Yu-Gi-Oh! Master Duel is experimenting with AI players that ‘learn’ the TCG
Konami hasn’t decided whether the proof-of-concept tech demo will see a public release just yet.
The team behind Yu-Gi-Oh! Master Duel, the digital rendition of the popular trading card game, has unveiled a proof of concept for a new creative framework that could allow for the deployment of AI as duel opponents.
Unlike the CPU opponents already included within Master Duel and past Yu-Gi-Oh! video games, coded to act in specific manners in retaliation to the activation or availability of certain cards at their disposal, the new Yu-Gi-Oh! Master Duel x AI Project is designed to ‘learn’ the TCG by taking into account its experience during prior duels. The AI can consider what the opponent may have set and the risks of a certain move, and act more realistically in accordance with what a player would be expected to do - making it less predictable and potentially more challenging for a human opponent.
The example AI showcased during Yu-Gi-Oh!’s 25th anniversary event in Tokyo over the weekend had been tested on roughly 100,000 duels, but more notable than this was the framework that makes the introduction of such AI into the game possible. A visualisation framework showing the decision-making process for the AI integrated selection choices and decision-making into the UI of the game itself, quantifying choice percentages and win rates, displaying predictions for the cards used by an opponent if a set card unknown to the AI has been played, and more.
At this time, Konami says no decision has been made on whether this proof-of-concept AI will be introduced into Master Duel for the general public to test, nor has it been decided whether a framework for general audiences to produce their own AI using the framework developed by the team will be opened up to other AI developers to produce their own Master Duel AI software. As things stand, this is solely a tech demo showcasing a potential future for non-human opponents within Master Duel.