Quantcast
ZME Science
  • News
  • Environment
  • Health
  • Future
  • Space
  • Features
  • ZME & more
    • About
    • The Team
    • Advertise
    • Contribute
    • Our stance on climate change
    • Privacy Policy
    • Contact
No Result
View All Result
ZME Science

No Result
View All Result
ZME Science
Home Science News

After Go, Google AI has its eyes set on Starcraft

Google engineers may have their eyes set on Starcraft - a strategy computer game.

by Mihai Andrei
March 11, 2016
in News, Research, Technology
A A
Share on FacebookShare on TwitterSubmit to Reddit

Google’s algorithm AlphaGo stunned the world by defeating Go legend Lee Se-dol yesterday, and winning another game today. After checkers, chess and now go, what’s next? Well, Google engineers may have their eyes set on Starcraft – a strategy computer game.

Screenshot from professional Starcraft game.

Starcraft  is a military science fiction strategy game released towards the end of the 90s. It gained huge popularity, especially in South Korea. StarCraft sold over 11 million copies across the globe, with 4.5 million of these being sold in South Korea.

The game (as it is played in a multiplayer setting) has you pick one of three races: humans, protoss (advanced energy beings) or zerg (the swarm). Each of them has typical structures and combat units. The game requires not only an ever-adapting strategy, but also high speed and keyboard-mouse coordination.

Having computers square off against humans in such a computer game, as opposed to chess or go brings forth new challenges. First of all, the computer would have the benefit of far superior coordination as well as the lack of fatigue. In other words, the computer would be much better at building and moving fighting units around. But would it have a better strategy?

Pro gamers think not. Flash (one of the most dominant Starcraft pro gamers) said:

“Honestly I think I can win. The difference [from] Baduk(Go) is [that in Starcraft,] both sides play in a state where you don’t know what’s happening, and you [have to] collect information [to progress]—I think that point is a bit different.”

This brings up an interesting point. How well can AIs adapt to a game where they have incomplete knowledge? Will cold-heart algorithms trump human intuition once more? We may be entering a new age of Artificial Intelligence, and computer games may very well be the next battlefield.

ShareTweetShare
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
  • News
  • Environment
  • Health
  • Future
  • Space
  • Features
  • ZME & more

© 2007-2021 ZME Science - Not exactly rocket science. All Rights Reserved.

No Result
View All Result
  • News
  • Environment
  • Health
  • Future
  • Space
  • Features
  • ZME & more
    • About
    • The Team
    • Advertise
    • Contribute
    • Our stance on climate change
    • Privacy Policy
    • Contact

© 2007-2021 ZME Science - Not exactly rocket science. All Rights Reserved.