Texas Hold’em poker has exploded in popularity over the past few years. Its popularity has extended to academic researchers, who are intrigued by the challenges of probabilities and decision-making in the face of uncertainty that players confront when playing the game.

Artificial Intelligence is another key area in which Bus Simulator 2008 performs woefully. In essence, there is none. Cars don’t seem to realise that you’ve actually bothered to stop at a red light and frequently just carry on driving until they crash into you, whereas people are like zombies. At their worst, people have even been known get run over by your stationery bus by walking into it at random locations.

This month we begin the IndyHall Lecture series, and we’re kicking it off with something completely new: a discussion of video game artificial intelligence, specific to battlefield games.

That’s right. IndyHall member Chris Jurney, who works for Relic Entertainment, is going to talk to us about some of the underlying AI systems behind one of the games he’s worked on, Company of Heroes.

Massive Software has released Massive 3.5, a new upgrade to Massive, the artificial intelligence (AI)-driven animation system. Massive 3.5 follows on Massive 3.0 with new features, including Agent Fields, improved integration, and hair and fur dynamics. Massive enables artists to create and direct anything from CG humanoids to birds, animals, cars, and more to deliver realistic and emotive virtual performances. Massive “agents” are 3D characters that use sight, sound, and touch to interpret and react autonomously to the world around them. Massive incorporates procedural animation and AI, and is used by professionals in animation, visual effects, and design visualization.

Aside from improved ways for fans and online users to interact with robotic and virtual Disney characters, Marks said research would include “sports visualization for ESPN, sports simulation for Disney Interactive Games, radios and antennas for handheld devices for the parks, and artificial intelligence for park attractions and games.”

Kaos Studios is located in the heart of New York City and is mere blocks from the Empire State Building and the thrill of Midtown Manhattan. Along with the opportunity to live in one of the most exciting cities in the world, we also just finished up one of the most exciting FPS titles to date. Frontlines: Fuel of War (PC/XBOX360) is already receiving great press and that’s just the beginning! We also offer competitive salaries, comprehensive health benefits, and an excellent compensation package. We are always looking for talented artists, developers, and designers to join our growing team, so check out our job postings and let us know what interests you!

Rockstar, the creators of such hits as Grand Theft Auto IV and Bully, has acquired a new studio; Rockstar New England (formerly Mad Doc® Software). With experience in every aspect of game development, and an unmatched expertise in Artificial Intelligence, Rockstar New England is a registered Xbox®, Xbox 360™ and PlayStation®3 developer. Having recently completed the Xbox 360 adaption of Bully: The Scholarship Edition, the studio is working on exciting new projects, and looking for people who want to be part of one of the most successful and innovative developers of interactive entertainment.

Microsoft Games Studios is looking for experienced game developers to work on next generation Xbox platform titles and Windows games for the first-party publishing team. Come join the publishing teams that worked on games such as Jade Empire, Fable, Conker, PGR3, Rise of Nations, Zoo Tycoon, Dungeon Siege, Vanguard, and RalliSport Challenge. Work with our top first-party development partners to help ship a great first-party line up for next generation Xbox platform.

Damian Isla of Bungie spoke at the recent Develop conference in the UK. He covered a lot of the history of Halo and some of the design decisions that were made in the franchise. Here’s a story from Gamasutra that covers a lot of good stuff.

Specifically, there’s a couple of things I want to touch on.

This game uses a new AI, that can sense how many allies are left and how badly it is damaged to retreat. This AI also tries to flank you and makes sure that you can’t flank it.