AI Agents in Virtual Reality Worlds: Programming Intelligent VR in C++ [Paperback]

Mark Watson (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 25, 1996

All the programming know-how and software tools you need to create INTELLIGENT characters for your games and virtual environments

Are you becoming bored with VR characters who always do the expected? Want to interact with interesting, intelligent virtual opponents (and allies) who think, learn, and always offer new challenges? Now this book/CD supplies you with everything you need to create these kinds of entities. As he walks you through the development of a game, Mark Watson shows you how to inhabit it with characters who, like mini-intelligent systems, solve problems, analyze situations, make decisions, second guess you. . .and even cheat!

The key to imbuing your characters with intelligence is a complete C++ VR Agent Toolkit that uses neural networks, genetic algorithms, rule-based programming, and plan management. Mark Watson carefully explains the design of the C++ library for the toolkit and, more importantly, provides a wealth of guidelines, tips, and expert advice on how to use the software tools contained in the toolkit for developing your own games.

CD-ROM includes:
* The VR Agent Toolkit C++ library implemented for a variety of platforms

Complete example programs for Windows, Macintosh, OpenGL, RenderWare, and Unix X Windows

Editorial Reviews

From the Publisher

Using a tool kit based on the technologies of neural networks, genetic algorithms and rule-based and constraint-based programming, the author develops two different games which demonstrate intelligent VR agent's behavior. Describes how the AI agent can make decisions and affect changes in the world and interact with other agents, both human and computer controlled. Packed with practical examples for creating realistic computer opponents and allies for VR worlds. Contains a complete C++ source code implementation of a VR agent tool kit.

From the Back Cover

All the programming know-how and software tools you need to create INTELLIGENT characters for your games and virtual environments

Are you becoming bored with VR characters who always do the expected? Want to interact with interesting, intelligent virtual opponents (and allies) who think, learn, and always offer new challenges? Now this book/CD supplies you with everything you need to create these kinds of entities. As he walks you through the development of a game, Mark Watson shows you how to inhabit it with characters who, like mini-intelligent systems, solve problems, analyze situations, make decisions, second guess you. . .and even cheat!

The key to imbuing your characters with intelligence is a complete C++ VR Agent Toolkit that uses neural networks, genetic algorithms, rule-based programming, and plan management. Mark Watson carefully explains the design of the C++ library for the toolkit and, more importantly, provides a wealth of guidelines, tips, and expert advice on how to use the software tools contained in the toolkit for developing your own games.

CD-ROM includes:
* The VR Agent Toolkit C++ library implemented for a variety of platforms

Complete example programs for Windows, Macintosh, OpenGL, RenderWare, and Unix X Windows

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 309 pages
• Publisher: Wiley (January 25, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0471127086
• ISBN-13: 978-0471127086
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 7.5 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 2.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #5,088,507 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars AI and VR? Are we talking about the same book?, December 18, 1998

By 

Robert Street - See all my reviews

This review is from: AI Agents in Virtual Reality Worlds: Programming Intelligent VR in C++ (Paperback)

The AI techniques presented were overly simplistic, and the examples were somewhere near useless(especially when they were supposed to be geared towards agent intelligence). The VR section seemed to be missing. There was a simplistic 3D app in OpenGL, but no discussion on agents using upper(or lower for that matter) level AI to interact in a VR environ. Save your money.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars This book has no value, November 25, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: AI Agents in Virtual Reality Worlds: Programming Intelligent VR in C++ (Paperback)

The author wastes about half of the book with code dumps and oversized diagrams. He barely attempts to explain the theory, which is crammed into one chapter. The examples are useless and get little explanation.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Not worth the money., November 14, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: AI Agents in Virtual Reality Worlds: Programming Intelligent VR in C++ (Paperback)

This book takes about 2 hours to breeze through. The author spends about as much time on how to write OOP code as he does the AI concepts. If I wanted lessons in OOP, I'd buy a book about OOP. This book was supposed to be about AI! Also, he spends very little time explaining the theory of ai. Statements like "It does not make sense to use crossover operations to evolve the population for recurrent neural networks" are never qualified with an explanation. The reader never gets a sense of why he should be doing what the author describes. Rather than explain anything, the author just sites his other publications. Very poor. This is the real kicker: practically half of the book is dedicated to code dumps or space wasting Booch diagrams. The code dumps aren't even accompanied by anything meaningful, just things like, the constructor initializes the data. If I wanted to see the code in print, I'll use my own printer, thank you.