Gaming

Five AI tools every game developer should have in their toolbelt

Published

2 years ago

November 24, 2021

Reading Time: 5 minutes

The games industry is no stranger to Artificial Intelligence (AI) in video games. Anyone that’s played a game populated by NPCs or multiplayer games with bots will know that the quality of the AI that defines how they interact with players can be hugely variable. Done well, AI-controlled characters help a game to be more cohesive and engaging.

That’s why research into game AI is an ongoing focus for so many studios, with bigger companies such as Sony exploring advanced AI techniques like reinforcement learning, which has the potential to create the most advanced form of NPCs to be a player’s friend or foe, depending on how they play.

But AI’s capabilities don’t stop there. AI is also changing the way games are developed, adding much greater realism to in-game characters, gaming experience and creating autonomous online bots that are near-indistinguishable from human players.

Electronic Arts is currently developing systems that use machine learning to replicate facial expressions, skin types and body movements from video and photos. In theory, this means that actors would no longer have to come into a mo-cap studio and there would be a greater range of genders and ethnicities produced in games.

With so much happening in this space, we’ve compiled a list of five AI tools every game developer should have at hand to make their lives easier.

Content Generation

One of the most time-consuming processes a developer will have to deal with is content generation, especially in puzzle games where there is a high demand for new levels. But AI technology can help here, using a method known as Procedural Content Generation (PCG), which creates content algorithmically. AI can be used to generate tens or hundreds of variations ready to be reviewed and selected. If the AI is being used for level generation, it’s even possible to use AI bots to play the levels and score them for difficulty or the time it takes to complete them.

PCG allows for quicker content creation and provides developers with more time for creative experimentation. The AI can easily do the heavy lifting, but human input is still crucial to launching a polished product, which is where the developer’s skill comes in.

Testing

Unlike mobile apps or web pages, games are one of the hardest forms of software to test due to their sheer variation, the near-infinite number of states a game can have, its custom interaction models, and constant updates.

Games are still mainly tested by humans, which means it can be a lengthy and expensive process. While big studios have the budget to create dedicated teams that focus solely on game testing, smaller developers mostly rely on their network of friends, coworkers and fans. But what happens when they are unable to test every aspect of the game? That is where AI and machine learning steps in.

Testing in video games is complex due to the number of split-second choices a player can make and the outcomes those choices have. In addition, there are interactions with other human and non-human players that are also non-deterministically playing the game, which further complicates things.

The advantage of using AI bots for your playtesting is that they can test quickly, constantly and methodically. For example, bots can be used to test for things like object clipping by running all the possible moves and interactions on a level far faster than a human player..

Cheat Detection

Cheating turns players off multiplayer gaming, even if they are not directly affected. For players striving to be the best, it’s all too easy to turn to cheat tools that bestow superhero-like powers in the game. Cheating tools range from simple aimbots that assist with aiming and shooting in FPS games like CounterStrike to mining bots in MMOs that control a player’s character and essentially play for them.

Developers can combat the use of cheats with machine learning and behaviour-based detection AI. By collecting data on a player’s behavioural patterns, such as how a player moves the controller or how fast a player reacts, AI can recognise when an action goes beyond normal human behaviour.

While there are plenty of other products that are able to detect cheaters, the advantage of a machine learning system is that it’s continuously learning and adapting itself to fit the game – making it harder for players to fool. This means that developers can employ updates and patches to the game without having to reprogram the AI.

Content Moderation

Online toxicity has become a growing problem as more and more games are built around persistent online worlds with thousands of concurrent players. There are times that a small number of players spoil the experience for the majority. However, AI is a great ally for developers looking to curb such behaviours and safeguard their players.

There are different approaches to moderating game chat. The most common is to use lists of banned words and phrases, which can be used to block posts that use them. The problem here is that gamers can get around moderation by changing letters to numbers or using slang phrases.

A better approach is to use an AI model that can consider the context of the text so that even if a player is being clever with the spelling of a word, it will still be flagged due to its context and intent. This kind of AI is relatively recent, with only a handful of experts working in this field. But, with no signs that toxic behaviours are declining and the number of people playing games increasing, this is a field that will continue to need expert solutions.

Whilst, AI can capture the bulk of comments before they are posted, human moderators are still required as the ultimate arbiters of what content is permissible. But working as a team, human moderators and AI moderation can together ensure that games are a safe space for all players.

AI Player Stand-Ins

The big attraction of online games is the ability to interact and team up with other players. However, there are not always enough human players to fill in the empty seats; that’s where bots come in.

Bots can act as a reasonable stand-in for human players, with a sophisticated range of behaviours. But it’s still pretty obvious to most when you are playing alongside a bot rather than a real person

One way to address this is to use AI to introduce more variables into the behaviour of the bots. This can give a much more realistic impression of unpredictability, and reproduce things like the risk-taking that you often encounter with human players.

While the combination of techniques used to create effective AI-based bots is fairly new, when done correctly it can create dynamic, adaptive and very human-like bots that add an extra dimension to online play.

AI tools are there to help developers

Developers are faced with an immense amount of challenges to develop great games very quickly, but thanks to the latest AI-based tools, there are powerful solutions to some of the most resource-hungry aspects of the development process.

