When it comes to multiplayer video games, Electronic Arts is one of the first companies to come to mind. With some of the most recognised franchises like FIFA and Battlefield under its name, the company has seen immense success, both commercially and critically. Being one of the most widely recognised video game companies in the world, it’s no secret that Electronic Arts is constantly trying to improve the functionality and playability of all its video games. In August 2021, the company announced its Accessibility Patent Pledge, which enabled all developers to use any of the company’s accessibility-centred technologies. Besides this, the company is constantly publishing patents that discuss even more revolutionary technologies to possibly be incorporated across the company’s massive assortment of franchises.
One such recently published patent from Electronic Arts discusses an automated detection system that identifies emergent behaviours in-game and adapts to them in near real-time to treat players differently based on their in-game behaviours. Since the inception of multiplayer video games, bots and/or malicious players have always been one of the biggest concerns for developers. So much so that many companies, like Valve Corporation and Electronic Arts, have tried resolving the issue(s) through different detection systems. However, none have been completely accurate in doing so, but it seems Electronic Arts aims to change that by actively punishing bots and/or malicious players in near real-time within the video game.
- Electronic Arts is possibly working on an automated detection system that identifies emergent behaviours in-game and adapts to them in near real-time to treat players differently based on their in-game behaviours.
- Electronic Arts aims to actively determine and punish bots and/or malicious players in near real-time within the video game.
- The automated detection system will likely use machine learning to detect unusual behaviours within players in a certain video game and will then group other players having similar tendencies together.
- The groups will then be analysed by the algorithm to determine any change in behaviours between the players and adapt to them in near real-time, thus treating the players differently based on their in-game behaviours.
Earlier today, we came across a recent patent published under Electronic Arts Inc. titled “Automated detection of emergent behaviors in interactive agents of an interactive environment,” which was filed back in November 2020 but published only this week. The abstract for the patent reads, “Various aspects of the subject technology relate to systems, methods, and machine-readable media for automated detection of emergent behaviors in interactive agents of an interactive environment. The disclosed system represents an artificial intelligence based entity that utilizes a trained machine-learning-based clustering algorithm to group users together based on similarities in behavior.”
It further reads, “The clusters are processed based on a determination of the type of activity of the clustered users. In order to identify new categories of behavior and to label those new categories, a separate cluster analysis is performed using interaction data obtained at a subsequent time. The additional cluster analysis determines any change in behavior between the clustered sets and/or change in the number of users in a cluster. The identification of emergent user behavior enables the subject system to treat users differently based on their in-game behavior and to adapt in near real-time to changes in their behavior.”
According to the patent, the automated detection system will likely use machine learning to detect unusual behaviours within players in a certain video game and will then group other players having similar tendencies together. As such, the groups will then be analysed by the algorithm to determine any change in behaviours between the players and adapt to them in near real-time, thus treating the players differently based on their in-game behaviours. With this automated detection system, the company desires to detect any “malicious activity in the interactive environment” and prevent any “avenue for exploiting the interactive environment.”
As an example, the patent discusses role-playing video games where the player has to interact with other players or non-player characters (NPC). As such, the interactions and reactions of the non-player characters (NPC) with the player may be based on how the player interacts with other players within the particular video game. For instance, if the interactions with other players and/or non-player characters rely on a messaging interface “where a user participating in the multiuser session can write and send a message to another user and/or to a character that is one of the computer-operated agents,” the non-player characters (NPC) may generate responses based on the behaviour received from the player. If the behaviour received from the player is averse, the response from the non-player characters (NPC) may also be the same.
Another example discussed by the patent is a sports simulation video game that includes online transactions, such as FIFA, where the players can search for items in an online transaction repository, such as the FIFA Ultimate Team (FUT) Transfer Market. As such, the automated detection system will determine the amount of in-game currency earned and/or purchased by the player and adjust the content layout and/or items displayed within the online transaction repository. With this, the patent aims to identify bots and/or malicious players through a corresponding behaviour signature that consists of different player attributes.
“Upon release of a new feature in the interactive environment or detection of an emergent behavior in the interactive environment, the objective of the subject technology is to identify a new category of users (e.g., identity of users who have moved between categories of behavior in response to the new feature or change in the interactive environment),” concludes the patent. “In this respect, the subject system determines the new categories based on behavior of the new emergent user or emergent behavior among a group of users.”
While it’s unclear exactly how this automated detection system will be implemented into different video games, it seems like Electronic Arts is doing its part to make gameplay experiences in video games more amusing and inclusive for players by preventing bots and/or malicious players from potentially exploiting them. Earlier this month, the company also published a patent for an automated controller configuration recommendation system that aims to improve playability for players using controllers in video games, so there does seem to be a consideration for players from the company. However, only time will tell how these technologies actually perform outside of claims.
What do you think about this? Do tell us your opinions in the comments below!
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Jace loves both video games and writing, so he thought the best career was to write about video games. He attended Full Sail University and graduated with a Bachelor’s in Creative Writing. He joined Gamsual in 2022, and when not covering video game news, he is often building and strategizing in simulation and RTS games. Xbox: Alchemist5966
