Heaptalk, Jakarta —Tencent Games, a global platform for game development, publishing, and operation, brought its latest technologies and services in game development and operations to the Game Developers Conference (GDC) 2024. One of the technologies is the GiiNEX Game AI Engine developed by Tencent AI Lab.
AI and Machine Learning Take Center Stage at GDC
Harnessing the power of machine learning and AI is crucial for game developers and creators to deliver immersive, hyper-realistic gaming experiences. Elvis Liu, AI Team Lead at MoreFun Studios, shared insights on adopting large-scale reinforcement learning in fighting games. For example, Naruto Mobile, the first fighting game that utilizes a reinforcement learning approach to train the agent, can save up to 90% of the time and resources needed for the training process. In addition, Elvis participated in the machine learning panel discussion along with other prominent experts in the industry to address questions about the future of machine learning in gaming.
Experts from TiMi Studio Group discussed its self-developed character animation system, MotorNerve, and how it achieves high-quality, low-consumption locomotion control and transition animation generation by combining the advantages of Motion Matching and Learned Motion Matching, as well as leveraging Motion In Betweening technology.
To provide developers with the latest game AI tools, Tencent AI Lab launched its self-developed GiiNEX Game AI Engine during the GDC event. This game AI engine incorporates generative AI technology, which enables professional developers to create realistic and diverse 3D city scenes. Furthermore, it offers gamers the opportunity to design new levels and enhance user-generated content. GiiNEX supports 2D images, animations, 3D scenes, narratives, and dialogue generation, and also utilizes decision-making AI for game development testing, simulated gameplay, and scenarios to speed up game innovations.
Advanced Solutions Empower Game Development
The development team of Delta Force: Hawk Ops has shared their solutions for cross-platform development, including the creation of art pipelines and tools for high-precision end-game graphics while ensuring mobile performance. They have also implemented a unified production pipeline and cross-platform runtime support to achieve scalability of graphics effects and performance, as well as production efficiency in cross-platform development.
Ray tracing technology has become prevalent in PC and console 3A games, yet it has not been widely adopted in mobile platforms due to performance and algorithm constraints. However, experts from MoreFun Studios unveiled the technical details of its exciting title Arena Breakout, showcasing the successful application of ray tracing technology on mobile devices and the promise of a high-quality, hyper-realistic experience for players. Additionally, the team has addressed the conflict between graphic quality and frame rate by introducing a self-developed frame-prediction technology to boost frame rate and reduce battery consumption without compromising the graphic quality.
The R&D Efficiency and Capability engine team shared integrating SmartGI, a high-performance global illumination solution for mobile, and NanoMesh, an adaptive and seamless LOD technology, into a new real-time rendering pipeline. This integration aims to create a one-stop development process with minimal asset preprocessing, pixel-level geometry rendering, and a fully real-time cross-platform customizable game engine. The Game UX research team, offered a look into the A-G-E Model plus their insights into improving the onboarding process for F2P players.
Tencent Games reaffirmed its commitment to advancing game security, quality assurance, and studio efficiency, by showcasing its cutting-edge in-house products at the GDC booth. Anti-Cheat Expert(ACE), offers a comprehensive suite of game security solutions for mobile and PC games such as hardening solutions, anti-cheat measures, in-game economy risk and content moderation, as well as digital rights management, to assist game developers in addressing diverse security challenges and providing a fair and competitive gaming environment for players. WeTest Global, the Quality Assurance Platform, ensures the highest quality standards for game and application development with a range of QA solutions including compatibility testing, functional testing, automated testing, remote device access, and performance testing for mobile, PC and console games. What’s more, the Cloud-Enabled Studio solutions empower studios to transcend geographical and physical constraints, enabling seamless work from any location, thereby enhancing productivity, streamlining art production, and ensuring the security of assets.
Connecting with Community and Talent
Alongside GDC, the PocketGamer Connects San Francisco event featured Level Infinite VP and head of business operations and strategy, Yong-yi Zhu. He joined a panel discussion with Qi Lu, CEO and founder of Supernova Games, and Stuart Dinsey, chairman of Curve games, where the three discussed the role of global publishers in bridging Asia and the West.
Zhu said Tencent Games has been focused on listening and testing content with local gaming communities across the globe, then relaying what players want back to studios. “Tencent’s superpower has been in working with mobile developers, and being very data-driven in decision making,” he said. “It’s about identifying what really resonates with people in their local communities, and being very much tailor-made.”
At this year’s GDC, Tencent Games introduced a dedicated “Career Space” at its booth, designed to foster networking and connect with potential candidates for open roles across game development. The space featured opportunities from internships to senior positions and offered insight into Tencent’s studios and its latest projects. Additionally, the GWB Game Awards 2024 was announced, featuring gold, silver, and bronze awards for the best game, along with eight distinct category awards, offering a total prize pool of $56,000 USD. Those interested may submit entries before July 15 on the official website.
Launched in 1988, GDC has been the go-to event for the gaming community for the latest trends and insights. Tencent Games’ active involvement in GDC highlights its commitment to advancing the industry through innovation. If you couldn’t attend, we invite you to follow our social media accounts and visit the GDC Vault for more information.
Tencent Games was launched in 2003, and has since grown into the leading global platform for game development, publishing and operation, as well as operator of the largest online game community in China. It is dedicated to offering engaging and high quality interactive entertainment experience for all players.
Currently, Tencent Games offers more than 140 self-developed and licensed games across 200 countries and regions, which provides hundreds of millions of users with cross-platform interactive entertainment experiences. Honour of Kings, PUBG MOBILE and League of Legends are some of the most popular titles around the world.