That is why AI is increasingly becoming an essential addition to the game development process, providing developers with the tools, and the insight, to address any issue that arises. Which, in turn, allows them to unload tedious tasks and concentrate on creative output.

About modl.ai

Headquartered in Denmark, modl.ai is a team of game developers, engineers and AI experts working together to create AI-driven tools for building better games. Its AI-based tools allow developers to rapidly create and test games and understand their players. modl.ai’s unique technology is designed to accelerate the game development process, automating repetitive and time-intensive tasks and helping developers to enhance and increase player engagement.

modl.ai was founded in 2018 by Christoffer Holmgård, Benedikte Mikkelsen, Lars Henriksen, Sebastian Risi, Georgios N. Yannakakis, and Julian Togelius, who between them have been involved in the launch of more than 30 games and have more than 28,000 citations in technical literature covering AI and game design. In 2019 the company successfully secured seed funding from a number of investors led by PreSeed Ventures, Denmark’s largest and most successful early-stage investor, joined by Saltagen Ventures and Propagator Ventures.

Gaming

Flexion Enters into Partnership with Jam City

Published

1 week ago

May 9, 2024

Niji Narayan

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Reading Time: < 1 minute

Flexion, the games marketing company, has partnered with Jam City, a leading mobile entertainment company behind some of the world’s highest-grossing and most enduring mobile games, to bring a selection of the publisher’s best-in-class games to the Alternative App Stores: Amazon Appstore, Huawei App Gallery, Aptoide, ONE store, Samsung Galaxy Store, DT Hub and Xiaomi GetApps.

“We are always looking for new opportunities to build our network of global players, and Flexion is a proven partner that will help introduce our award-winning titles to new audiences in the alternative stores,” Curtis Barnes, Senior Director of Publishing Operations for Jam City, said.

“We’re all about helping developers like Jam City reach the full potential of their games. We’re delighted they have chosen us to add revenue and audiences for their games on the alternative app stores,” Jens Lauritzson, CEO of Flexion, said.

The post Flexion Enters into Partnership with Jam City appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.

Gaming

Mobile Games Index: Analysis of 95M Game Interactions Reveals Shifting Engagement Trends, Available Now

Published

2 weeks ago

May 7, 2024

George Miller

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Reading Time: 2 minutes

The anticipated fourth edition of the annual Mobile Games Index, powered by adjoe and Statista, is now available.

The latest report offers a clear look into the current state of the mobile gaming sector, analyzing the past 12 months of the first-party data from 95 million app interactions across 27 million users. The MGI 2024 reveals what people choose to play on their mobile devices, filling the gap in industry knowledge and enabling game developers and user acquisition specialists to benchmark their products and ultimately target the right audiences with the right content.

Moving forward, it is up to the industry decision-makers to analyze the findings and promptly adapt to the newly-emerged engagement trends from MGI 2024, effectively engaging desired audiences.

A Peek at Shifting Engagement Trends to Capitalize on

Based on predictions from Statista, the overarching trend in the market is its robust growth with a forecasted expansion from $166.1 billion in 2024 to $227 billion by 2028.

Remarkably, Card games are expected to grow the most dramatically at 13.8% a year, nearly doubling their global revenue by 2028. Judging from the engagement charts of MGI 2024, the main driver of growth in this category is Solitaire games. The audience is showing a clear preference for Solitaire – these games hold 7 out of 10 positions in the top list of card games worldwide by time spent with titles from MobilityWare, Gimica, Scopely, and Playvalve, among others.

What allows the market to show revenue growth is the positive changes in global daily time spent. After the dip in engagement highlighted by the last year’s Index, adjoe confirms that average daily sessions have rebounded to 21.5 minutes from 17.3 minutes reported last year, marking a 22% increase.

The most engaged demographic of mobile gamers globally is the 40-49 age group, which has experienced a remarkable 33% increase in daily gaming time, now at 23 minutes daily. The strategies targeted at older demographics over the past 12 months can be deemed successful. However, this has led to a loss of focus on engaging Gen-Z, which has shown only modest growth in time spent.

The MGI also reveals that women are outpacing men in daily gaming time across most genres – as reported for the 4th edition in a row. This consistent and high performance makes the female audience a continuously safer bet when it comes to user targeting.

Another continued trend is the dominance of top publishers such as Supercell, Garena, King, and Playrix, while there’s still space to occupy for smaller publishers. For instance, ForgeGames tops the engagement charts with their game Special Forces Group 2 – capturing over 43 minutes of average daily engagement.

The insights continue in the MGI 2024, going granular to segment and visualize global mobile game engagement data from adjoe by genre, region, and demographic. At the same time, Statista’s extensive market research provides a macro-view of the current and future industry, offering figures for global downloads and revenues with forecasts extending to 2028.

Mobile Games Index 2024 Is Available in Open Access

The MGI 2024 goes deep below the surface of market data and creates a comprehensive snapshot of the mobile gaming industry today. Inside are

For developers and marketers, this report is the green light to benchmark performance against industry leaders and align their products with the rising expectations of mobile gamers. This comprehensive tool is now available for free to inform decision-making and help optimize strategies for short- and long-term actions.

