Learning Behaviors Through Demonstration: Artificial Intelligence for Non-Player Characters in an Interactive Drama

Abstract

In both the game industry and the academic community, there have not been many attempts to create complete interactive drama systems. I am working with a group that will be the first to undertake this daunting challenge, and one of the most important components in such a system is artificial intelligence (AI) to control the behaviors of non-player characters. Traditional approaches to designing the AI for any kind of interactive game involves designing characters who follow scripted behaviors. This method is cumbersome and amounts to gameplay that is repetitive and thus inhuman. This paper will describe my attempt to design a system that will allow an expert user to demonstrate behaviors to the system, which the system will use to learn how to behave on its own using case-based reasoning. The end result of this work will not only benefit interactive dramas but may help in the design of game AI for other genres of video games or simulations.