15-396: Modeling of Cognitive Agents

Description & Goal

Course Description

Courses covering game development typically focus on topics related to basic game delivery technologies. Programming issues such as event management, 3D graphics rendering, physics/collision simulation, situation models, character models, texture management, and networking are examined down to the level of executable source code. Projects that can be considered significant technical achievements commonly evolve in such classes as students learn how to program interactive games. Due to time constraints and curriculum scope issues, typical game development courses set aside very little time for non-player character (NPC) behavior development. Just getting a working game planned and developedin a single month or 2 is an achievement…

Even when NPC behavior issues are given coverage in a game development class, only basic aspects such as path finding, basic behavior selection, and group flocking are typically explored. This course is intended to be an adjunct (not a competitor) to a typical game development course. Rather than spending 2-3 lectures on the development of NPC AI, this course will focus all of its lectures on the development of NPC AI.

Goal & Approach

The primary goal of this course is to demonstrate to students how computer games can be made better by populating them with compelling, intelligent NPCs. This class will start off with discussions of the current state of NPC behavior--at best, it is sufficient to enable acceptable gameplay. An agent behavior specification formalism will then be introduced to students. This formalism will serve as a framework within which students will learn to specify cognitively plausible, intelligent NPC behaviors. After learning how to use the behavior specification formalism, students will propose, develop, and demonstrate final projects showcasing compelling behaviors not stunning graphics or high-fidelity physics simulations. Students emerging from their final projects will have the knowledge and skills necessary to incorporate cognitive agents into gaming, virtual reality, and behavioral modeling contexts.