A purely hypothetical question

[Varkarrus]

Let's say someone hacked the game and created a utility that lets people create their own events (simply by typing in what they want it to do, and a highly powerful computer AI does the rest), then post them onto a big server for other people to download and use in their levels, and would go so far as to allow players to create their own characters, ammo, game modes, and so on. It would even allow a person to create their own tilesets in seconds.

I know this is completely implausible, but would you appreciate such a thing?

Also, don't discuss whether or not this is possible. I know that for some of you this is easier said than done, but we already know this isn't very plausible.

[plunK]

Im sure someone could make good use of this and some people could make some fun stuff, but i think it would be more of a nuisance than a help beause it would make so many mods and custom stuff and make hosting and such much harder. I think that what is being done with JJ2+ and messing with current events can make enough suitable content. Im sure if this was made some people would benefit, but if its necissary im on the fence

[master sven]

If you could make a tileset in seconds it would suck, because people can't work that fast...

[FawFul]

this takes away the 'wow' factor of the game. including people who are very talented in such things. so no, i would not really appreciate it :D. it's good when it stays a challenge.

[Troglobite]

I think it would be awesome. It would allow so much more flexibility and would be lots of fun experimenting with.

It would probably be best if the edits weren't allowed for online play or something, because then you would never be able to tell exactly what gamemode a server you join would have, or whether an event happened to be a fancy new type of ammo or some kind of enemy that would instantly kill you.

[Sonyk]

In the right hands, that would probably be the best thing ever. Completely implausible (not to mention impossible), but the best thing ever.

[EvilMike]

Let's say someone hacked the game and created a utility that lets people create their own events (simply by typing in what they want it to do, and a highly powerful computer AI does the rest), then post them onto a big server for other people to download and use in their levels, and would go so far as to allow players to create their own characters, ammo, game modes, and so on. It would even allow a person to create their own tilesets in seconds.

I know this is completely implausible, but would you appreciate such a thing?

Also, don't discuss whether or not this is possible. I know that for some of you this is easier said than done, but we already know this isn't very plausible.

I would absolutely appreciate it. It would be useful for a number of reasons. One that comes to mind is prototyping: if you have an idea, you can immediately see whether it works or not by letting the computer do the work for you.


Beyond this, I think there are too many unanswered questions to say anything in greater detail. AI is a fairly deep philosophical issue, and so is art. I'm not going to spend too much time here, so I'll just mention a few of the more obvious questions that are being raised.

How good is it at doing what it does? Is it as good as the average human? Worse? Better than average? Or better than any human can possibly be?

If so, how (and why) is it better?

Does it follow instructions exactly, or does it improvise, somehow adding a bit of creative flair? Is this program advanced enough to be creative? Is it capable of creating art?

If it is creative, are it's creative abilities versatile? Does the program have a preset "style" of design, or can it vary? Is it able to emulate any person's style? Can it create its own style?

If it merely follows the instructions to the letter, how is this different from any other editor?


I just want to show that this is actually a rather complex issue. All of the considerations I mentioned can probably be summed up in one question: "Just how advanced is this AI?" Also, consider the implications of what the answer might be: if it's not advanced enough, then it might be faster just to do the work yourself. If it's too advanced, humans are basically obsolete.

If you're really interested in this, read up on Philosophy of Mind and Philosophy of AI. Both of these fields can get pretty technical, but the basics are fairly straightforward.

[Lithium]

I like this idea. That is all.

Faw: Why you wouldn't like this? Maybe because you guys will still be respected because you can create something we can't? No offense.

[FawFul]

I mean, in some kind of way cheats give some adds to a game too. levelcodes/cheats are fun for a moment, but get boring after a while. if things get too 'overpowered' and overdone then it's technically not fun to play anymore. and it runs in many ways of what people like, so actually the good fair stuff wouldn't get played. Probably people and all of the noobs would play the pure gimmick stuff, that isn't really playable. Also, i didn't use the therm Noob in a negative way.

[Grytolle]

Faw: Why you wouldn't like this? Maybe because you guys will still be respected because you can create something we can't? No offense.The offense doesn't disappear just because you say it isn't there

[Lithium]

Do you find something there offensive? I just asked why FF doesn't like this idea and posted my own idea. I just put it there because SOMEONE might think it's offense.

[Dermo]

I don't honestly see what the problem is with such a thing. It would get the less-involved people more involved and would allow for an expansion.