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Masa Group, a developer of artificial intelligence-based modelling and simulation software for games and other industries has launched a new AI middleware, Masa Life.
Masa Life is described as an intuitive, adaptable AI middleware for developers of games, serious games and simulations to make their non-player characters (NPCs) more realistic and smarter.
Life is designed to increase the productivity of game developers and non-technical professional users requiring highly realistic and adaptable intelligent behaviours.
“With Masa Life, we aim to simplify behaviour authoring,” said Frank Gwosdz, Life Product Manager at Masa Group. “Life offers game developers, and designers alike, the capability to model behaviors of individuals, groups or crowds of agents. It provides a designer-friendly graphical authoring tool, an interactive sandbox, a lean and scalable runtime, as well as out-of-the-box behavior contents.”
Masa’s previous work in games includes Conflict Zone, a real-time strategy war game that was entirely developed by the group and published by Ubisoft in 2001.
Headquartered in France, Masa has gained experience in the war games arena with its AI-based simulation software Masa Sword, which is designed to help users develop highly realistic scenarios to train military and civil decision makers.
In 2011, the Masa Group acquired key artificial intelligence assets and hired product development talent from Artificial Technology, a technology leader in behaviour authoring within the game development industry. The acquired assets included EKI One, an innovative middleware designed for the easy authoring of NPC behaviours in video games.
Masa Group CTO Gilles Mazars added: “State-of-the-art artificial intelligence technology has been inside Masa’s DNA since the origins of the company more than 15 years ago. Gaming is an essential part of our corporate culture, and many among Masa’s talented software engineers are former game developers themselves.
“With Masa Life’s unique AI technology, game developers at GDC can see for themselves how Masa’s new AI middleware makes their game developing experience easier and faster, while providing them with a powerful business differentiator.”
The middleware maker is exhibiting its new tech at GDC 2013, booth #1936.
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