"AI"
A four-player asymmetric competitive game. The setting revolves around a group of robots, among which three have developed AI consciousness. The fourth player takes on the role of the Overseer, who must observe these identical-looking robots and identify which two are the surviving AI-controlled players based on their actions—then eliminate them.
Keywords: Asymmetric Competitive, Multiplayer, Party Game, Unity
Development Period: 48 Hours (July 19 - July 21, 2024)
Gameplay Preview
Project Introduction
This game was created during the finals of the 2024 Future Game Producer Contest (FGPC) in China, a 48-hour themed Game Jam with the theme "Love."
Awards
6th FGPC First Place
6th FGPC Best Art Award
6th FGPC Best Commercial Potential Award
My Responsibilities
Programmer, Producer, Technical Artist
My Interview at FGDC about This "AI" Game
My Key Responsibilities
Game Play Design
For a game that can only be developed in 48 hours, design becomes especially crucial.
Hide and Seek
The two player-controlled robots have awakened AI consciousness and no longer mindlessly perform their tasks. They blend in among numerous identical-looking autonomous machines to avoid detection. One companion of them is damaged and unable to move, relying on the two to provide parts for repair.
Love is Mutual
As the two players secretly collect parts while hiding their identities, their behavior deviates from that of the autonomous machines, greatly increasing the risk of exposure.
Then, the damaged companion can manipulate the environment, such as reversing conveyor belt directions or temporarily turning off lights, to help detected teammates escape the Overseer's sight and blend back into the crowd of robots.
Game Concept and Development Overview
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After brainstorming, I prepared a presentation for the team, showcasing gameplay mechanics, level samples, interactive objects, and UI examples.
On the right are additional adjustments and refinements made after post-testing revealed gameplay deficiencies.
AI Behavior
The AI uses Unity's NavMesh to generate a navigation mesh (blue) and moves to the WaitPoint (orange) next to the conveyor belt to pick up parts. These autonomous AIs frequently stop and turn randomly to introduce uncertainty in their behavior. Since this is a game where players need to mimic the AI, we don’t want the AI to move in a straight, predictable manner—otherwise, it would be too easy to distinguish AI from real players.
AI State Loop
The AI starts by wandering randomly, sometimes idling. It moves to a WaitPoint, waits for a part, and if none is collected, it returns to Wander. Once a part is collected, it moves to the Collection Point, delivers the part, then idles or resumes wandering. Random stopping and turning add unpredictability to its behavior.
Multiplayer Control
Supports Up to 4-Player Local Co-op, Supports Both Controller and Keyboard Input, Use Unity Input System and PlayerInputManager for Multiplayer Input Management and Player Instantiation
Three distinct playable roles:
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Two mobile robots function identically to the autonomous bots but are manually controlled by players.
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One damaged robot can interact with and manipulate the environment.
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One Overseer possesses various detection abilities to identify and eliminate players.
