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Steven Polge is a programmer who works at Epic Games. He's responsible for the games' AI system.
Bio[edit | edit source]
Prior to joining the then-Epic Megagames, Steve worked at IBM for about 7.5 years after getting his Master' degree in Computer Engineering.[1] His interest on Artificial Intelligence led him to take several graduate courses related to AI[1] that ended up in the release of the Reaper Bot for Quake back in 1997, the first computer-controlled deathmatch opponent according to the Guinness World Records.[2]
In that same year, Epic offered him a job working on Unreal after a series of e-mail exchanges with Mark Rein, though he wouldn't have gone to work for Epic on Unreal if he didn't think it had a lot of potential, which they did have.[3] After they shipped Unreal, they realized they wanted to go farther into multiplayer. The bot AI he was developing gave them the opportunity to make a multiplayer-focused game that could also be enjoyed stand alone, which was important at that time when not everyone had good internet connections or experience with multiplayer gaming. He was the lead programmer for Unreal Tournament, and focused on AI, networking, player physics, and general gameplay.[4] For Unreal Tournament 3, the biggest challenge he had to face regarding the AI was to successfully implement all the features and capabilities he wanted, such as ruleset, strategy and tactic understanding, a knowledge model about the game world and game state that is similar in limitations to what a player would know, and a human-like aiming model, with the same kinds of strengths and weaknesses in hitting targets under various conditions that would affect a human player.[5]
In addition to programming on the franchise, he served as lead designer on Unreal Tournament 3[6], and has been credited on other Epic titles such as Gears of War, Shadow Complex and Infinity Blade.
Works[edit | edit source]
| Credits of Steven Polge | |
|---|---|
| Unreal | AI Programming |
| Unreal Tournament | Programming |
| Unreal II: The Awakening | Engine Programming |
| Unreal Championship | Programming |
| Unreal Tournament 2003 | Programming |
| Unreal Tournament 2004 | Programming |
| Unreal Championship 2: The Liandri Conflict | Additional Programming |
| Unreal Tournament 3 | Lead Designer Lead Programmer |
Trivia[edit | edit source]
External links and references[edit | edit source]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Quietman (April 7, 2001). "Steve Polge Interview". OzUnreal. Archived from the original on April 12, 2001. Retrieved May 8, 2019.
- ↑ "First computer-controlled deathmatch opponent". Guinness World Records. Retrieved May 8, 2019.
- ↑ New Vore Times, Fragmaster. "Fear The Reaper: An Interview with Steven Polge". PlanetQuake. Retrieved May 8, 2019.
- ↑ Conley, Stacey (December 21st, 2012). "The Longevity of Unreal Tournament: Part One". Epic Games. Archived from the original on July 28, 2016. Retrieved May 8, 2019.
- ↑ Thöing, Sebastian (June 15, 2007). "Interview mit Steve Polge (englisch)". PCGames.de. Retrieved May 8, 2019.
- ↑ Park, Andrew (May 9, 2005). "Unreal Tournament 2007 Exclusive Preview - An Overview of the Next UT". GameInformer. Retrieved May 8, 2019.
- spineblaZe (May 22, 2005). "BeyondUnreal at E3: Steve Polge on UT2007". BeyondUnreal. Retrieved May 26, 2019.
- Stuart, Keith (January 30, 2008). "Unreal Tournament 3 Interview: notes from the AI frontline". The Guardian. Retrieved May 27, 2019.
- Kelly, Neon (February 26, 2009). "Steve Polge on Epic's future plans". VideoGamer.com. Retrieved May 27, 2019.
