The Gaming Thread

[T.Lex]

The one thing MMO's bring, is the complete unpredictability of other players. Maybe they'll be nice, maybe they'll hunt you mercilessly, maybe they'll just scream incomprehensibly into their mic.

Good programming can create that same kind of suspense.

 

[JettaKnight]

Good programming can create that same kind of suspense.

The NPCs in GTA V are really lifelike, but decidedly not human.

In a shooter there's not much difference, but in an open world game where your friends can come over to your yacht and hang in the hot tub, chat, and take selfies, there's huge uncanny valley that no one has attempted to cross.

 

[T.Lex]

The NPCs in GTA V are really lifelike, but decidedly not human.

In a shooter there's not much difference, but in an open world game where your friends can come over to your yacht and hang in the hot tub, chat, and take selfies, there's huge uncanny valley that no one has attempted to cross.

There were a few projects in ArmA back in the day that put footers in for that bridge. Well, maybe not chill-in-the-hot-tub mods (but, now that I say that... maybe there are).

A couple that come to mind are civilians on foot and in cars that look like they're going someplace and AI that can search buildings. For specific missions, there are randomization factors that make it so the player is never really sure what AI - both enemy and (by appearance) ally - will do.

I'm not saying it can replace online human behavior - which can not only be random, but RANDOM - just saying that the element of suspense that comes from not being sure how someone will react can be replicated to some degree. At some point there may be a Turing test for MMOs.

 

[Caleb]

It wouldn't be unreasonable to have AI learn online human behavior and randomize those behaviors across the many different AI's

 

[JettaKnight]

It wouldn't be unreasonable to have AI learn online human behavior and randomize those behaviors across the many different AI's

Ironically, the NPC's act the most human - they walk on sidewalks, drive sanely, talk on phones, scream when shot...

The other "humans" are the ones that just stand there and take shot after shot because the player AFK, they endlessly try to climb an "unclimbable" wall, they get in your way and endlessly do the same "blowing kisses" animation....

 

[T.Lex]

It wouldn't be unreasonable to have AI learn online human behavior and randomize those behaviors across the many different AI's

I'm pretty sure the programmers are capable of setting AI to randomly take pictures of their food, post incoherent reviews of places, send DMs to player characters with nude selfies, and follow around NPC celebrities.

That's what machine learning of social media would produce. Along with some misogynistic racism.

 

[ArcadiaGP]

Pretty bizarre... Nintendo has apologized, and announced they are "restarting" development on Metroid Prime 4 with a different studio.

 

[Kutnupe14]

It wouldn't be unreasonable to have AI learn online human behavior and randomize those behaviors across the many different AI's

C'mon bro! I'd like to be in the ground before Skynet tries to take us out.

 

[masterdekoy]

C'mon bro! I'd like to be in the ground before Skynet tries to take us out.

Another step towards skynet. “Alphastar” (deepmind, AlphaGo) beat two pro Starcraft players. AI can now control armies on a battlefield in real time. If you watch the video, it gives a pretty good overview.

ETA: forgot link. https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.th...196135/google-deepmind-ai-starcraft-2-victory

 

[ArcadiaGP]

Nintendo Makes It Clear that Piracy Is the Only Way to Preserve Video Game History

By shutting down the Wii Store Channel and not letting users download old games, Nintendo is once again showing that in the modern digital era, you don’t actually own the things you buy.

 

[Caleb]

Nintendo Makes It Clear that Piracy Is the Only Way to Preserve Video Game History

I'll be honest, I'm confused... Nintendo has always been anti-piracy to the point of sending out cease and desist to those groups who help pirate the games or produce launchers for said games...

 

[ArcadiaGP]

I'll be honest, I'm confused... Nintendo has always been anti-piracy to the point of sending out cease and desist to those groups who help pirate the games or produce launchers for said games...

Yeah, the headline is more of a jab at Nintendo.

I get that they're rereleasing old content occasionally, such as with the "Classic" versions of NES/SNES... but the other games from back-in-the-day are doomed to die of entropy. People back those games up and make them available, albeit through methods that are questionably illegal, because there are no other options.

If the company refuses to sell a game... and the originals are dying because the means to play them aren't reliable, what else is a consumer expected to do? Do places like Nintendo take the position that the window for playing Karnov on NES is gone now? It's no longer a game because we say so?

I dunno. I think they're fine to crack down on modern piracy... although the impact that has on sales is debatable... they need to loosen up on the old content. Unless they plan to get serious about re-releasing it digitally.

 

[T.Lex]

... but the other games from back-in-the-day are doomed to die of entropy.

Do you mean atrophy?

If not, I'm picturing Nintendo randomly releasing games, then pulling them, in really random increments of time, like every few seconds.

 

[ArcadiaGP]

Do you mean atrophy?

If not, I'm picturing Nintendo randomly releasing games, then pulling them, in really random increments of time, like every few seconds.

Whichever one is "gradual dying over time", to the point of becoming non-functional.

 

[T.Lex]

Whichever one is "gradual dying over time", to the point of becoming non-functional.

Dangit, now I'm sorry I brought it up.

 

[Caleb]

Yeah, the headline is more of a jab at Nintendo.

I get that they're rereleasing old content occasionally, such as with the "Classic" versions of NES/SNES... but the other games from back-in-the-day are doomed to die of entropy. People back those games up and make them available, albeit through methods that are questionably illegal, because there are no other options.

If the company refuses to sell a game... and the originals are dying because the means to play them aren't reliable, what else is a consumer expected to do? Do places like Nintendo take the position that the window for playing Karnov on NES is gone now? It's no longer a game because we say so?

I dunno. I think they're fine to crack down on modern piracy... although the impact that has on sales is debatable... they need to loosen up on the old content. Unless they plan to get serious about re-releasing it digitally.

I may or may not know of people that have 850+ NES and SNES roms that can be used on phones....

 

[ArcadiaGP]

Ahh, I remember playing a lot of Sim City on the SNES.

[video=youtube_share;TrScy1icWjI]https://youtu.be/TrScy1icWjI[/video]

 

[ArcadiaGP]

This week's Gameranx wrap-up

1. New patent implies PlayStation console that may have backward compatibility with all previous PlayStations.
2. PS5 developer kits are apparently out in the wild.
3. Rumor that Nintendo is working on new Nintendo Switch, smaller, more focused on portability.
4. GameStop will not be sold, counter to previous news that it was looking to find a buyer. 27% stock dive.
5. Metro Exodus will move to Epic Game Store, not be on Steam.
6. Miyazaki, head of From Software, did an interview with more detail on Seikiro Shadows Die Twice
7. First impressions on Rage 2.
8. Modder working to add fixed camera angle to new Resident Evil 2.
9. Quantic Dream studio no longer making PlayStation exclusives.
10. EA taking lootboxes out of Fifa, Belgium wins lawsuit.

[video=youtube;2nOZwZYRpX8]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2nOZwZYRpX8[/video]

 

[ArcadiaGP]

Super Mario 2 and Kirby Adventure being added to the Nintendo Switch Online service.

I went ahead and picked it up last year... it's pretty cheap, and there really are a lot of old games on it. Played some Tecmo Bowl last week...

Would love to see them add SNES games eventually.

 

[ArcadiaGP]

Another entry in Game Maker's Toolkit series about Designing for Disabilities, this one shows how developers make games that accommodate for cognitive disabilities.

[video=youtube;ObhvacfIOg0]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ObhvacfIOg0[/video]