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6 books on AI for Games [PDF]
October 22, 2024 | 15 |
These books explore AI applications in gaming: pathfinding, behavior trees, decision-making algorithms, and procedural content generation, illuminating the ways in which AI can enhance gameplay, create lifelike non-player characters, and optimize game design.
1. Artificial Intelligence Video Games: Fundamentals and Applications
2023 by Fouad Sabry
In "Artificial Intelligence Video Games: Fundamentals and Applications," Fouad Sabry takes us on a delightful tour through the curious world of AI in video games, where non-player characters (NPCs) do their best to act human—or at least convincingly enough to fool your grandmother into thinking she's playing against a real person. Since the pixelated dawn of video gaming in the 1950s, AI has been quietly doing the heavy lifting, not in the academic sense of figuring out how to solve world hunger, but in the far more important task of making sure that every game you play feels more like an adventure and less like getting lost in IKEA. From the classic arcade villains of yore with their predictable, yet oddly endearing, movement patterns, to today’s cunning opponents that can outmaneuver you faster than you can say "game over," Sabry covers it all. He also uncovers the secret tricks of modern gaming—pathfinding that’s basically GPS on steroids, decision trees more complex than your last existential crisis and AI so sneaky it mines data and generates entire worlds without so much as a beep—all of which ensure you're hopelessly, joyfully lost in the game.
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2. General Video Game Artificial Intelligence
2022 by
General Video Game Artificial Intelligence is a book about the audaciously complicated idea that artificial intelligence, rather than solving world hunger or cracking the mysteries of the universe, should instead be laser-focused on beating every conceivable video game ever made. It introduces a framework—because every good idea needs one—called the Video Game Description Language, which sounds a bit like a thing you’d want to avoid at parties, but is actually the backbone of a global competition that’s been running since 2014. In this noble contest, researchers pit their AI algorithms against a mind-boggling variety of games, hoping to create something that doesn’t just stumble through Tetris but can triumph over an entire arcade. Naturally, educational institutions saw this and thought, “Aha! Homework!” Now students from undergrads to PhDs are sweating over it. Written by the masterminds who created this delightful torment, the book offers a glimpse into the endless research, quirky solutions and a glimpse into the dazzling, algorithm-packed future of video games.
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3. Artificial Intelligence in Games
2022 by Paul Roberts
"Artificial Intelligence in Games" provides comprehensive coverage of essential topics crucial for game AI programmers, ranging from foundational mathematics and steering behaviors to advanced areas like terrain analysis, pathfinding and decision-making. Accessible and practical, each chapter includes a game example that invites readers to experiment with their own code modifications and observe the resulting effects. Divided into two parts, the book combines theoretical explanations presented in a conversational style with visual aids and fictional game scenarios for clarity and context. The second part of each chapter offers hands-on coding tutorials in C#, specifically tailored for implementation within the Unity Game Engine, with downloadable example games provided for practical application. Ideal for students and aspiring game developers, this book serves as an invaluable resource for mastering game AI techniques and principles.
Download PDF
4. Artificial Intelligence and Games
2018 by Georgios N. Yannakakis, Julian Togelius
This groundbreaking textbook, titled "Artificial Intelligence and Games," delves into the realm of applying artificial intelligence (AI) techniques to the world of gaming. Beginning with introductory chapters that lay the foundation by elucidating AI fundamentals and gaming concepts, the authors then delve into the practical aspects of using AI for gaming, including gameplay, content generation and player modeling. This comprehensive resource is well-suited for both undergraduate and graduate courses spanning games, artificial intelligence, design, human-computer interaction and computational intelligence. It also serves as an invaluable reference for professionals in the gaming industry seeking self-guided exploration. To further enhance the learning experience, the authors have established a companion website (http://www.gameaibook.org) that offers supplementary exercises, lecture slides and recommended readings to complement the book's content.
