The video game industry is concerned about offering better graphics and more advanced technology in terms of image and sound. However, there is another key factor for its development: artificial intelligence. In this article, we see the evolution of artificial intelligence in video games.
What Is Artificial Intelligence in Video Games?
Artificial intelligence is the technology that allows machine learning, deep learning, or language processing to learn to analyze information from their environment to behave in a “humane” manner.
If we talk about video games, AI could be defined as the set of techniques used to design the behavior of ‘Non-Playable Characters’ (NPC) or Non-Player Characters (NPC). However, to this day, this definition would be quite short. And it is because AI in video games is not only used to determine the behavior of games, but it goes much further. For example, for the design of maps or levels, or even to create games from scratch.
Below we delve into all these aspects and take a tour of the evolution of artificial intelligence in the history of video games.
Special Features of AI in Video Games
Artificial intelligence in video games has several features that differentiate it from the application of this technology in other fields as evidenced by assessments on Britainreviews.co.uk. The most obvious is that it is oriented to entertainment within the game itself, its objective is to function in a virtual environment, without applications in the real world. That is, it fulfills a playful function that is intrinsic to the video game, and its application has no place outside of it. reviews about internet companies in the UK.
This differentiates it from artificial intelligence in medicine or artificial intelligence in law, areas in which this technology seeks a practical application in reality. Therefore, the artificial intelligence of an online video game that requires a good internet connection (see different internet providers companies online reviews)s is not subject to certain moral questions. It does not have the ethical component that it may have in other fields. In the above example from medicine or law, decisions made by AI can affect people’s real lives. In a video game, AI decisions only affect the game, the world created within the game.
Evolution of Artificial Intelligence in Video Games
Artificial intelligence in video games continued to evolve little by little, with the introduction of new possibilities. Games like Karate Champ (1984) made use of it to grant different personalities to their fighters, while First Queen (1988) was the first game with NPCs following the player. The role-playing game Skyrim (2011) also contributed its grain of sand through the use of artificial intelligence in video games for the design of missions. The game combined locations, weapons, enemies, and objectives to generate missions, saving its designers significant work.
At this point, it is no longer about artificial intelligence within the video game, but to create the game itself.
The latest in artificial intelligence is the refinement of procedural systems. From the basic generation techniques of yesteryears, others have been able to generate almost infinite terrain and scenarios, for example in games like Minecraft, No Man’s Sky, or Spelunky, among others.
Even after all of this advancement and evolution, we are still in the early days of artificial intelligence, and the technology still has a long way to go before it reaches its true potential. For now, we’re starting to see some interesting use cases, but AI has yet to revolutionize games as much as it eventually will.
Nonetheless, early indications are good, and the best news is that the gaming market is consumer-driven. It’s us, the fans, who ultimately decide what’s going to take off, and we’ll only embrace AI in games if it makes games better – which it will. It is an exciting time to live.