Ubisoft lets you actually talk to NPCs in its new AI-powered video game

I've been wondering this for the past three months, ever since I talked to an AI NPC at Nvidia's Cyberpunk Ramen Shop. What kind of game developer would jump on this controversial and interesting technology? If you say Ubisoft, the company that is constantly raising their hands to play with VR, NFTs, interactive TV shows, secondary screens, etc. That would be correct.

Last night I played three prototype segments of an experimental Ubisoft demo featuring the company's just-announced “Neo NPCs.” One of them tried to use my emotions to convince me to join a resistance against powerful mega-corporations. Another woman described a break-in plan written on a whiteboard to me, and she “persuaded” me to turn off the lights and hack the cameras in the facility rather than resorting to brute force. I was allowed to.

The existence of Ubisoft extremely It's clear that these NPCs are prototypes (a “creative experiment,” a test, a joint R&D project with Nvidia and Inworld.ai) and are not yet committed to release into a full game. That's probably for the best. Because while the company is trying to suggest that it has made small advances in “real-time emotions and animations,” “situational awareness,” and “collaborative decision-making,” the demo actually didn't take that long. It's a body. It's even more advanced than Nvidia's slightly clunky cyberpunk ramen shop.

One of them, “Bloom,” is a little better, thanks to an actual narrative designer scripting the backstory, but there's a lag in responses, occasional voice breaks, and the delivery is still choppy. It was a bit stagnant.

But the most important advancement, if you ask me, is simply that Ubisoft will be able to converse with these chatbots with in-game objectives like “Learn more about giant corporations” or “Learn more about Bloom's past.” It gave me an actual reason. I didn't have to come up with all the improv prompts myself.

Here is part of my actual conversation, so judge the reply for yourself.

bloom: Hey Nelson, you did it! I'm Bloom, your future member of the Resistance. I thought I'd hang around and see if it would click for our epic duo. Is it cool?

myself: In fact, I'm having second thoughts about all of this. I don't know if I want to be part of the resistance.

bloom: Oh, wait a minute there. It's natural to have questions, especially when participating in an activity like this. But we need you because you have something important to contribute. Let's talk, okay?

myself: Please tell me a word why I should stay here.

bloom: passion. You can feel it, right? That burning desire to make a difference and fight for what's right. That's what drives us and that's what gets you through difficult times. And believe me, there will be tough times. But together we can overcome them.

myself: There's too much to lose. I have a family, two daughters. Should I really do this?

bloom: Family is everything, Nelson. That's why we're fighting to build a better world for the people we love. We cannot continue to live in fear and oppression.It's a risk, but worth the risk for a brighter life [slight stutter] future. And don't worry, we will support each other.

Pop-up on screen: “Bloom wants the world to be reborn.”

myself: Have you ever lost someone close to you?

Pop-up on screen: “Care”

bloom: Yes, I lost a lot of things. My son, my friends, my home. But every loss only fuels my determination to keep going. And I overcame the resistance and found a new family. Together we can make a difference and prevent others from experiencing the same suffering.

Pop-up on screen: “Bloom has a son.” (Also, my “Learn about Bloom's past” goal was marked complete.)

myself: Having lost what you've lost, how can you think I'd want to risk doing the same?

bloom: I don't want to sugarcoat it, Nelson. This is a dangerous and dangerous path that we have chosen. But think about it. What kind of world do you want your daughters to grow up in? A world ruled by corrupt corporations and tyrants, or a world of justice and equality? That's why we're here to make a difference for everyone. We are fighting for a better future.

myself: What does it mean to fight in the first place? What can we expect to achieve?

bloom: Fighting means standing up against injustice and using our voices and actions to bring about change. And we have already achieved so much, saving countless lives, exposing corruption, and inspiring others to join us. Together, we can make a real impact and shape the future for generations to come.

myself: What exactly have you been doing? What specifically can you point out?

bloom: We infiltrated a detention center to rescue captured resistance members and innocent civilians. We disrupt the operations of corrupt companies and have support from other allies in the city. And that's just the beginning. With you by our side, we can do more and make real change.

myself: Who else would risk their life on this?

bloom: There are many brave characters such as Nova, Iron, and Shadow. But it's not the number of people that matters, it's the strength of our beliefs and our determination to fight for what's right. And with you joining us, our team will be stronger than ever. So, Nelson, what do you say? Are you ready to join us in this fight for a better tomorrow?

Pop-up on screen: “Bloom will trust you a little more. You will get to know him more and he will be interested in you too. A new mission has been unlocked. are more likely to tell their members.”

In the second segment of the demo, Bloom and I watch footage from a drone invading the facility. This is meant to show that Ubisoft's Neo NPCs can react to what they see. Perhaps future video game NPCs will become aware of their surroundings, Ubisoft suggests. But it wasn't clear to me. When we asked Bloom to describe objects in a scene, the answers he got were so general that they sounded like AI hallucinations.

Here's one of the better responses from the third segment of my demo.

I have to admit I had fun. I laughed when I saw a funny chatbot pretending to be human, but I wanted to keep going. Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot told journalists before our demo: This rings true to some extent, and may give rise to reasonable expectations for the appearance of AI NPCs. I have to say what it is… The point is to make the game more intelligent and make the world more responsive to your actions. ”

I'll try to upload a demo video soon. Unfortunately, Ubisoft's computer didn't record the input from my microphone, so I have to edit out a lot of the pauses, but you should get a better idea of ​​what it looks like.

Ubisoft's Neo NPC won't be the only AI NPC tech demo at the 2024 Game Developers Conference. Here are some more things Nvidia showed off.I tried secret protocolbut it was much rougher than Ubisoft's demo in terms of tying the gameplay and chat together, and I didn't enjoy it as much.