this post was submitted on 08 Mar 2026
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The patent called “STATE MANAGEMENT FOR VIDEO GAME HELP SESSIONS” describes multiple examples where a pop-up might ask a player to let a helper take over the gameplay for a while.

Imagine if a user were struggling to find a rare gem in an RPG; if allowed, the helper would take control from the player. They would proceed to chat and guide the user through the process of acquiring the gem.

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[–] blimthepixie@lemmy.dbzer0.com 133 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)
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[–] meme_historian@lemmy.dbzer0.com 88 points 3 weeks ago (2 children)

First pay for the game, then pay for slop shit so you don't have to play the game. Corporate big brain time at its best 😄

[–] hansolo@lemmy.today 13 points 3 weeks ago* (last edited 3 weeks ago) (1 children)

Edit: I didn't read, I'm stupid, don't be like me. It's even worse than I imagined.

Not even. They're going to sell you the idea that you're a game dev, and sell you each piece and asset.

It's the optimized AI version of "during a gold rush, is the people selling shovels and picks that get rich."

[–] lIlIlIlIlIlIl@lemmy.world 17 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

“Finish” as in beat or best, not as in complete a development work to be shipped

[–] hansolo@lemmy.today 15 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

Oh... Holy Fuck. It's more dystopian and stupid than I realized.

[–] lIlIlIlIlIlIl@lemmy.world 12 points 3 weeks ago

I’m sorry and I hate it

[–] Dojan@pawb.social 4 points 3 weeks ago

To be fair, the corpo slop games aren’t really worth playing, never mind paying for.

[–] raicon@lemmy.world 65 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

Might as well watch youtube for free

[–] albbi@piefed.ca 26 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

Might as well skip the gameplay, give the achievements and trigger the good ending.

[–] harmbugler@piefed.social 7 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

Might as well close your eyes, smile and and imagine you are king of the world.

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[–] kokesh@lemmy.world 45 points 3 weeks ago (3 children)

What's the point of gaming with this?

[–] Diplomjodler3@lemmy.world 24 points 3 weeks ago

There are plenty of people who are happy to cheat at anything.

[–] MeekerThanBeaker@lemmy.world 10 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

It's kind of like the old Nintendo hotline. Call when you're stuck on something in a game. Or just looking up a walkthrough online.

That said, this makes it far easier to ask for help and kids might just rely on it too much instead of figuring stuff out on their own.

[–] MrQuallzin@lemmy.world 11 points 3 weeks ago (2 children)

With the hotline and guides you still had to actually play yourself. This is a step further, you just watch the game play itself.

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[–] fum@lemmy.world 31 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

Why even bother living. Just get "AI" to live for you, and recycle your meaningless meat form.

[–] Bieren@lemmy.today 14 points 3 weeks ago

You exist to be exploited for the benefit of the shareholders. This allows you to work so many more hours a day.

[–] sonofearth@lemmy.world 27 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

Oh don’t worry. Some AI boot licker will come to defend this as well. “WelL yOu SeE nOt EvErYoNe HaS tHe TiMe To PlAy GaMeS. ThIs WiLl MaKe GaMiNg MoRe EfFiCiEnT.”

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[–] blunderworld@lemmy.ca 24 points 3 weeks ago (18 children)
[–] floofloof@lemmy.ca 10 points 3 weeks ago

Microsoft execs eager for a bonus.

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[–] Tamps@feddit.uk 22 points 3 weeks ago

The other thing the helps people get unstuck in games is good game design. 🙃

I suppose this is just the equivalent of reading a game guide that someone has written, but this feels like it could remove too much friction. Are you playing the game if everything just becomes a tutorial?

[–] arcine@jlai.lu 16 points 3 weeks ago (3 children)

First they came for our jobs, next our hobbies, now for our very entertainment ? Who could ever ask for a feature such as this !?

[–] Nugscree@lemmy.world 6 points 3 weeks ago (2 children)

Next new AI feature; an AI that can watch the series/films for you, think of all the time you can save!

