shooter) but I never knew about the AI till now because I just found the game so interesting and that combined with the expectation for harder difficulty to just be the typical sponge method never got me to give the AI a good chance.

Is the solution researching the AI's ability? (quick google search should get you something) or is it something else?

[PrimordialSoupBase]

That and Far Cry 3.

[xxchicago33xx]

Why don't they develop a platform that uses the aggregation of numerous different user play styles to form the A.I.?

For example, you base the A.I. around the individual play style each tester/player. You capture the way each player reacts to particular situations whether it's when a grenade is at their feet or they are taking heavy fire and make them react accordingly. With this generation of consoles they can capture every little thing we do when playing their games...why can't they make the A.I adapt to the way we are playing the game with this information. This goes well beyond just difficulty and can be used to create progessive environments that constantly change.

Unfortunately, in video games A.I. is still governed by difficulty level...which is incredibly archaic given the tech we have. The first step is doing away with difficulty levels that just make the A.I a bit better at aiming or less likely to do something stupid because they haven't done that process for x amount of time.

(Patent Pending haha)

[Hideo_Kojima]

Because than it would be as hard to kill an NPC as it is to kill a player online.

Imagine having to kill 30+ AI Enemies who are as smart as you are just to get threw to the next Checkpoint.

[xxchicago33xx]

That sounds fun

[Sarick]

I agree, when is it to hard. Look at Demons Souls. Just think if every boss and or NPC had that level of AI after the 1st game. The ability for other players to gank you mid level was a good alternative to intelligent adaptive AI.

[tacosRcool]

Thats why its a great challenge. Why just run through the game?

[GiantJedi]

MGS4

[Strelnikov]

That's a whole hell of a lot of data to store, it would have to be collected and analyzed remotely, and then updated when the game connected to the internet. You would also have to include an index for strategy success and assign different average levels of success to your AI in order to modulate difficulty.

I think all the tools to do this are in place, they just haven't been used in this way before. It's a bit like the way google handles translation.

[Fanb0y]

The data collected wouldn't be pixels, it would be numbers. It would not be a 'hell of a lot of data'.

Hell, actual game code is never that big. It's just a bunch of numbers and text. It's video files, texture files, ad audio files that take up space.

The idea of adaptive AI was sort of explored in L4D. It's probably the best way to up replay value of a single-player game.

[Legionaire2005]

Madden 09 has that A.I. system what your talking about based on your play style. FPS games should have this kind of A.I. system. I'm actually trying to take game development classes to learn this stuff so I'll use this idea also to help make a great game.

[lastdual]

While I agree with the basic premise of the article that we don't want AI to be too smart, as the game would no longer be fun, the other extreme also needs to be stated:

Neither do gamers want the AI to be too stupid.

And let's be realistic - very few games have AI that's too smart, it's the dumb-as-a-brick AI that we see all too often. As such, on a whole, we do want smart*er* AI than the status quo.

[Dash Reindeer]

I've got to agree with you on this one. I don't want ai that's completely realistic, but I definitely want some improvements from where we are right now.

[Fanb0y]

Ooops, double post.

[Fanb0y]

We don't need 'good' AI, we need 'fun' AI.

Who the hell wants AI doing cool manuevers behind your back? You can't see them!

What's important is the AI's reactions in combat - especially the moves they make. AI can have the best movement/positioning tactics ever invented, but if you shoot at them and all they do is play whack-a-mole with you, where's the fun in that?

The 'best' AI I think think of from recent memory is Halo Reach. What sets the AI in this game apart from ALL OTHERS is that you can actually see and appreciate the AI's movements. Unlike COD, enemies don't drop from two bullets, giving them time to escape and protect themselves.

Those mother**** Elites.

[milohighclub]

i want them realistic, as realistic as possible. why not?

[UnSelf]

here here

killzone 2 is still the best FPS this gen becuz of this small factor.

playing this game on elite is like playin a whole other game, amazing stuff really

[DeathMetal]

kilzone's AI was not good at all

[foker]

yes KZ2 AI is insane,..best I have ever seen in the game,...

