Good AI all about technology ? "Bull***", says FC3 narrative director

[ninzza]

http://beefjack.com/news/good-ai-all-about-technology-bullsht-says-far-cry-3-director/

[Art Blade]

AI that won't go on full alert half a mile away because of a silent fart would already be a nice development.

What?

Oh, I meant, "because of a silent dart." :-()

[ninzza]

Ubi just confimed Fart Rifle would replace for Dart Rifle in FC3  :-X ;D

[Art Blade]

 :-D

[mandru]

Dart vs Fart rifle?  My thought is that if they dropped the "D & F" and made an Art rifle that fired a hypersonic Blade...

Now that would be pretty cool.   :-D :-X

[Art Blade]

 :-D :-X

[Dweller_Benthos]

The last line is interesting:

Look out for our Far Cry 3 preview, due online this afternoon!

Nevermind, now that I read it again, it means the web site's preview of the game, not a demo like I was thinking. Darn.

[Binnatics]

Good AI: I think it has everything to do with creativity. Of course there's a need of good technology but as long as there aren't any fart directors with great ideas the AI will indeed be no match for natural stupidity  ^+-+

[mmosu]

I like the idea there, humans in stressful situations are prone to make mistakes, especially when someone is trying to kill them  :-()

[ninzza]

I agree with Vandernbeghe and mmosu.

One of the reason I like about the mercs of FC2 is that they're smart (like trying to flank you) and they make dumb mistake at other times i.g. running down their comradres; or throw granade at where they think I hide but they don't know that I already relocate and their 'nade kill their comradre  ;D

IMO most people (devs as well as players) dont think about this or if they do, they regard this as trivial but  I think this is very important because it makes the enemies more believable.

[spaceboy]

This quote alone makes me interested in FC3

"We have a lot of stuff where guys make mistakes. AI enemies that make human errors are much more interesting to play against."

Definitely true and we saw that in FC2, where they were quite smart, but also pretty stupid or mistake prone at times like ninzza said.  If they flesh that out even more, that sounds like a big feather in their cap.

[Art Blade]

Truly. When I think about it, AI committing mistakes is probably the richest source for a sudden laugh-attack on our side. :-D

[Binnatics]

This "making mistakes" and "thinking for their own" that mercs do, is indeed a very unique thing. Can't think of a game where i've seen such a thing as well. But one other game comes to mind however, it's Batman. When you enter a zone which is guarded with 5 or maybe up to 8 henchmen of the Joker. They speak to themselves or to each other about the 'stupid task' they were given, and as they drop unconscious one by one their mood changes from self-assured to frightened and even terrified. Their comments change, and finally, when most of their fellow henchmen have dropped, they start acting weird, no longer helping each other but going alone and being very tense. They also start shooting at random phenomenas like they were thinking it's the bat. It's very funny being the predator somewhere in the dark, watching these fools change mood and do silly things, meanwhile complaining about the Joker and his stupid ideas and unreliable plans. >:D

[Art Blade]

In a way GTA IV has nice AI, too. For instance, if I stand in the middle of the road with a gun aimed at a driver of any given car, ready to take it from him, a lot of things may happen. The driver may give up his car and run away or try to escape or get out and attack me. Passers-by may ignore me or panic or even try to attack or take revenge on me, cars may drive away in a rush changing directions and running over a couple of pedestrians which in return cause other pedestrians to start to panic and flee in all directions and of course cars slamming into one another causing traffic jams and accidents all along. The panic and confusion may spread a couple of blocks, when I drive away I sometimes see people running in packs a few streets away from where I robbed the car. So the simple base of threatening a driver may lead to a basically unnoticed takeover or the other extreme of a state of civil war  :-D The police and passers-by also have a variety of verbal and physical reactions ranging from surprise over panic to utter violence and aggression  :)

[Binnatics]

... or the other extreme of a state of civil war  :

I remember (sorry to start again commenting about prequels) the total chaos caused in Los Santos in a particular moment during the campaign near the end of the storyline; The City turns into a war zone filled with riots like recently took place in England, and all over the city people start robbing houses and shops and you see youngsters carrying big screen televisions everywhere. They have done a great job in changing the complete behavior of all citizens in the entire city. It's funny seeing the cops race all across the city not knowing where to start with their retainment and watch gangsters start wild gangwars all over the city.  >:D

[JRD]

Indeed random reactions and responses to a player's action are a big advance in AI and of course having them making mistakes makes them more believable.

In Batman, their reaction to your actions are just programmed according to the number of henchmen still alive: the less henchmen there are the higher is the number multiplying their nervousness coefficient, pretty simple AI programming and very effective in a closed environment.

In an open world game the environment becomes a challenge for programming as the action can evolve in any direction creating infinnite situations the AI should be able to deal with. Borderlands deals with your action by throwing many different enemies at you, each with a particular way of reacting to your presence: Psychos will run towards you madly trying to blow you (and them) up, Badassass will walk towards you firing non stop, bandits will flank you and so on... it all add up to a situation you have to improvise but still quite easy to programme.

GTA is very believable when they make normal people reactin in panic and creating chaos while enemies and cops will do as they would in a real world  :-X AC2 brings a similar element where people react nicely to you just like enemies and guards.

But Far Cry exceeds it all... mercs will always behave in an unpredictable way doing either pretty stupid things or very effective tactics like flanking and even blowing you up... I never faced AI liuke in FC2 and I do hope they bring it to the next level  8)

I'd like to see a AI capable of learning according to your actions. For instance, if you always attack a GP the same way mercs will start to look for cover or relocate to avoid being killed the same way over and over... or even AI capable of booby trapping areas you always pass by... that would be a challenge  8)

[Binnatics]

Lol, indeed JRD, that would be really great. Being boobytrapped by enemies only happened to me during online play, and that's one thing that makes online play so attractive. So far, AI has made it hard to me only by multiplying the quantity and variety of enemies and the toughness they express when difficulty level exceeds.
I'm hoping with you they do get the AI in FC3 to a new level ;)

[mandru]

I'd like to see a AI capable of learning according to your actions. For instance, if you always attack a GP the same way mercs will start to look for cover or relocate to avoid being killed the same way over and over... or even AI capable of booby trapping areas you always pass by... that would be a challenge  8)

???

Where I'm probably somewhere near my 120th time playing through FC2 the thought of learning mercs responding to my previous actions isn't so nice of a concept.

By now the mercs would have logged so much info on my behavior they'd probably swarm the taxi as I pull into the hotel in Pala right in the middle of my first malaria attack.  They'd skin me alive me before I even get to see the jackal.   :o

[JRD]

By now the mercs would have logged so much info on my behavior they'd probably swarm the taxi as I pull into the hotel in Pala right in the middle of my first malaria attack.  They'd skin me alive me before I even get to see the jackal.   :o

Lol  ^+-+ ... ok, I should say within the same playthrough then  ;)

[PZ]

 ^+-+

[Art Blade]

Very funny  ^+-+