We are interested in modelling human communication and social behaviour for two reasons. First, the market shows a strong desire for it, but the technology has not followed. Recent major games trumpet their use of limited social interaction throughout their marketing campaigns. The Playstation 2 named its chipset the Emotion Engine, aiming to provide the power for realistic human emotions.
Second, InteraQuest is interested in providing designers the tools needed to expand the genres available to players. Right now, games do a decent job of doing B-grade horror and action. The worlds are rich, enemies dynamic and the pacing intense. However, computer modelled humans are very limited in their capabilities; making many other story types impractical to implement. In addition, few, if any, major products have any deeper social value beyond entertainment.
So publishers would be interested in the technology being developed by InteraQuest both to enhance their current style of products and to provide the capability to expand the number of genres. The technological challenges are notable, but with InteraQuest’s combination of experienced game designers and engineers, and advisors from psychology and education, the company provides a unique and effective skill set.
The words used in a conversation provide about 7% of the total information conveyed. Games which provide much scope beyond non-interactive cinematic scenes, generally limit themselves to written words. Interaction is through multiple choice menus or a hypertext system. These computer character are so unmemorable that designers strive to minimize the portion of game play devoted to such interactions.
So what comprises the other 93% of communication? What are the technological hurdles for each?
Paralanguage: The speed, tone and emphasis of spoken language. Flow and pacing of conversations.
Body Language: Facial expressions, gestures and posture.
Social Cues: Proximity, clothing, gender, race, accouterments, hygene, etc.
Beyond simple one-to-one communication, a social world embodies the transfer of information between computer controlled characters. Real humans are members of many groups (family, community, workplace, organizations) and they share information. Thus a bad reaction of one member can prejudice the others towards the player. Current games model this through a simple attitude variable and communication is generally instantaneous throughout the group, despite distances and other impediments.
Conversations between computer characters can provide another method of imparting information to the player and enhancing his experience. This is most effective if the characters utilize appropriate social cues (conspiratorial whispering and leaning close, then moving apart when spotting the player).
InteraQuest aims to provide tools to mediate this information exchange in a more sophisticated manner. The tools take into account speed of communication, varying importance of faction members and membership in multiple groups.
Real conversations depend on context. Real world locals know the history of their area, important people and their relationships, religion, racial prejudices and traditions such as the farming cycle and holidays. Since players are only involved in playing within a game world for a portion of their real lives, these sorts of contextual pieces of information are difficult to convey in a memorable way.
By providing these bits of information in a visual menu connected with the current conversation, the player is reminded of his options for low key conversation.