Actually it got to my nerves,... because they don't drop that fast,.. and sometimes you were playing whack the mole to much,.. or they would fuck with you,.. Lol they even had a hand gesture for you, when they killed you,.. Just don't think I like one thing the thing that much,.. either be smart,.. and drop fast,.. or be dumb and take a bit more bullets,..

AI in KZ2 is crazy,..

But all in all that is what is most impressive thing in that game for me,.. well that,.. and some of the visuals and particles,.. are just crazy,..

[ocnkng]

AI is the best. And this article is correct coz thats the exact same reason that Killzone 2 AI didn't get the credit it deserves, coz no one really liked that bad-ass AI. LoL

[OhReginald]

killzone 2, not killzone. You butt monkey.

[DeathMetal]

AI was nothing special at all fanboys, the reason it got no credit is because it was not any good, it was a meat shield. I had enemies run right past and not even notice me or when you go into a room with like 3 of them they don't even start shooting right away, and in a extremely linear game that is laughable. If you guys think that AI was tough you need to play more games I blew though that game like nothing. The only part that even had a decent amount of enemies on screen was the end. LOL
Have never read one review praising the AI for that game. More fanboy garbage, I love how GG even said most people didn't even finish the campaign. What a great game! Oh and playing the game on higher difficulty has nothing to do with the AI you just die quicker LOL

[f789790]

I played on the hardest difficulty and the AI was better than most. I never saw them do anything stupid and they reacted dynamically to where I was. I once ran out with a knife just for fun and slashed up the room (almost died but it worked!) and the two last guys in the room ran like hell.

[cmrbe]

is mental.

[kneon]

"smart enemy AI would go for the head shot, they would flank you, always use the environment for cover, and try to sneak up from behind you to stab you in the back"

The flanking and use of the environment are definitely part of the KZ2 AI on Elite. They seldom just stand around just waiting to be shot in the middle of a battle like in so many other FPSs. They use cover pretty effectively and will try to maneuver into a position where they can fire on you from a relatively safe position. Just last week I noticed that they were laying down to try and shoot at me through a small gap in a wall, I hadn't noticed that behaviour before now.

[HDgamer]

For the ones claiming KZ2 ai was nothing post a video of you beating the game on elite. Otherwise what you say is bs.

[dinkeldinkse]

The AI was absolutely fantastic on elite. I still remember getting stuck on levels because the Helghast would just outsmart me and take my ass out.

[MGRogue2017]

The game will last longer.. And... Yeah, The game will last longer.

That's always a good thing.

[xg-ei8ht]

Best a.i KILLZONE2.

[thehitman]

they play the game on easy/norm... I agree that majority of gamers dont want smart AI because if they did everyone would be beating their games on hardest difficulty where the AI are sometimes too smart for their own good.

[Fishy Fingers]

Putting a game on hard rarely actually makes the AI "smarter" though, usually just increases their health, damage given and accuracy.

[f789790]

That's exactly why I want intelligent AI. I rather fight a smart enemy instead of one who can get headshots with an assault rifle from a mile away and also have a ton of health.

[milohighclub]

they dont have to be hard to beat to be intelligent, they have to asses situations, attack and accordingly. the perfect difficulty would be where the AI die in one shot for a chest or headshot, but so do you!!! it would make it more life like. that plus smart AI would be amazing.

killzone's AI is pretty sweet,i remember the first time i played it, i started off with beasty headshots, then later in the game the AI kept ducking making 'em harder to hit and i love how they pop out of cover, then when you shoot they move to different parts of the cover. it happens on uncharted as well, the first more than the second, the AI seemed to get dumber unfortunately.

*OFF TOPIC*
is it just me or are the graphics for drakes hair worse on the second one 2, it seems to have less detail.

[gersh]

I just hate it when you're playing a game and it always seems like the friendly A.I. can never kill anyone.

[FCOLitsjustagame]

I agree.
Sure go ahead and make the enemy AI a little better (count me on the list that don't want it too smart, except maybe on a Legendary setting) but also make your allie AI as smart as the enemies.

[f789790]

Friendly AI sucked balls.

