Algorithms

Algorithms

   10:27 PM       Rizkooblogsite

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Algorithms are step-by-step processes that generate a solution to an AI problem.We will look at algorithms that generate routes through a game level to reach a goal, algorithms that work out which direction to move in to intercept a fleeing enemy, algorithms that learn what the player will do next, and many others.
  Data structures are the other side of the coin to algorithms. They hold data in such a way that an algorithm can rapidly manipulate it to reach a solution. Often, data structures need to be particularly tuned for one particular algorithm, and their execution speeds are intrinsically linked.
  You will need to know a set of elements to implement and tune an algorithm, and these are treated step by step in the text:

• The problem that the algorithm tries to solve
• A general description of how the solution works, including diagrams where they are needed
• A pseudo-code presentation of the algorithm
• An indication of the data structures required to support the algorithm, including pseudocode, where required
• Particular implementation nodes
• Analysis of the algorithm’s performance: its execution speed, memory footprint, and scalability
• Weaknesses in the approach

  Often, a set of algorithms is presented that gets increasingly more efficient. The simpler algorithms are presented to help you get a feeling for why the complex algorithms have their structure. The stepping-stones are described a little more sketchily than the full system.
  Some of the key algorithms in game AI have literally hundreds of variations. This article can’t hope to catalog and describe them all. When a key algorithm is described, we will often give a quick survey of the major variations in briefer terms.