Download PDF
5. Artificial Intelligence for Computer Games
2011 by Pedro Antonio González-Calero, Marco Antonio Gómez-Martín
This book offers a comprehensive exploration of the latest developments in Artificial Intelligence (AI) for computer games, drawing on valuable insights and prototypes from academic research. Over the past decade, academia has made significant strides in various aspects of AI for games, encompassing pathfinding, decision-making and learning. A recurring theme throughout the book is the creation of flexible, non-prescriptive AI for in-game agents. In the realm of pathfinding, the book introduces real-time search methods that enhance AI performance and explores learning pathfinding behavior by observing player interactions. Decision-making tools are also covered, enabling game designers, often non-programmers, to construct behavior-controlling software through the reuse of patterns or past behavior instances. Additionally, the book delves into approaches that transform conventional pre-scripted narratives in commercial video games into interactive, player-driven stories. These approaches incorporate layered AI architectures, incorporating beliefs, intentions and emotions, inspired by agent system research. Furthermore, the book delves into techniques for autonomously or semi-autonomously learning complex behaviors by analyzing recorded traces of human or AI players, leveraging combinations of reinforcement learning, case-based reasoning, neural networks and genetic algorithms. This book serves as an invaluable resource for academic researchers, game developers and industry professionals looking to integrate cutting-edge AI techniques into contemporary electronic entertainment games.
Download PDF
6. AI for Game Developers: Creating Intelligent Behavior in Games
2004 by David M Bourg, Glenn Seemann
Designed for novice AI programmers, AI for Game Developers introduces key techniques, including finite state machines, fuzzy logic, neural networks and more, using clear and accessible language. The book incorporates code samples throughout (written in C/C++) to illustrate concepts. Starting with fundamental methods such as chasing, evading, pattern movement and flocking, it progresses to cover genetic algorithms, presenting a blend of deterministic (traditional) and non-deterministic (newer) AI techniques suitable for beginners in AI development. Additional topics encompass potential function-based movements for tasks like chasing, evading, swarming and collision avoidance, basic pathfinding and waypoints with a dedicated chapter on the A* pathfinding algorithm, AI scripting, rule-based AI (including variants beyond fuzzy logic and finite state machines), basic probability and Bayesian techniques. Unlike comprehensive AI books, AI for Game Developers focuses on practical, advanced techniques that can be immediately applied to enhance games, extend their play-life, increase challenge levels, and, most importantly, make them more enjoyable.
Download PDF
How to download PDF:
1. Install Google Books Downloader
2. Enter Book ID to the search box and press Enter
3. Click "Download Book" icon and select PDF*
* - note that for yellow books only preview pages are downloaded
1. Artificial Intelligence Video Games: Fundamentals and Applications
2023 by Fouad Sabry
In "Artificial Intelligence Video Games: Fundamentals and Applications," Fouad Sabry takes us on a delightful tour through the curious world of AI in video games, where non-player characters (NPCs) do their best to act human—or at least convincingly enough to fool your grandmother into thinking she's playing against a real person. Since the pixelated dawn of video gaming in the 1950s, AI has been quietly doing the heavy lifting, not in the academic sense of figuring out how to solve world hunger, but in the far more important task of making sure that every game you play feels more like an adventure and less like getting lost in IKEA. From the classic arcade villains of yore with their predictable, yet oddly endearing, movement patterns, to today’s cunning opponents that can outmaneuver you faster than you can say "game over," Sabry covers it all. He also uncovers the secret tricks of modern gaming—pathfinding that’s basically GPS on steroids, decision trees more complex than your last existential crisis and AI so sneaky it mines data and generates entire worlds without so much as a beep—all of which ensure you're hopelessly, joyfully lost in the game.
Download PDF
2. General Video Game Artificial Intelligence
2022 by
General Video Game Artificial Intelligence is a book about the audaciously complicated idea that artificial intelligence, rather than solving world hunger or cracking the mysteries of the universe, should instead be laser-focused on beating every conceivable video game ever made. It introduces a framework—because every good idea needs one—called the Video Game Description Language, which sounds a bit like a thing you’d want to avoid at parties, but is actually the backbone of a global competition that’s been running since 2014. In this noble contest, researchers pit their AI algorithms against a mind-boggling variety of games, hoping to create something that doesn’t just stumble through Tetris but can triumph over an entire arcade. Naturally, educational institutions saw this and thought, “Aha! Homework!” Now students from undergrads to PhDs are sweating over it. Written by the masterminds who created this delightful torment, the book offers a glimpse into the endless research, quirky solutions and a glimpse into the dazzling, algorithm-packed future of video games.
