TY - GEN
T1 - MAS controlled NPCs in 3D virtual learning environment
AU - McClure, Grant
AU - Chang, Maiga
AU - Lin, Fuhua
PY - 2013
Y1 - 2013
N2 - Incorporating intelligence and social behaviours into virtual worlds for learning is becoming more desirable in making them smart, adaptive, personalized, and therefore, more effective and engaging. Realistic non-player controlled characters (NPCs) are essential of a game world and are making the virtual world more real for players. This is true in video games where more interactive NPCs support the story narrative of a game, making the game more immersive, more convincing, but it is also true in other areas where virtual worlds are used such as business and education, increasing the effectiveness of those environments. Research that has been done with virtual agents and multi-agent systems can be leveraged to create more realistic NPCs through purposeful communication channels, inter-agent interactions and environment-agent interactions for game-based learning applications. This research proposes an approach to controlling avatars with intelligent agents through the creation of an interface between a multi-agent system to a virtual world engine. Basic NPC behaviours controlled by agents using Jason Agent Speak are used to test the feasibility of the approach. A Quizmaster is designed and illustrated as a proof of concept of the use of such agent controlled avatars in educational context.
AB - Incorporating intelligence and social behaviours into virtual worlds for learning is becoming more desirable in making them smart, adaptive, personalized, and therefore, more effective and engaging. Realistic non-player controlled characters (NPCs) are essential of a game world and are making the virtual world more real for players. This is true in video games where more interactive NPCs support the story narrative of a game, making the game more immersive, more convincing, but it is also true in other areas where virtual worlds are used such as business and education, increasing the effectiveness of those environments. Research that has been done with virtual agents and multi-agent systems can be leveraged to create more realistic NPCs through purposeful communication channels, inter-agent interactions and environment-agent interactions for game-based learning applications. This research proposes an approach to controlling avatars with intelligent agents through the creation of an interface between a multi-agent system to a virtual world engine. Basic NPC behaviours controlled by agents using Jason Agent Speak are used to test the feasibility of the approach. A Quizmaster is designed and illustrated as a proof of concept of the use of such agent controlled avatars in educational context.
KW - Intelligent agent
KW - Multi-agent systems
KW - Non-player characters
KW - Social behavior
KW - Social bots
KW - Virtual learning environments
KW - Virtual world
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84894202983&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1109/SITIS.2013.166
DO - 10.1109/SITIS.2013.166
M3 - Published Conference contribution
AN - SCOPUS:84894202983
SN - 9781479932115
T3 - Proceedings - 2013 International Conference on Signal-Image Technology and Internet-Based Systems, SITIS 2013
SP - 1026
EP - 1033
BT - Proceedings - 2013 International Conference on Signal-Image Technology and Internet-Based Systems, SITIS 2013
T2 - 2013 9th International Conference on Signal-Image Technology and Internet-Based Systems, SITIS 2013
Y2 - 2 December 2013 through 5 December 2013
ER -