Any chance for an AI dev diary?

More diaries are always interesting. And they give me stuff to complain about, which is always nice.

Personally I'd be surprised if there is much AI work going on though. You've got to settle on how the game wors before you teach someone how to play it. Most of the problems I have with the AI would be more easily fixed by changing the game. Ie, stopping the player using teleport all the time so the AI, doesn't have to compete with that, or simplifying the settlement system so that I can't win the game by rushing certain techs, or making groups easier to train etc etc.

I agree that many AI problems can be fixed by changing the game. That's why I feel it's vital to have AI design happening alongside game design, even if implementation takes place later.

One can only hope.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wizard_of_Wor

I wouldn't mind an update on tactical combat AI for E:wom either.

I lol'd

Since Brad is the best AI guy and he's working on EWOM, who's working on the AI in EFE?  Should we be worried? 

I like the idea of an AI dev diary too because the AI is something that needs to be solid in EFE since it wasn't in EWOM.  Actually, I forgot to ask.  Do we even have AI in EFE or did Derek pull it out? 

He's also the only A.I guy at Stardock. He has said that he can't find any A.I people to hire and he himself is busy enough as it is by running Stardock and making WoM v.1.3.

An A.I developer journal is something I expect around BETA time. We may see one sooner but that would be a theoretical one of how he plans the A.I.

On the good side, since Fallen Enchantress comes later than War of Magic, the A.I will hopefully be allowed to use more CPU resources.

This. Brad undoubtedly hasn't had time to do any work on FE, and you would only do AI when the game is almost feature complete anyway.

Right now, I'd say AI is my biggest concern about FE.

How will the AI handle particularly tough Wildlands areas?

Best regards,
Steven.

This discussion really deserves a more lengthy response but I'll try to give you some of the highlights:

So as some of you know, Stardock has historically had 3 business units -- the software unit, the games unit, and the distribution unit.  From 2000 to 2009, the software unit dominated the vast majority of our energy. In 2010, the distribution unit took the lead at which point we decided to sell it off (we like money too but I didn't exactly get excited about waking up and putting my creative energies into selling other people's games).

At net result is that I have quite a bit more time. Right now, we're hiring up very aggressively and so I've been spending a lot of my time recruiting people so that we can effectively get two game studios going at once by July 1 while at the same time putting together the projects for the software group for the rest of 11.  

So in July you'll have Team A (FE) run by Derek and Team B (unnamed) run by Jon Shafer (not counting team C which is a combined Stardock/Ironclad team working via VPN managed by Brian Clair - Yarlen and Blair Fraser). 

The AI work for FE won't get started until after v1.3 is complete. But because I've got a third less work on my plate (Impulse being sold off) and that my work on these projects is only very high level I'll be able to dedicate massive time to FE.

We have also agreed internally that we won't ship until the AI is on par with the GalCiv AI even if it means delaying the game even though everything else is wonderful. So you may be in store for a pretty long beta phase with this game. And when the complaining begins, refer them to this post because mark my words, people WILL complain. Not everyone (not even most people) care about AI. They'll argue that we should just crank up the AI bonuses and call it a day. 

Unlike with GalCiv, I've got Dave Stern who Random House graciously gave me the okay to hire from them to do the writing. So I can have the AI have a lot better and richer dialog with players.

...

Now, all that said, the WOM AI is going to get an overhaul in v1.3.  I need to learn how the tactical battle AI works as I wasn't involved in that part of the game. That way, I will be already somewhat more familiar in FE where the tactical battles are going to be a lot LOT more sophisticated (due to all the special powers and abilities and weapons).  The weapon stuff in FE is, frankly, insane. If you're not a medeval weapons expert, you will be. I never realized how different even different swords can behave.

Better than you humans will.  Freaking meat.

That's the spirit.

Hoping to see some truculence from the AI.

Also, delaying the game until the AI is really, really good is AOK with me. Smart choice.

Hope you don't mind me being one of those guys who does care about AI.    I know a lot of people play these games for fun...not me.  I'm hoping for a mental challenge of my brain vs. all of the mathematical computing power and strategery the computer can muster.

AI was just about the only thing wrong with AOW:SM, the only reason I stopped playing that game (I had to really work my mind to figure ways when making maps to get around the ai's incompententcy so my friends could be challenged).   Extremely happy to hear that this will be a major concern. 

Side note:  I've played alot of space games & Galciv was by far my favorite but not till recently did I put two & two together and realize that the game I liked so much was Stardocks.  Thought surely I've played this before & went through my old games & there it was, just didn't pay much attention to the name before.

frogboy, do NOT release fe until the AI can SHRED galciv's, PLEASE

harpo

On the AI complaining- the best way to handle that is the way you already do it, have the open betas, and let people play a beta version in the meantime.  People won't complain if they can play something, especially if that something is good as it is and you're still improving it.

I think AI is the 2nd most important component of a single-player game behind gameplay.    The replay value of a single-player strategy game is mostly determined by the AI itself.

The only downside is with a really long beta, the game can sometimes seem you've played it a ton when the game is on its release date  (with Twilight, I actually felt I had gotten my money's worth by the time it was released)

I would say ignore the folks that are complaining for the sake of complaining.  I have to admit I am a huge Blizzard fan and their ideology behind game production should be emulated throughout the industry.  I don't mean to hang on their nuts or seem like a fanboy but every game I've played of theirs was super solid upon release.  The only one I remember having any issue with was WoW on a basic Dell machine.  Partly the game, mostly my machine.  I like that they take as much time as THEY deem necessary as they are the ones creating whatever it is they are creating and thus know intrinsically when the product is ready for the public. 

Far too many people do not have the patience to put up with the long wait times this type of thinking requires.  Fact is, whether your on the boards complaining every day to the devs or casually keeping tabs on a game your interested in, no matter how long it takes to be released, chances are both sides of the spectrum will be purchasing the final product whenever it may be released.  I say at that point, make a product that they can't complain about! (impossible to do I know, but at least make it good enough to keep the in the game and off the boards). 

in short-------TAKE YOUR SWEET TIME... as I recall, these projects are coming to me for free, so really, take your time

Wait a minute....If is is the best and only AI guy in Stardock and WOM AI sucks then that does not bode well for FE.  Me thinks there are other AI guys flying under the rainbow or Brad is actully working more on FE than WOM.

I play games for fun....But fun to me means a challanging game with good AI.

FE doesn't share WoM's problem of changing so frequently and drastically that the AI is being written against a constantly moving target. It's a more formally specced out thing and thus you can expect the AI to have a better idea of what it's supposed to do.