Download PDF
3. Artificial Intelligence in Games
2022 by Paul Roberts
"Artificial Intelligence in Games" provides comprehensive coverage of essential topics crucial for game AI programmers, ranging from foundational mathematics and steering behaviors to advanced areas like terrain analysis, pathfinding and decision-making. Accessible and practical, each chapter includes a game example that invites readers to experiment with their own code modifications and observe the resulting effects. Divided into two parts, the book combines theoretical explanations presented in a conversational style with visual aids and fictional game scenarios for clarity and context. The second part of each chapter offers hands-on coding tutorials in C#, specifically tailored for implementation within the Unity Game Engine, with downloadable example games provided for practical application. Ideal for students and aspiring game developers, this book serves as an invaluable resource for mastering game AI techniques and principles.
Download PDF
4. Artificial Intelligence and Games
2018 by Georgios N. Yannakakis, Julian Togelius
This groundbreaking textbook, titled "Artificial Intelligence and Games," delves into the realm of applying artificial intelligence (AI) techniques to the world of gaming. Beginning with introductory chapters that lay the foundation by elucidating AI fundamentals and gaming concepts, the authors then delve into the practical aspects of using AI for gaming, including gameplay, content generation and player modeling. This comprehensive resource is well-suited for both undergraduate and graduate courses spanning games, artificial intelligence, design, human-computer interaction and computational intelligence. It also serves as an invaluable reference for professionals in the gaming industry seeking self-guided exploration. To further enhance the learning experience, the authors have established a companion website (http://www.gameaibook.org) that offers supplementary exercises, lecture slides and recommended readings to complement the book's content.
Download PDF
5. Artificial Intelligence for Computer Games
2011 by Pedro Antonio González-Calero, Marco Antonio Gómez-Martín
This book offers a comprehensive exploration of the latest developments in Artificial Intelligence (AI) for computer games, drawing on valuable insights and prototypes from academic research. Over the past decade, academia has made significant strides in various aspects of AI for games, encompassing pathfinding, decision-making and learning. A recurring theme throughout the book is the creation of flexible, non-prescriptive AI for in-game agents. In the realm of pathfinding, the book introduces real-time search methods that enhance AI performance and explores learning pathfinding behavior by observing player interactions. Decision-making tools are also covered, enabling game designers, often non-programmers, to construct behavior-controlling software through the reuse of patterns or past behavior instances. Additionally, the book delves into approaches that transform conventional pre-scripted narratives in commercial video games into interactive, player-driven stories. These approaches incorporate layered AI architectures, incorporating beliefs, intentions and emotions, inspired by agent system research. Furthermore, the book delves into techniques for autonomously or semi-autonomously learning complex behaviors by analyzing recorded traces of human or AI players, leveraging combinations of reinforcement learning, case-based reasoning, neural networks and genetic algorithms. This book serves as an invaluable resource for academic researchers, game developers and industry professionals looking to integrate cutting-edge AI techniques into contemporary electronic entertainment games.
Download PDF
6. AI for Game Developers: Creating Intelligent Behavior in Games
2004 by David M Bourg, Glenn Seemann
Designed for novice AI programmers, AI for Game Developers introduces key techniques, including finite state machines, fuzzy logic, neural networks and more, using clear and accessible language. The book incorporates code samples throughout (written in C/C++) to illustrate concepts. Starting with fundamental methods such as chasing, evading, pattern movement and flocking, it progresses to cover genetic algorithms, presenting a blend of deterministic (traditional) and non-deterministic (newer) AI techniques suitable for beginners in AI development. Additional topics encompass potential function-based movements for tasks like chasing, evading, swarming and collision avoidance, basic pathfinding and waypoints with a dedicated chapter on the A* pathfinding algorithm, AI scripting, rule-based AI (including variants beyond fuzzy logic and finite state machines), basic probability and Bayesian techniques. Unlike comprehensive AI books, AI for Game Developers focuses on practical, advanced techniques that can be immediately applied to enhance games, extend their play-life, increase challenge levels, and, most importantly, make them more enjoyable.
Download PDF
How to download PDF:
1. Install Google Books Downloader
2. Enter Book ID to the search box and press Enter
3. Click "Download Book" icon and select PDF*
* - note that for yellow books only preview pages are downloaded
