Microsoft patent lets AI or friends take over your game when you're stuck

Xbox applies for patent that would let friends or AI help you through games

Great minds think alike, as do the biggest gaming brands around. After it came to light earlier this year that Sony had applied for a patent for AI-generated "ghost" players to help out actual players, a patent application for something eerily similar from Xbox maker Microsoft has recently been published. As spotted by Tech4Gamers and Eurogamer, Microsoft applied for this patent back in 2024. Titled "State management for video game help sessions," the patent concerns aiding players who get stuck in games. From the patent's abstract, it would allow for "inputs received from a client device of a video game helper" to help you during a "help session." A friend of yours, for example, could remotely play your game for you to help you get through tough platforming sessions or boss battles. You'd then be allowed to accept the help sessions and "proceed with video game play from that state" or reject the help, reverting your game back to where it was before a helper took over. Basically, it would give you the option to see a solution and choose to accept it or attempt to enact it yourself. The "video game helper" doesn't need to be a friend or even a fellow human at all. A "generative model," which the patent application defines as "a machine learning model employed to generate new content," could be used to help you advance in a game. One type of AI helper would be "a multi-modal generative model [that] may be capable of using various combinations of text, images, video, audio, application states, code, or other modalities" to generate inputs and outputs in your game. (If you find yourself needing assistance while playing new games, like Resident Evil Requiem or Marathon, Polygon has a robust guides section. Check 'em out!) Microsoft applied for this patent because it deems players going to forums for help or watching YouTube walkthroughs as "rather rudimentary" ways to overcome difficult parts of games, and because it doesn't want you turning away from your game when you need to seek help. The potential patent doesn't sound too dissimilar to Microsoft's Copilot for Gaming program, the "AI-driven sidekick" that can help you in games, according to Jeff Rubenstein, director of Xbox editorial. Generative AI doesn't seem to be going anywhere -- especially if genAI podcasts start showing up on your consoles. For what it's worth, new Microsoft Gaming CEO (and former Microsoft CoreAI president) Asha Sharma has pledged to "not chase short-term efficiency or flood our ecosystem with soulless AI slop." She asserts that video games "are and always will be art, crafted by humans." Video game helpers, on the other hand...

Microsoft Patent Allows for AI, or Another Human, to Swoop in And Help Complete Your Games - IGN

Microsoft has patented a method for an AI model to take control of your game, should you need a helping hand. The idea, which Microsoft initially registered back in 2024, is designed for players who might be stuck in a video game. Patent documentation dug up by Tech4gamers shows a Clippy-style pop-up that suggests another player who can "take over your game." Players would be able to see the name and identity of this player, as well as a rating for how helpful they had been in the past. Associated notes confirm that Microsoft is exploring the idea of this player either being human -- another Xbox gamer keen to help -- or, alternatively, an AI model. While the other player (real or not) is in control of your game, another image suggests you'll be able to chat with them to share advice and receive further explanation behind what they're doing -- handy if the solution involves some kind of process not immediately apparent just from watching on-screen. It's not too dissimilar from the Copilot AI already available in the Xbox app. The patent discusses the need to accurately track who was playing when an achievement is unlocked, and also to ensure human helpers are paired with players in the same age range -- so you don't have a scenario where a child is able to jump in and help slice up zombies in Resident Evil Requiem, for example. Other features include the ability to pull the plug on this assistance at any point, and also to ultimately choose whether to continue on from where the assistant has left you, or return back to the point where you previously relinquished control. If all of this sounds familiar, that's because PlayStation has patented a similar-sounding system, albeit a more simplistic one that relies on displaying an AI "ghost" player for you to follow. Both Microsoft and Sony regularly patent all manner of gaming ideas that never ultimately come to pass, though it'll be interesting to see if this concept bears fruit. Last month, Microsoft's newly-installed gaming CEO Asha Sharma responded to concerns around her AI background and said she had "no tolerance for bad AI" as she begins her reign in charge of Xbox. Image credit: Microsoft.