View Single Post
Old 07-28-2009, 07:33 PM   #10
Gromble
Member
 
Join Date: Oct 2005
Posts: 31
Gromble is on a distinguished road
Re: Advanced AI in MUDs

I'd argue the typical "intelligent" mobs we see in MUDs (like the Midgaard Mayor) are not really examples of AI. The behavior of these mobs is scripted in the sense that they follow a pre-defined sequence of actions, with little if any variation or ability to recover when things go awry. AI, at least as I think of it, takes in the current situation, compares the probable outcomes of at least a few choices, and selects the best of them to follow.

Revisiting the Midgaard Mayor... his goal is to lock the gates at dusk and unlock them at dawn. It's a simple goal that mainly involves getting from wherever he is to the gate. So the best choice at each step is moving in whichever direction gets him closer to the gate.

On one MUD, I seem to recall that his path through town was hard-coded, so he was broken if anyone managed to push him off or somehow block his path. It would be more intelligent if a path-finding algorithm were applied at each step so he could get to the gate from anywhere in town (even opening doors as necessary).

However, this assumes the Mayor won't find himself in other situations, like a brawl or judging a Miss Midgaard contest. In these cases, his goal is different, and different choices need to be evaluated.
Gromble is offline   Reply With Quote