I’M ON THE FENCE WITH AN AI ASSISTANT – COULD THIS REALLY BE PS5’S GAME-CHANGER?
It’s still only a rumour, but an AI helper could make the next gen
Rumours of an Alexa style AI my-littlehelper heading to PlayStation 5 have me questioning how far I want technology and games to intersect. Do you really want your PS5’s DualShock listening in to your conversations as you play? Or suggesting you order some tins of Monster
Energy because you’ve been playing Death Stranding for far too long without hydrating on sugar and caffeine. Me? I’m hesitantly in favour of the tech.
The patent filed by Sony for an AI assistant that may or may not be heading to PlayStation 5 will aim “to provide psychological and informational support to the player”. Does this mean I’ll get a call from the Samaritans after an extended afternoon of playing PES and shouting “I can’t take it any more!” at the controller? Whether it’s tips in PES or levelling advice in Watch Dogs Legion, the danger is we could invite an AI helper into our lives to game-splain our hobby to us. We’d be a number of post-release updates away from our console deciding a game is too violent or adult for our registered settings, and closing it down.
AI’LL BE OKAY
Okay, so I’m being a bit farty about the idea of an AI add-on. There could be times when a word of advice from a voice inside my controller, or narrated lore emitting from my hands as I ask the game for more detail on a character or item I’ve discovered, could be useful. This as-yetunconfirmed idea of adding AI into our controller does tie into the broader way we play games. Who doesn’t have a second screen open as they play, even if it’s to trawl social media for others playing the same game? Imagine being able to tell your PS5 to take a screenshot and send it to Twitter, or asking your controller to find friends who are also playing Final Fantasy XIV for a meet up.
There are aspects of an AI helper, when tied to the wider way we consume all media, that suggest this could open up new ways to experience games. I just don’t want it taking everything I say at face value. If I say “I’m the mutt’s nuts” at PES, I don’t expect my Twitter feed to be filled with dog’s danglers.