Newsgroups: comp.ai.games
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From: aurel@xylo.owl.de (Aurel Balmosan)
Subject: Re: What are your views on the best computer game ai?
References: <nlm117.8.314AC1C5@psu.edu> <franc.16.314D9FB1@iee.ufrgs.br>
Organization: Xylo-Systems
Date: Tue, 19 Mar 1996 17:05:18 GMT
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GUSTAVO ANDRE FRANCESCHINI (franc@iee.ufrgs.br) wrote:
: In article <nlm117.8.314AC1C5@psu.edu> nlm117@psu.edu (Jessman) writes:
: >From: nlm117@psu.edu (Jessman)
: >Subject: What are your views on the best computer game ai?
: >Date: Sat, 16 Mar 1996 13:27:34 GMT

: >I think the best game ai is xcom's one and two.  The aliens run around and 
: >take smart shots at you. They also hide realy well.

: I like X-COM very much but I think that Sid Meyers Colonization has a 
: better  AI then any other I saw.

I don't think that either of them have a real AI concept. They use cheating
because it is much easier to implement (and you get better results).
Currently we are also implementing a strategic game. We have found out
that some cheating used with generic algos (to represent the character of
a NPC) is easy to implement and you have not to test all the cases leading
to problems with real AI approach. 

The best way to combine generic algos and cheating is to randomize the 
things a NPC sees. The NPC would newer see a exact value so he can
not calculate the exact risk in doing something.

Implementing a strategic game using AI would be very hard. You need much
time to find good function for assessing the risk of an action. Also if
you have found some it is not guaranteed that they will work together
in a complex game situation. (This would lead to very bad results
in a game. --> any one would say: What a bad strategic game!!)

	Aurel Balmosan
-- 

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Aurel Balmosan		aurel@xylo.owl.de
Xylo: The way things are going.
