While I’ve used A.I. assistants like Siri and Cortana in the past, they’ve never been a huge part of my life. That being said, when Google talked about using their virtual assistant with Stadia to help assist with games or walkthroughs, my ears perked up.
Clearly Sony were listening too, because a new patent has been revealed that showcases a virtual assistant concept running on a PlayStation console. Let’s find out how this would work on the PS5!
Hey PlayStation, How do I beat This Boss?
Sony patents have been coming to light more and more lately. These offer windows into the things we may see on the PS5. While a patent doesn’t guarantee a feature or product, it shows that they are at least considering it.
Daniel Ahmad revealed the patent on Twitter, which shows some interesting diagrams of how it would work:
Sony has filed a new patent for an AI powered voice assistant called PlayStation Assist.
You can input a query and then the game will dynamically respond.
E.g. Ask for the nearest health pack > The game marks it on your map.https://t.co/BQWibOqSRP pic.twitter.com/PNKDEH7jGe
— Daniel Ahmad (@ZhugeEX) September 29, 2019
By integrating your console with your phone or tablet, the hypothetically titled “PlayStation Assist” would allow you to ask questions out loud and have information or tips delivered directly to your phone or to the game directly.
The example in the tweet, of course, suggests you could ask for a nearby health kit and the assistant would mark it on your map. Google’s Stadia implementation of this technology promises similar capabilities, including the ability to ask the assistant for tips on a specific section and receive a walkthrough in return, already scrolled to the part you’re asking about.
It would all start with “Hey PlayStation,” which would trigger the assistant to listen. By leveraging a “deep learning engine,” the assistant would give you specific answers like the ones above based on the context of your question.
Giving the assistant direct access to your game allows it to understand what your question is about, while also giving it the ability to beam answers directly to your TV or your phone if you prefer.
To some, it may seem lazy. To others it could be the help they need to get through more difficult titles. As someone who used to love messing around with cheat codes in classic games, it would also be fun for developers to implement hidden cheats into questions you need to ask your PlayStation Assist.
The possibilities are certainly exciting. Would you use PlayStation Assist on your PS5? Let us know in the comments!
Article by – Bradley Ramsey
Insert date – 10/3/19