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Sony Files Patent For “AI Ghost Player”
Seeing double // Illustration by Kate Walker
Sony Interactive Entertainment filed a patent for an “AI Ghost Player” that would revolutionize how people play video games.
Why It Hits: AI is quickly transforming video games more than any other form of entertainment — from design to world-building to game mechanics. If game developers can harness AI in ways that don’t diminish human creativity or lead to layoffs, it could unlock new forms of gameplay that people actually embrace.
Between The Levels: Guidebooks could soon become a thing of the past.
According to Hypebeast, the patent details “an interactive overlay character capable of performing actions alongside the user.”
This “digital brother” would help players with tasks like running routes, demonstrating combat timing, or highlighting hidden paths needed to beat levels.
The feature is powered by a proprietary AI that “generates control inputs to mimic a human player.”
The system can be activated through natural language commands — similar to talking to someone while playing online.
Final Boss: Hypebeast notes that the system would likely have to exist on-device, meaning the Playstation console would have to access serious processing power to run an AI this complex at the speed players expect — aka no one has the patience for lag or buffering. That presents Playstation with a unique challenge and could ultimately influence how much the company’s next console costs.
Next Round: With Ubisoft unveiling a game featuring voice-controlled AI companions, the era of AI-assisted gaming seems to be just around the corner… a concept that could reshape esports.
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Today’s email was written by David Vendrell.
Edited, Polled, and Copy-edited by Kait Cunniff.
Published by Darline Salazar.