EvoBoids: Co-design of a physical and virtual game using Artificial Evolution

We present the co-design of a gaming scenario between an Artificial Evolution algorithm and a human designer. Such co-design is twofold, consisting of an initial stage in which a genetic algorithm is used to evolve the control parameters that define the behavior of a group of virtual agents. This produces interesting and unexpected results not only creating differentiated behaviors but also increasing the flexibility of the character to adapt to a given objective. In the second stage of the game design a human interplay was introduced in adding other elements to the game, such as other characters and new game dynamics. In this paper we introduce a game that integrates virtual and physical characters while taking advantage of such co-design approach. The physical character consists of a robot which controlled through a Natural User Interface can be part of the game by interacting with other characters in the virtual environment.