ADAPTIVE LEARNING SYSTEM FOR VIDEO GAME ENHANCEMENT

• US 20140004950A1
• Filed: 06/28/2012
• Published: 01/02/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 06/28/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Electronic Arts Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Electronic Arts Incorporated
• Inventors: Szufnara, Ian, Lott, Fraser, Chaput, Harold
• Granted Patent: US 9,616,329 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 463/42
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/10 Control of the course of the game, e.g. start, progess, end
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/12 involving interaction between a plurality of game devices, e.g. transmisison or distribution systems protocols for networked virtual reality, networked games H04L29/06034
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/30 Interconnection arrangements between game servers and game devices; Interconnection arrangements between game devices; Interconnection arrangements between game servers
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/45 Controlling the progress of the video game
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/52 involving aspects of the displayed game scene
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/525 Changing parameters of virtual cameras
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/535 for monitoring, e.g. of user parameters, terminal parameters, application parameters, network parameters
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/6027 using adaptive systems learning from user actions, e.g. for skill level adjustment
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/6045 for mapping control signals received from the input arrangement into game commands

Abstract

Techniques are disclosed that can capture sequences of player input in response to situations confronting a player of a video game while playing the video game on a game console. A game engine within the game console may associate an archetype with the captured sequences. The outcomes of the captured sequences are determined with respect to the game situations and a score is applied to the captured sequences based on the outcomes. The captured sequences, the outcomes and the scores are stored in a runtime memory within the game console used to play the video game. Upon completion of the video game, the stored captured sequences, the outcomes and the scores may be downloaded and stored to an external memory associated with the game console. Subsequent video game sessions may load the captured sequences, the outcomes and the scores into the runtime memory to be used in the next session.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

capturing sequences of player input in response to situations confronting a player of a video game while playing the video game on a game console;

associating an archetype with the captured sequences;

determining outcomes of the captured sequences with respect to the game situations;

applying scores to the captured sequences based on the outcomes; and

storing the captured sequences, the outcomes and the scores in a runtime memory within the game console used to play the video game;

storing the captured sequences, the outcomes and the scores to an external memory associated with the game console upon completion of the video game; and

loading the captured sequences, the outcomes and the scores into the runtime memory upon initiation of a new instance of the video game.

2. The method of claim 1 comprising:

allowing an automated CPU player to access and select from among the captured sequences in the runtime memory in response to a situation confronting the automated CPU player of the video game while playing the video game on the game console;

playing back a selected sequence;

determining an outcome of the played back sequence with respect to the game situation;

applying a score to the played back sequence based on the outcome;

updating the score of the selected captured sequence in the runtime memory based on the outcome of the played back sequence; and

storing the updated score of the selected captured sequence to the external memory upon completion of the video game.

3. The method of claim 2, the selection of a captured sequence by an automated CPU player restricted according to the archetype associated with the selected sequence.

4. The method of claim 1, the captured sequence comprising:

a feature vector including data pertaining to player position, player velocity and an archetype flag;

a data payload including data pertaining to player game controller inputs during the sequence and animation signals used by the game engine to render the movements during playback; and

statistical data including data pertaining to score tracking, playback completion and the number of times the sequence has been selected.

5. The method of claim 1 further comprising culling the external memory by deleting captured sequences having a score below a threshold value.

6. The method of claim 1 further comprising creating a set of training sequences comprised of a number of captured sequences having a score above a threshold value.

7. The method of claim 6, further comprising storing the set of training sequences on a remote network connected storage device.

8. The method of claim 7, the set of training sequences stored on the remote network connected storage device obtained from multiple game consoles over a network connection.

9. The method of claim 7, further comprising downloading the set of training sequences from the remote network connected storage device to a runtime memory of a game console.

10. The method of claim 1, further comprising synchronizing a runtime memory of a first game console with a runtime memory of a second game console upon a new instance of a video game to be played across a network between the first and second game consoles.

11. The method of claim 10, the synchronizing comprising:

loading captured sequences of a first external memory associated with the first game console into the runtime memory of the second game console; and

loading captured sequences of a second external memory associated with the second game console into the runtime memory of the first game console.

12. The method of claim 11, further comprising:

restricting access to the captured sequences obtained from the second game console and loaded into the runtime memory of the first game console to prevent the first game console from selecting these sequences during gameplay; and

restricting access to the captured sequences obtained from the first game console and loaded into the runtime memory of the second game console to prevent the second game console from selecting these sequences during gameplay.

13. A system, comprising:

a processor component comprising one or more central processing units (CPUs) and one or more graphics processing units (GPUs) within a game console unit;

a runtime memory;

an external memory;

a sequence manager component operative on the processor component to;

capture sequences of player input from a game controller in response to game situations confronting a player of a video game while playing the video game via the game console;

associate an archetype with the captured sequences;

determine outcomes of the captured sequences with respect to the game situations;

apply scores to the captured sequences based on the outcomes; and

store the captured sequences, the outcomes and the score in the runtime memory while playing the video game;

store the captured sequences, the outcomes and the scores in the external memory upon completion of playing the video game; and

load the captured sequences, the outcomes and the scores from the external memory into the runtime memory upon initiation of a new instance of the video game.

14. The system of claim 13, the sequence manager further to:

allow an automated CPU player to access and select from among the captured sequences in the runtime memory in response to a situation confronting the automated CPU player of the video game while playing the video game on the game console;

play back a selected sequence;

determine an outcome of the played back sequence with respect to the game situation;

apply a score to the played back sequence based on the outcome;

update the score of the selected captured sequence in the runtime memory based on the outcome of the played back sequence; and

store the updated score of the selected captured sequence to the external memory upon completion of the video game.

15. The system of claim 14, the selection of a captured sequence by an automated CPU player restricted according to the archetype associated with the selected sequence.

16. The system of claim 13, the captured sequence comprising:

a feature vector including data pertaining to player position, player velocity and an archetype flag;

a data payload including data pertaining to player game controller inputs during the sequence and animation signals used by the game engine to render the movements during playback; and

statistical data including data pertaining to score tracking, playback completion and the number of times the sequence has been selected.

17. The system of claim 13, the sequence manager further to cull the external memory by deleting captured sequences having a score below a threshold value.

18. The system of claim 13, the sequence manager further to create a set of training sequences comprised of a number of captured sequences having a score above a threshold value.

19. The system of claim 18, the sequence manager further to store the set of training sequences on a remote network connected storage device.

20. The system of claim 19, the set of training sequences stored on the remote network connected storage device obtained from multiple game consoles over a network connection.

21. The system of claim 19, the sequence manager further to store download the set of training sequences from the remote network connected storage device to the runtime memory of the game console.

22. The system of claim 13, the sequence manager further to synchronize a runtime memory of a first game console with a runtime memory of a second game console upon a new instance of a video game to be played across a network between the first and second game consoles.

23. The system of claim 22, the sequence manager further to:

load captured sequences of a first external memory associated with the first game console into the runtime memory of the second game console; and

load captured sequences of a second external memory associated with the second game console into the runtime memory of the first game console.

24. The system of claim 23, the sequence manager further to:

restrict access to the captured sequences obtained from the second game console and loaded into the runtime memory of the first game console to prevent the first game console from selecting these sequences during gameplay; and

restrict access to the captured sequences obtained from the first game console and loaded into the runtime memory of the second game console to prevent the second game console from selecting these sequences during gameplay.