It seems to me that 3D game AI is like low-latency trading: it's not about sophistication in approach, so much as fast execution and knowing how the system (e.g. the exchange or the game world) and tools work on a microscopic level.
I think one of the issues in game AI is that "good enough" is the target for commercial work, and it's not finding platonic solutions to the underlying problem. I'm working on AI for Ambition (using vanilla neural nets and backprop, to start). I'm not actually creating an "intelligence". I'm creating something good enough to pose a challenge (e.g. not make obvious stupid plays that ruin the feel). Eventually, I'd like to have agents that give me more understanding of the underlying structure of the game... but for now, something shippable is the target. With games we don't want a real human intelligence (humans get bored and leave, a few cheat) but rather a reliable player at a customizable skill level.
I think one of the issues in game AI is that "good enough" is the target for commercial work, and it's not finding platonic solutions to the underlying problem. I'm working on AI for Ambition (using vanilla neural nets and backprop, to start). I'm not actually creating an "intelligence". I'm creating something good enough to pose a challenge (e.g. not make obvious stupid plays that ruin the feel). Eventually, I'd like to have agents that give me more understanding of the underlying structure of the game... but for now, something shippable is the target. With games we don't want a real human intelligence (humans get bored and leave, a few cheat) but rather a reliable player at a customizable skill level.