Q: Where can I learn more about artificial intelligence, machine learning and adaptive agents?
A: Practical advice on game AI:
1. AI Game Programming Wisdom 1-3 (http://www.aiwisdom.com/bookshelf_aiwisdom.html)
2. Game Programming Gems 1-6 (chapters on game AI) (http://www.aiwisdom.com/bookshelf_gpg1.html)
3. Programming Game AI by Example by Mat Buckland (http://www.ai-junkie.com/books/toc_pgaibe.html)
4. http://www.gameai.com/
5. http://www.aigamedev.com/
Conferences on Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning
1. American Association for Artificial Intelligence, AAAI (www.aaai.org/)
2. Neural Information Processing Systems, NIPS (www.nips.cc )
3. International Conference on Machine Learning, ICML (oregonstate.edu/conferences/icml2007/)
4. Autonomous Agents and Multi Agent Systems, AAMAS (http://www.aamas2007.org/)
5. International Conference on Computers and Games, CG (http://www.cs.unimaas.nl/cg2006/)
Textbooks on Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning
1. Artificial Intelligence: A Modern Approach, Russell and Norvig (http://aima.cs.berkeley.edu/)
2. Pattern Recognition and Machine Learning, Christopher Bishop (http://research.microsoft.com/~cmbishop/PRML/)
3. Reinforcement Learning: An Introduction, Sutton and Barto (http://www.cs.ualberta.ca/~sutton/book/the-book.html)
Q: Which version of XNA Game Studio Express can we use?
A: You can use either XNA Game Studio Express 1.0 or 2.0.
Q: Which version of Visual Studio can we use?
A: You can use any version of Visual Studio that is compatible with the version of XNA Game Studio Express that you are using.
Q: Where can we find a code sample or sample game code to get started?
A: We are providing the code for a simple sample game here on XNA Creators Club Online. Watch this space for a link soon! Also, feel free to use the XNA sample code provided at http://creators.xna.com/Resources/Minigames.aspx and http://creators.xna.com/Education/StarterKits.aspx.
Q: Are we restricted to a particular game genre?
A: No, any fun game that uses AI in an original, interesting and challenging way would make a great entry and has the chance to win. This could be real-time strategy games, role playing games, first-person shooters, platformers, sports games, board games, or any other game genre that benefits from great AI.
Q: Do we need to invent new AI techniques in order to win the contest?
A: Although we would appreciate the invention of new AI techniques, an entry that uses known AI techniques in new exciting ways can also win the competition.
Q: We are a team of more than two people. Can we still participate?
A: Only two of you can register and are eligible for winning the contest. However, if your friends are willing to support you without the glory, then feel free to exploit them. Alternatively, you can split up into teams of one or two members and participate in separate teams.
Q: I have this great idea for a game and would like to pursue my idea commercially after the contest. Can I still do that after submitting the game as an entry to this contest?
A: The contest does not affect your intellectual property rights in your game and we will discard your code after the evaluation has been completed. If the game is as great as you think, maybe participating in the contest will be your chance to publish it!
Q: Are we allowed to use open source code or code snippets from a book in our entry?
A: As long as you have permission to use the code either by the associated licence or on an individual basis, you can incorporate that code into your entry as long as you give proper credit in your game description.
Q: What is the limit on submission size?
A: We have a 200Mb file size limit for a single ZIP file containing the four following items:
1. .ccgame package
2. The source code
3. A design summary of maximum 2000 words
4. 3 screenshots of your game
Q: We are not sure what should go into the game description. Can you give us a pointer to a sample game description?
A: You can find a sample game description for our sample game here. This small sample is a full "Silicon Minds" submission of a rule based AI for the board game of Go.
Q: What do you mean by "Production Quality" of the sample submission?
A: You can find a fairly well documented sample here. On coding standards, if you are starting afresh for the competition we suggest you take a look at the MSDN section ".Net Framework General Reference - Design Guidelines for Class Library Developers" for guidance. In summary this is what we would like to see in the code:
Q: Should the title be an exact description of the game or can we invent a really cool fantasy title?
A: Go for the cool title. We can figure out the technical details from the game description.
Q: Do we need to register before we start working on the game?
A: No, you can start working on the game right away as long as you register before the registration deadline.
Q: I registered in a team together with my friend Alice. Now Alice is no longer able to participate. Can my friend Bob register instead and continue the contest with me as a replacement for Alice?
A: No, once a team is registered, it cannot be dissolved or changed officially. However, if Bob agrees with Alice to continue her work and your team wins, you can always work out how to deal with the prizes among you.
Q: Which programming languages are permitted for the source code to be submitted?
A: C# only. What we won't accept is native libraries wrapped in managed code.
Q: As XNA runs on essentially the .NET 2.0 runtime and standard library is there anything stopping us using .NET 3.0 or even 3.5 libraries in the game? Obviously this would stop it running on the 360.
A: You can build against the .Net 3.0 framework as our evaluation machine(s) will have Windows Vista installed. Please note that our evaluation machine(s) won't have the .Net 3.5 framework installed so you have to include the .Net 3.5 redistributable with your game if you are using it.
