Hello from the New Cycle team!
As some of you know, we trialed a Beta version of AI NPCs with in-game knowledge in our past playable demo to both test out its performance and receive your impressions. We want to try and convey the current situation and roadmap for this gameplay component.
First of all, while we believe that AI-based interactions are an appropriate side mechanic for our genre, as we mentioned before, we have a design approach that is opposed to including this component too prominently in the game so as to affect the core gameplay experience to an excessive degree.
After our first test release alongside the demo, we have determined a roadmap based on your feedback and some external signs, including the global positioning of AI. We believe that concentrating on the core gameplay mechanics and tackling this not-to-be-underestimated topic in the future, would be a more respectful approach to the wishes of the entire community.
There are three main factors influencing this decision:
- To be able to serve consumers who want AI integration and those who don't under the same conditions and not to take any approach that impedes their right to choose.
- The fact that Steam has just determined and announced its roadmap regarding AI content and the policies it will follow against them at the beginning of last week, in addition to our desire to focus on the main backbone of the game rather than devoting a lot of effort to a side mechanic before this legal ground is clarified.
- The extra cost - both in work hours as well as financially - naturally incurred by game-specific AI NPCs that are raised with unique data inputs and long training periods on a closed server built specifically for New Cycle. As long as these NPCs are used, they would create expenditures such as server service, maintenance, developers that have to maintain those servers, NPCs etc - and this having an effect on the development of the game or even the base price of the game, affecting you as a player, directly, is a solution that we were absolutely opposed to.
What Are These Game-Specific AI NPCs?
This component, which has a very different operational and technical presentation model than ChatGPT or its derivatives, is a game-specific service from 'Inworld', a developer that has developed and specialized in this field over the past two years.
How Is It Different from ChatGPT etc.?
Inworld AI allows you to build a database of your game directly on its servers. Thanks to this closed private environment, you place the rules, background stories and all the data that defines your game world as a set of information to be learned by the AI on these servers.
You can then create unique characters and define background stories, traits, characteristics, motives, goals or objectives for them. These characters can be integrated and used in your game for specific purposes, acting only in this pseudo-reality in light of the data sets that define your game’s world.
This technological infrastructure is well suited for multi-layered data processing and original content presentation beyond a standard chat bot infrastructure. As a team that has realized one of the first in-engine integrations of this component, we believe that this technique can make a rich contribution to our gameplay experiences with the right positioning in the future.
Since we released our second demo last June, the tremendous advancement in this technology has made it much more feasible to experience this infrastructure in a way that is more concrete, pursue more interactive goals through it, and gain access to a wider range of possibilities.
Conclusion - TL;DR;
With the intention of providing a full and healthy Early Access period, for the time being we will focus on the core components and efficient functioning of our game. You can expect an announcement with further information about the integration of AI NPCs into New Cycle in the coming months.
Thank you for reading and for your continued interest in New Cycle.
Best,
Core Engage