Nvidia’s idea of the future is here, and it might just be nightmare fuel for Soulsborne games. Confused? Let me explain.
Nvidia just introduced a redefined version of ACE, a suite of RTX-accelerated digital human technologies. This would allow NPCs (non-playable characters) to break away from preset patterns and pursue a more autonomous route that Nvidia claims would use “AI to perceive, plan, and act like human players.”
Soulsborne fans are no stranger to fighting human-like enemies. In fact, this could be an exciting development for how NPC invaders are handled in these games. But that wasn’t the first thought that crossed my mind. No, I imagined Malenia in Elden Ring, and that scoundrel Messmer in the Shadow of the Erdtree expansion. AI bosses.
How could Nvidia’s AI NPCs change these encounters? Will they be better or worse? That depends on your taste, but what I can say for sure (probably) is that it’ll be harder. Let’s jump in.
The first AI boss is already here
There are quite a few processes that these new AIs consider when taking actions, including choosing the best action for the situation, strategizing their actions going forward, and reflecting on the actions taken. Sounds human, doesn’t it? Now imagine that for a boss. Oh, wait, you don’t need to imagine it because it’s already happened.
As you can see in the video above, developer Wemade Next created the first AI boss using Nvidia’s ACE tools and introduced it to MIR5, an MMORPG scheduled for release in 2025. In the video, the narrator describes how a typical boss commits to predictable patterns, and once you understand it, you can beat it.
MMORPGs are grindy as heck, and the pitch here is dynamic bosses will keep players more engaged.
However, this AI boss, Asterion, is designed to analyze the skills of each player and determine who to attack first, like the healer (sorry, healers). It even recalls past battles and will use that information to achieve victory, creating unpredictable patterns, which likely means that it cannot be defeated twice with the same technique.
Okay, let me address this particular context first. MMORPGs are grindy as heck, and the pitch here is dynamic bosses will keep players more engaged. I think that could be fun in theory, although there’s a debate in there about how that would only increase the length of the grind. But back to the question of overall difficulty, which is where I think about Soulsborne games.
Soulsborne games are designed with the philosophy that no matter what class, level, or weapon you have, you can beat the game on skill alone. It’s all about the control you have over your character and your memory and skill for pattern recognition. But what happens when your enemy doesn’t have any patterns?
Depending on how it’s implemented, Nvidia’s AI bosses could completely destroy the point of these games.
Depending on how it’s implemented, Nvidia’s AI bosses could completely destroy the point of these games. If you are fighting bosses that are already difficult and the developers upgrade them with human-like intelligence, how will you cope? Well, this would force a whole new generation of gamers to brush up on their strategic improvisational skills. (When I say it like that, it actually doesn’t sound too bad.)
With Soulsborne games in particular, you’d still need to master control of your character and the enemy’s choreography. Typically, if a boss does A, they’ll do B next. But now they might jump from A to C. And you can’t keep fighting it with the same strategy. Soulsborne games try to reinforce changing your tactics for each fight, but now you have to change your tactics every attempt for each fight. That sounds exhausting.
Are AI bosses really what we want?
Like with most new technology, there are some positives and negatives. There are plenty of boring boss fights that could use an AI upgrade (looking at you, Diablo IV). And there are boss fights that do not need to be any harder (don’t even think about it, Miyazaki).
We might not see Nvidia’s AI bosses implemented in a FromSoftware title, but some developer somewhere is going to make a Soulsborne game with this technology in mind. If it doesn’t happen, it should (because I’m as curious as I am terrified).
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