Game Development Reference
In-Depth Information
Introduction
Artificial Intelligence
(
AI
) is an extremely vast field. Even for games it can be very di-
verse, depending on the type of game and requirements.
Many developers enjoy working with AI. It gives you a sense of creating something alive,
something intelligent, and rational. A good question to ask before designing AI for a game
is what the expected behavior should be, from a player's perspective. In an FPS, it might be
the case that the AI can separate the friend from the foe, find cover when attacked, flee
when injured, and not get stuck on things as they move around. AI in an RTS might need to
not only evaluate the current situation, but also plan ahead and divide resources between
aggressive and defensive behavior. A group of soldiers and a tactical shooter might have
advanced and dynamic group behavior. Another option is to have individual behaviors that
still make them appear to work together, to the player.
The recipes in this chapter will, in most cases, work with isolated functionality, but revolve
around a central AI control class. As such, the results might not always be impressive on
their own, but at the same time, it should be quite easy to combine several of them into a
more powerful AI.
