A.I. System in Arcade Games

The first arcade games were built on discrete logic and were strictly based on competition between the players. Therefore, there wasn’t any A.I. system.
Heuristic algorithms have been used in the arcade games. The common method of controlling an NPC in the game was by scripting.

‘Path finding’ is another common A.I. system that has been used in the real time strategy games. ‘Path finding’ works by calculating how to get an NPC from one place to another after considering the terrain and obstacles.

Games like Quake and Pursuit based all the enemy actions on particular stored patterns. The space invaders further refined this movement, by adding in-game events which were dependent on the hash functions.
This resulted in more varied and complex enemy movements.

Pac-Man incorporated this technology, at the same time jazzing it up by providing different personalities for each ghosts.
Although the ghost movements in Pac-Man felt random, it was a cleverly scripted and well disguised action.

The 1990’s saw the emergence of finite state machines. The arcade racing games were powered by a ‘rubber banding’ A.I. system.
If the computer controlled the opponents “fall behind”,they received a superb boost allowing them to catch up.

The system too, works the other way around, enabling the human players to catch up if they fall behind. The arcade shooting games should ideally have a large rule base which is basically the list of NPC options like attack long range, call for help, flee etc.

The trick lies in using a random factor to choose from this base factor. This has displayed an enhanced feeling of intellect and developed the fun factor.
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The Pac-Man Syndrome

Pac- man was created by Toru Itwani and licensed by Namco. The game was centered on an old Japanese folk tale.
The object of the game was simply to move through a maze, while gobbling the dots and avoiding ghosts. Pac Man was a tear away success spawning a cult in its wake.

It was picked up for production in the US by Midway.
Pac-man was a nice breakaway for gamers bored with an extreme dose of space invaders. The game soon went on to strip ‘Asteroids’ as the greatest selling game of all time.

Game play

The player maneuvers the protagonist through a maze eating dots. The game proceeds to the next level once all the dots are eaten.

There are four ghosts which roam around the maze trying to catch Pac-man who is the character maneuvered by the player. If the ghosts touch Pac-man, a life is lost.
The game ends when no lives remain.

At the corners of the maze there are four power ups. These power-ups render Pac-man a short-timed ability to gobble up the ghosts.
Once a ghost is eaten, it returns to the ghost pen where it is revived. The regeneration time for the ghosts shortens as the game advances through the stages.

Despite the seemingly randomness movement of the ghosts, their nature is strictly deterministic. This allows experienced players to devise precise patterns of movement that enables them to complete levels without being caught ever.

The simplicity of the game and the adrenaline rush it created, when a ghost came near transformed this game into an addiction. Unofficially, it is the most played game of all time. Read more...

Old School Arcade Titles On Consoles

Porting classic arcade games into consoles has become the latest rage in the gaming industry. The trend clearly affirms the fact that arcade games are not dead.
The gamers are not an elderly bunch of people who grew up on these titles. Kids are also addicted to it. The games have been revamped graphically but never shed the addictive game play which, of course, is the part and parcel of every game.

Arcade games have not been graphically interesting, but this move successfully negates the fact that the popularity of a game largely depends on its game play and not seemingly awe-inspiring graphics.

This phenomenon has also triggered a resurrection of arcade games and made it popular among online gamers. Arcade games are also being ported into handheld consoles like PSP.
This clearly indicates the popularity of arcade gaming.

Some of the ported titles are:

Geometry Wars – The game was a classic when it was released back in 80’s. The upgrade features high end particle physics, digital sound, new special effects, a new scrolling area and high end graphics.
It is set in the far reaches of the galaxy where you battle hordes of vile, neon blazoned aliens. It also lets you choose between the old version and the updated version.

Pac-man – The all time classic has been upgraded with high definition graphics. The game still retains the original game play and the charming retro look.
The newer version features 250 levels of pure action packed fun. The game retains the original music and sound score that the fans remember so well.
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