The development of AI has gained momentum recently. The smart technology has also found its way into games for your PlayStation 5 or Xbox Series X, for example.
Google recently unveiled Project Gameface, where they showed off a hands-free, AI-powered gaming mouse. It allows you to control your computer’s cursor with head movements and facial gestures. The innovative technology provides a nice glimpse into the future of AI and gaming.
Google’s new AI technology
Google was inspired by video game star Lance Carr. He has a muscle disease and used a head-tracking mouse to control his PlayStation 5 with his head. Due to a fire at his home, he lost all his equipment. And with it, his mouse. As a result, Lance could no longer play games.
The tragic story inspired Google to develop the new AI technology that could help him and many others. Google’s team used a webcam to detect more than 400 points in the face, allowing gamers to use their head movements and facial expressions to click or drag.
Lance is already very happy with Gameface. The technology is so precise that he can write his own name.
Machine Learning
Gameface’s technology is based on Machine Learning. This is a process in which AI is trained to recognize patterns and make predictions through datasets. So you can place Gameface’s technology between ChatGPT, OpenAI and StabilityAI.
However, those models are there to take over work. This system is built to support people and do things that were not possible before. The new technology could have a big impact on how we will game in the future with, say, a PlayStation 5 or Xbox Series X.
What does AI mean for the future?
AI can help us with time-consuming technical jobs. It can make games more accessible to players and take over technical chores from developers. This leaves them more time to focus on other things.
Smart technology could go a step further. AI could also be trained in the future to create an accessibility framework. This framework would adapt the visual, audio and interactive aspects of games so that small developers would not have to do expensive research or perform countless tests themselves.
People need to stay engaged
But experts caution to also keep people involved in the creation process. After all, you won’t get a perfect game if you ask, “AI, make my game accessible! People will continue to be needed to test new games for a PlayStation 5 or Xbox Series X. In the end, a human plays the game, not a machine.
So AI can be a great tool for developers. But they need to consider accessibility for humans throughout the creation process. That way even gamers like Lance can continue to enjoy a great game.