Summaries and Customer Reviews are supplied by Amazon.com

After a whirlwind tour of Windows programming for those readers who require a refresher, you will learn how to use genetic algorithms for optimization, path-finding and evolving control sequences for your game agents. After learning the basics of neural networks, AI Techniques for Game Programming will demonstrate how you can evolve neural motion controllers for your game agents, and how neural networks may be applied to obstacle avoidance and map exploration. You will learn about backpropagation and pattern recognition and will discover how to train a network to recognize mouse gestures. Finally, you’ll learn state-of-the-art techniques for creating neural networks with dynamic topologies.

Each chapter is complimented by well-commented source code and most provide fun exercises and problems for you to practice your new found knowledge.

Average Customer Rating:

Must have!!!	Customer Rating:
As mentioned above, this is THE book for AI. It uses plain language and explains different topics using real life examples. If you need/want to learn AI programming, this should be the first book of your collection.

really good intro book for neural nets and GAs

Customer Rating:

Although other reviewers have already pointed out everything positive about this book, I felt I also had to praise it because it's so good. It's a great introduction to neural networks and genetic algorithms. By the way the author should be congratulated for his "never include any code that you don't throughly explain" philosophy. Although it's over 400 pages because of this philosophy, you can skim/skip around 150 of them if you know some win32 programming and basic high school math/physics. The book is so concise and easy to understand that I went through it in a night and came up having a firm idea about the subject. There are also a lot of good ideas to try out throughout the book(i.e. tinkering with the source included etc.) To put it shortly, this is a great book, it's really worth the money you spend on it.

definitely easy	Customer Rating:
You know when a subject is finally becoming stable when simple books like this come out and explain in layman's terms.

Perfect book for the AI newbie, don't miss it!

Customer Rating:

This book is a little jewel hidden in the usually trashy prima press game development series.. it gives a great, clear, non-formal introduction to genetic algorithms and neural networks in the context of game programming.. and gives you example code in good C++ (brainy aliens storming towards you, a genetic algorithm controlled lunar lander.. tanks that move around avoiding obstacles....) that actually works and is simple enough to be understandable for a newbie. The writing style is lively but not annoying. I recommend this title to anyone who has an interest for the fun side of programming....

Buckland DE-jargonises the field of AI

Customer Rating:

This book IS my Masters thesis. I built a multi layered combative system driven wholly by neural networks evolved using genetic algorithms. The learning of agents was unsupervised and they existed collaboratively and adversarily. If all of this made no sense, dont worry! Read this book and it will. The book covers these techniques (except for multi layered architectures) to a level understood by anyone with a basic knowledge of C++. It totally demystifies NNs and GAs. Other books on these subjects actually put you off the entire concepts of AI by feeding you fear and confusion. I have completed the book and have read it numerous times. It is going to be invaluable for my development of PHd stuff - his writing introduces areas for potential research. Im would definately buy other books from this author. I hope he covers other areas of AI soon and puts 'em into print. Be jaysus, tis mighty I tell ya!!!