The post Mobile Games Index: Analysis of 95M Game Interactions Reveals Shifting Engagement Trends, Available Now appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.

Gaming

The German Games Industry Association congratulates all winners of the German Computer Game Awards 2024

Published

4 weeks ago

April 22, 2024

George Miller

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Reading Time: 3 minutes

• “EVERSPACE 2” by ROCKFISH Games is ‘Best German Game’ 2024
• Pixel Maniacs from Nuremberg wins in the ‘Studio of the Year’ category
• ‘Best International Game’ is Baldur’s Gate 3
• ‘Player of the Year’ is Maurice Weber

High-quality games, great entertainment and many well-known personalities from the games industry and the cultural, societal and political spheres – the German Computer Game Awards 2024 (DCP), presented this evening in Munich, featured all that and more. Numerous guests celebrated the best games from Germany and the creative minds behind them in person at Eisbach Studios in Munich. The award show, which was hosted by Katrin Bauerfeind and Uke Bosse, was additionally followed by hundreds of thousands of viewers via live stream. A total of 800,000 euros was awarded in cash prizes. “EVERSPACE 2” by ROCKFISH Games was chosen ‘Best German Game’. The ‘Studio of the Year’ award went to Pixel Maniacs from Nuremberg, which has made a name for itself with successful games like the party racing game “Can’t Drive This”, its multifaceted involvement in the game industry and its promotion of young talent, as well as with its innovations in the area of marketing. The ‘Special Jury Prize’ was awarded to the project “Gaming ohne Grenzen” (Gaming without Borders), an initiative that enables young people with disabilities to participate actively in game culture – for example, by assessing in inclusive game testing groups the accessibility of various games as well as the ability of certain technologies to help overcome barriers in video games. In voting by the community and the jury, Maurice Weber was selected ‘Player of the Year’. The games editor and Twitch streamer regularly analyses current developments in the games industry and takes a critical look at them, while at the same time formulating a clear stance for more diversity and against extremism in games and society.

The German Computer Game Awards, which honour the year’s best German-produced games, are hosted by the German Federal Government, represented by the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action, and game – The German Games Industry Association.

‘Congratulations to all winners of the German Computer Game Awards 2024!’ says Felix Falk, Managing Director of game. ‘Even in these very challenging times for many German firms in the industry, German games companies have created high-quality and successful games that have deservedly been honoured on the big stage of the DCP. Around half of these outstanding games were developed with the support of federal game funding. This once again demonstrates the potential that we can leverage when the underlying policy framework for game development in Germany provides for truly predictable and internationally competitive conditions – conditions that allow games from Germany to shine even more brightly all over the world and achieve even greater success on the national as well as international stage. We must make this our goal!’

Overview of all winners:
Best International Game (not endowed)

Baldur’s Gate 3 (Larian Studios)

Best German Game (endowed with 100,000 euros)

EVERSPACE 2 (ROCKFISH Games)

The other nominees will each receive 30,000:

Atlas Fallen (Deck 13 Interactive/Focus Entertainment)
Fall of Porcupine (Critical Rabbit/Assemble Entertainment)

Best Family Game (endowed with 40,000 euros)

Spells & Secrets (Alchemist Interactive/rokaplay)

Newcomer Award – Best Debut (endowed with 60,000 euros)

Ad Infinitum (Hekate/NACON)

The other nominees will receive 25,000 euros each:

Fall of Porcupine (Critical Rabbit/Assemble Entertainment)
Lose CTRL (Play From Your Heart)

Newcomer Award – Best Prototype (endowed with 50,000 euros)

Misgiven (Symmetry Break Studio)

The other nominees will receive 25,000 euros each:

Bloodletter (Katharina “Mikey” Müller, David Cafisso, Marvin Braun, Alica Schneider/Hochschule für Technik und Wirtschaft Berlin)
EcoGnomix (Lars Hinnerk Grevsmühl, Lars Eble, Bahy Nguyen, Marcel Zurawka, Alec Shae)
Footgun: Underground (Eduard Dobermann, Theo Lohmüller, Georg Nimke, Robert Pistea, Lukas Salewsky)
REPLICORE (Sarah Inés Roeder, Rody Nawezi, Leonhard Gläser, Maximilian Götz/ HAW Hamburg)

Best Innovation and Technology (endowed with 40,000 euros)

Marble Maze (Fox-Assembly)

Best Serious Game (endowed with 40,000 euros)

Friedrich Ebert – Der Weg zur Demokratie (Playing History/Stiftung Reichspräsident-Friedrich-Ebert-Gedenkstätte)

Best Audio Design (endowed with 40,000 euros)

Ad Infinitum (Hekate/NACON)

Best Game Design (endowed with 40,000 euros)

Lose CTRL (Play From Your Heart)

Best Graphic Design (endowed with 40,000 euros)

The Bear – A Story from the World of Gra (Mucks! Games)

Best Mobile Game (endowed with 40,000 euros)

Cat Rescue Story (Tivola Games)