2.5 Heuristics

Heuristics

Heuristics is the basic term of the trail and error process for AI in gaming, the AI characters of a game would act on its previous experience of trail and error (Using AI in Computer Games - Assignment 1, 1.2 Heuristics) A simple element which has been used in AI gaming for years.

Now from the previous posts in this blog, I have covered elements which have heuristics built into them so without heuristics, they would not work. I am referring to Artificial Neural Networks (2.4 Q-Learning & Artificial Neural Networks) Now from my initial game idea post (1.1 My Game Idea) you can tell that there are no heuristics involved, there is no trail and error for the AI to learn from. So where would it fit into my game idea is I was to put in heuristics? Well we can come to that in a short time, first I want to talk about heuristics in today's games...

So heuristics used in a game to would be a AI soldier in a game like Battlefield, if the AI is in an attack state then the AI will charge at the playing character but once the AI was under attack from the player character, then the AI would look for cover, somewhere to hide. If the heuristic method is that of a prediction, then we or even the AI would not know what to do when it was under attack. 

Now looking a heuristics in my game, I would do a very similar act as the AI in battlefield. Once the zombies go into an attack state, they will charge down the player character. Now the adjustment I world need to add in would be for the player character to attack back at the zombie AI's, then the zombies would revert to a evade state in which then would find somewhere to hide from the player. Using the same prediction method, the AI would not know what to do when it was under attack. To cut a long story short, the trail and error method would need to be implemented into my game for the heuristic method to be considered.