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[–] Ibisalt@lemmy.world 5 points 3 weeks ago

look, on the bright side they burn up every ressource on the planet.

[–] boogiebored@lemmy.world 5 points 3 weeks ago

They need it to do something, anything, to justify the investment. As time goes and the sunk cost gets worse, the attempts will be more desperate.

This kind of feature will be for a fee.

They are all looking for a “killer AI app”.

This is why “consciousness” is trying to be marketed as achieved. This assumes the tasks performed can be varied, adapted to, and the AI left unattended while its rich owner fucks off and no longer has to pretend to pay insurance premiums for workers.

[–] PrinceOfSloth@lemmy.zip 15 points 3 weeks ago

i hope they sit on the patent to prevent other devs in implementating AI assistants in their games.

[–] rob_t_firefly@lemmy.world 15 points 3 weeks ago* (last edited 3 weeks ago)

A STRANGE GAME.

THE ONLY WINNING MOVE IS

NOT TO PLAY.

[–] thorhop@sopuli.xyz 13 points 3 weeks ago

Wake up, babe - the stupid ass patent wars are back again, AI edition.

[–] Furbag@lemmy.world 13 points 3 weeks ago

They don't just want the machines to create the art and music for us, they want them to consume it for us too, so that we'll have more time to slave away at our jobs.

[–] wabafee@lemmy.world 13 points 3 weeks ago

Ain't this just botting?

[–] LievitoPadre@feddit.it 13 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

I mean... Use the developers console or a cheat if you're stuck with something and want to continue playing, or just quit the game. There's no need for an AI to do this.

[–] T156@lemmy.world 8 points 3 weeks ago (3 children)

I do wish that more games still had cheats. It does feel a bit like a lot of newer games have foregone them entirely. You can't type plane into GTA V, and have a plane materialise, like you could in Vice City, for example.

You'd need to mod it in.

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[–] glimse@lemmy.world 11 points 3 weeks ago (2 children)

My biggest fear with this is an arms race between puzzle developers and these solvers. I hope devs never design their games with the expectation that players will use AI

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[–] CubitOom 11 points 3 weeks ago* (last edited 3 weeks ago)

New Xbox controller just leaked

[–] chemical_cutthroat@lemmy.world 10 points 3 weeks ago

So, basically a movie?

[–] Aceticon@lemmy.dbzer0.com 9 points 3 weeks ago

Clearly they think that gaming is the same as working.

[–] Eggyhead@lemmy.world 7 points 3 weeks ago

Then they tell publishers and game developers that more players finish their games on Microsoft’s platform than any others!

This sounds like the ironically good version of the Nemesis System patent - no AI helpers in non-Microslop games for the next 20 years.

[–] borth@sh.itjust.works 6 points 3 weeks ago

How would the assistant "proceed to chat and guide the user through the process of acquiring the gem", if it already took "control from the player"? 🤔

[–] db2@lemmy.world 6 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)
[–] glitch1985@lemmy.world 5 points 3 weeks ago

That stupid jumpy bear can gargle my balls.

[–] ICastFist@programming.dev 5 points 3 weeks ago (3 children)

Wasn't there a similar shit patent headline about sony doing that?

Oh yeah, there was, "ghost assistance", aka "no need to look up on youtube"; something which I'm pretty sure exists as "previous art" in some game or another - https://www.gamesindustry.biz/sony-patents-ai-generated-ghost-support-system-to-assist-stuck-players

Also, bots that automate play have existed since the old MUD days, this patent must be like the many that are "something that already exists, but ~~on a computer~~ with AI"

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[–] Zink@programming.dev 5 points 3 weeks ago

Prior art: I remember a long time ago seeing a video of a Barney (as in purple dinosaur) video game for little kids that would just start playing itself if you didn't touch the controller for a while. It was a side scroller, probably NES/SNES/Genesis.

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