Ubisoft Created An Experimental Game Called “Teammates” Utilizing GenAI-Based NPCs

Ubisoft recently unveiled a “playable generative AI research project” in the form of a game demo called “Teammates”, which, similar to NVIDIA’s ACE demos, utilizes generative AI for its non-playable characters (NPCs) where players can dynamically interact with them through voice. Last year, Ubisoft’s Neo NPC experiment was presented at GDC 2024 with a similar premise, although this is the first time it has been integrated into a playable experience.

Ubisoft’s GenAI NPC Expeirment

In Teammates, the game is played as a first-person shooter – players assume the role of a resistance fighter navigating an enemy base to locate five missing team members. This short playable level will require the player to recover “the final memories of those who were sent in previously to discover their fates, while fending off squads of enemies along their path.” While you can’t access the game right now, an explainer video on the project will be released in the near future, Ubisoft says.

The experiment features an AI voice assistant named Jaspar, which is always present on the game UI, while two AI-driven NPCs, Pablo and Sofia, are also capable of responding to player instructions (i.e. taking cover or attacking designated targets) and act independently within the game world. Jaspar, however, works both inside and outside of the game world, with capabilities including highlighting objects in-game, provide story contexts, adjust game settings, or pause the game.

According to Ubisoft’s Director of Gameplay GenAI, Xavier Manzanares, players were “quickly connecting” with this concept. Jaspar helped the players “when they got lost or weren’t sure what to do,” and it also can get them up to speed in terms of the backstory or the world itself. “We really started to like Jaspar and saw how a system like this could be interesting for many different kinds of games,” Manzanares further added.

The French game publisher was quick to point out this experiment is to explore the responsive behavior and narrative flexibility offered by GenAI, stressing that the goal “is not to replace creatives.” It emphasizes that the system operates within set parameters defined by narrative designers, allowing NPCs to improvise while keeping guardrails in place to avoid unintended behavior. So far, several hundred playtesters were involved in this research to help test and develop the technology for potential applications elsewhere.

Pokdepinion: While GenAI is somewhat promising in the context of NPC character building, I do think traditional scripted NPCs still has its place – GTA in particular, in my opinion, owes some of its popularity thanks to memorable NPCs and specific dialogues.