
Illuvium partners with Virtuals, bringing autonomous AI NPCs to its games
Update (Jan. 8 at 4 am UTC): This article has been updated to include comments from Illuvium co-founder Keiran Warwick.Blockchain-based gaming franchise Illuvium is set to upgrade its in-game non-playable characters (NPCs) through a new partnership with Virtuals â the protocol behind a number of viral social AI agents on X, including AIXBT.The collaboration will see Virtualâs G.A.M.E AI model framework power NPCs within Illuviumâs trio of games (still in beta), giving them the ability to dynamically change up dialogue, quests or challenges depending on a playerâs actions. âImagine this: You walk into a bar. The bartender agent dreams of being the most devoted husband. In a traditional game, your options might be to buy a drink or play a song. In an agent-driven world, you could insult his wife, sparking his anger, leading him to attack you,â the team behind the Virtuals Protocol wrote in a Jan. 7 X post. The playerâs actions could also change their game experience depending on how they interact with the agents, which could include attacking agents to alter the dynamics of an area or treating them kindly, which could garner bespoke rewards or quests. âMultiply this emergent complexity across every agent, in every scenario, and you get a gaming experience filled with infinite stories.âAI chatbots, another type of AI tech, have been known to occasionally drift off-topic, given the right amount of prodding and prompts. Illuvium co-founder and CEO Kieran Warwick told Cointelegraph that they would be employing safeguards to ensure the AI NPCs stay on track. âThese include strict behavioral guidelines and fail-safes that confine AI actions within predefined boundaries. Additionally, our team will continuously monitor AI interactions and conduct regular updates to maintain control over the narrative and gameplay mechanics,â he said. Illuvium said in an announcement that the tech would be rolled out on Overworld, a third-person exploration game set on an alien planet called Illuvium, where players (known as rangers) discover and collect creatures known as Illuvials â which can be used in a separate battler game Illuvium: Arena.It added the AI tech can be expected across all three of its games, which also includes Illuvium Zero â a base-building game where players generate resources and skins for use in Overworld and Arena. âThis allows us to fine-tune and optimize the system based on real player feedback and performance within our flagship title. Once weâve solidified the AI enhancements in Overworld, weâll extend these advancements to our other titles, Arena and Zero,â Warwick added.âWe couldnât be more excited to collaborate with them on this transformative framework for our up-and-coming MMO Lite,â he said in a statement. Warwick said there is no specific launch date for their revamped Overworld MMO Lite, as it is focusing on Arena first. Related: Multicoin Capital eyeing AI agents, institutional âfrenzyâ in 2025âEarlier this year, while pioneering Agentic NPCs in Roblox, we envisioned a future where AAA games like Illuvium could harness this technology to fuel an explosion of dynamic content,â said Virtuals Protocol co-founder Ether Mage.âPartnering with Illuvium as our first gaming collaboration marks a major milestone for Virtuals.âVirtuals said AI agents can transcend individual games, remembering their interactions with a player across multiple platforms. âOne moment, theyâre battling bosses with you in Elden Ring. The next, theyâre building shelters with you in Minecraft or assisting with tactics and commentating during your Dota matches.âThe Virtuals Protocol â a project that enables users to launch AI agents â surged in popularity toward the end of 2024, with its native token Virtuals Protocol (VIRTUAL) rising almost 9,900% in the last two months to hit an all-time high of $5.07. One of the most popular AI agents on the platform is AIXBT, an AI influencer focused on the crypto trading space that provides market updates and insight.Â