"Hey look! An enemy turret. Let's run out into the open, get hurt, and make Marcus save our asses!"

[coolbeans]

I'm sure there's some that like the archtype of a badass soldier who's able to mow everyone down, but I don't think that's the majority of gamers. I'd definatly like to see AI that acts like a great team yet also give them human qualities. Perhaps every once and a while, someone might slip or drop their gun. Just make it something that can relate really well to gamers: the AI feels like a human and it (enemy AI) will fight tooth-n-nail in order to survive, sometimes human error happens, even gun jams during an intense firefight would be interesting to see.

[Psychotica]

The first thing that came to mind was Gears of War 2 where the AI sometimes walk backwards and kill themselves with their own weapons. That AI is not even closed to smart. Hopefully Gears of War 3 improves on that, I want a bot opponent that can at least challenge me.

[LightofDarkness]

Depends on the game, and of course people want the AI to be smart. They don't want them to be unholy super beings with the ability to head-shot you the moment you're visible from all the way across the map, obviously, the key is making it smart/stupid enough to be fun.

Making AI hyper powerful isn't difficult, the difficulty is in dumbing down your AI so that it's fun to play against. You could program any enemy in your game to be the lord and master of headshots, but that would make the game impossible. in fact, that might be the easiest thing to do with them besides having them stand there and do nothing.

Of course, what's being described there isn't really "intelligence." That's giving the in-game character the unfair advantage of being commandeered by a CPU that can calculate exactly how to hit your head on the first go. To make it intelligent, we need to have more nuanced human qualities. Interesting little quirks in their behavior that make them seem less like a generic footsoldier. I'd like to see more individuality amongst my in-game enemies. This means they do need to be smarter, IMO. So yes, I do in fact want smart AI.

[telekineticmantis]

and that's my problem they don't have to be expert marksmen but I want my AI to not just stand in the lie off fire and make it easy they should take cover ad manuever. Stupid AI doesn't make the game fun for me, take Shadow of the colossus. I know it was ps2 and the tech might ot of been the greatest, but I sure couldn't tell i that game. The colossi would always manuever a certain way that would make you take bad risks or fall. I liked that and it made the lengthier ad more rewarding.

[limewax]

Why not? It doesnt need to be in every single brain does it? there are plent of games out there now hat have pathetic AI but are great to play because the AI is not the focus of the game. But to have it in a couple shooters here and there would be great. Imagine an AI that would actually plan his route from cover if you had the edge, not just trying to flank but also gaining the high ground, keeping small numbers of enemies leading you into a decoy while the others pin you down. It would suck in every game but in a few it would be great

[jack who]

i do

[dinkeldinkse]

I would like to play games that are hard because the enemy AI are smart not because they can take 4 thousands bullets to the head or your character can only take one hit. Or the games that are harder because your allies are absolutely useless(Fuck You,Sheva Alomar).

[Incipio]

Yes I do. Challenge me please. Make me fear my enemy.

[Whoooop]

I do like a challenge, but I don't really enjoy a forced "realistic AI" where enemies react as if they have the most advanced senses ever.

I still want to have fun without feeling that the developers dumbed it down for us, but I sure don't want frustrating challenge. Gaming is a balance of fun and challenge IMO.

[TheoreticalParticle]

Here was my response, in case you don't want to give the article any hits.

"Sure we can all agree that AI that insta-head shots you is a bit cheap, but what about programming AI that aims more for the head, as opposed to the torso? (as is so prevalent in today’s games) I mean, real players generally aim for the head, right? So why not give the AI the same mindset?"

I wouldn't mind if the enemy went for headshots, and in fact, in most games they do. What I mind is when they get aimbots and are headshot masters with AK-47s at distances and speeds that people with sniper rifles can't match. I want better AI, not the AI that replicates the top 1% of all players, and not aimbots.

"If all games featured smart AI, no one would want to play a stealth game."

I don't want to play stealth games, anyway, but I think you're missing the point here. The objective is to find the patterns and sneak through the patterns that the designers built in. It's not supposed to be a realistic look at breaking into a enemy military installation. If you were doing so, you'd generally either have 1)Much more firepower or 2)Much more backup. This is an example of real-world AI not applying to the situation.

The focus fire ambush example is an example of the AI being cheap. How so? Because in City of Heroes, the player can't set up a counter-ambush. Giving the enemy capabilities that the player doesn't have isn't good AI, it's cheap. Another example of this is in shooters when the player is vulnerable and the AI can shoot the player, but the AI is in a location or state that makes them invulnerable. If the player is in peril, the AI has to be, too. You can't detect the enemy ambush in your City of Heroes scenario and prevent it. Therefore, the AI is ALREADY at a huge advantage. That situation would be "cheap" even if you replaced the AI with human players.

We WANT better AI. It saddens me that people seem to have no grasp of what this actually entails.

[kraze07]

Dumb AI is perfect for stealth games imo. If the AI was smarter these type of games would be more based on luck than actually stealth skills and tactics. I would however like to see smarter AI in shooting games, especially friendly AI. Alyx Vance was decent but all too often friendly NPCs can't pull their own weight.

The Armored Core series seems to have improved on enemy AI. Not the basic enemy units you can cut through like butter or the giant enemy bosses, but the enemy AC units. Especially in For Answer. I forgot which fight it was but you either had to have luck or jedi like reaction times to beat the enemy.

[blackburn5]

KZ2 and UC2 A.I. were great. They stayed in cover or surrounded you and circled around you to take you from different sides. If you hid to long they threw grenades to flush you out. I love smart A.I. I want a challenge. If the enemy adapts to my attack or counters it, it helps me think on my feet. It makes me think I am facing off against worthy opponents instead of enemies that do stupid things like jump out of cover into the open if you wait long enough, shoot at where you are supposed to be hoping your still there (stealth games) or just blindly running at you in a straight line.

[BlueEye]

I remember when i got DBZ: Infinite World, i was completely new to the Budokai mechanics, and with the drastically increased A.I compared to Budokai 1-3 i was so considering just selling it to GameStop, even Easy gives me a pain after many hours of training this and that. Basically smart AI can make the game frustrating and thus will most likely lead to bad reviews and thus worse sales.

[Beahmscream]

That is BS. Who the hell does not want more smart, realistic enemies?

[djfullshred]

Humans have to input their commands in a game. They have see & react to what is happening before they make that input. There is delay in these reaction times. There are limitations to our human abilities.

A programmer could easily make a game that is impossible for us average humans to compete against. They can make it instantly react to our input without having to "see" us. They can make it so the enemy will rather hide than get shot (that is smart AI after all). So yes, they have to put limitations on the bots we are playing against, otherwise what is the point? A game is supposed to be fun, not an excercise by software developers in constantly humiliating or frustrating the player. I've played games that fall under that description, and would like my money back on them.

[KwietStorm_BLM]

I love when I'm always told what I want as a gamer. Always nice to not have to think. I wish I could always go through life with someone doing the work for me.

/sheep

[Neko_Mega]

Smarter AI's make the game more fun and hard.

If they AI is to dumb it makes you mad, I mean Dead Rising has dumb AI and the game isn't hard because of it but it is a pain when the AI that you got to save is being dumb.

[bobrea]

I want smart A.I. As a matter of fact, I hate stupid A.I. Thanks for telling me what I think, though...

[GoldPS3]

Stupid ai makes the game easy. I like a challenge.

[AssassinHD]

I want smarter AI. Calculating and tactial opposition is a hell of a lot better than perfect aim and grenade spamming, which is currently par for the course in harder difficulties.

[kneon]

That would be COD: World at War on Veteran. I don't know how many times I died surrounded by grenades on all sides. It sometimes seemed as if it were raining grenades.

But at least it was challenging, unlike MW2 where Veteran mode wasn't that much harder than normal mode.

[kornbeaner]

I want smarter A.I., but a lot of developers fall to the mindset that "Cheap A.I. is smarter A.I." and thats what I dont like. So far MGS4, KZ2 and F.E.A.R. has shown some pretty decent smart A.I., hopefully we'll see more attempts at smart A.I. instead of more time spent on pushing a few more textures.