Unbelievable! A.I. masters Flappy Bird

Unbelievable! A.I. masters Flappy Bird

Table of Contents

  1. Introduction
  2. The Flappy Bird Challenge
  3. Starting the Project
    • Setting the Alarm
    • Checking YouTube
    • Begin Coding
  4. Building the Game Mechanics
    • Getting the Bird to Fly
    • Creating the Pipes and Collision Detection
    • Making the Game More Challenging
  5. Designing the Visuals
    • Drawing the Bird and Pipes
    • Adding Background Elements
    • Animating the Bird
  6. Integrating AI
    • Using the NEAT Algorithm
    • Specifying Player Actions and Observations
    • Fitness Function and Training
  7. Conclusion
  8. Spread the Love of Learning
  9. Merry Christmas and Thanks

The Flappy Bird Challenge: Building a Fully Functioning Game in One Day

Flappy Bird, a simple yet addictive mobile game, took the world by storm when it was released in 2013. In this challenge, I set out to Create my own version of Flappy Bird in just one day, complete with an AI system to learn and play the game. Join me on this adventure as I navigate the process of coding the game mechanics, designing the visuals, and integrating artificial intelligence.

Starting the Project

To kickstart the challenge, I set my alarm for an early start. However, as expected, hitting the snooze button multiple times delayed my progress. After finally getting myself out of bed, I began by checking YouTube briefly, as it is part of my job. Time slipped away, and before I knew it, it was already 10 a.m.

Building the Game Mechanics

To get a feel for the game, I started by playing Flappy Bird for a while. Then, I began coding the game mechanics. I started with getting a circle on the screen that would be affected by gravity. Next, I implemented the bird's ability to fly when the spacebar is pressed, applying an upward force. As I fine-tuned the movement, I made progress in creating the pipes and adding collision detection.

As the game was too easy with only one pipe, I added a Second pipe on top to make passing through the pipes more challenging. I made various adjustments, including tweaking the collision system and altering the jumping mechanics, to create a more engaging gameplay experience.

Designing the Visuals

With the game mechanics in place, it was time to turn my Attention to the visuals. I dusted off my pixel art skills and started drawing the bird and the pipes. I aimed to replicate the pixel-perfect look of the original game. Additionally, I created a background with elements such as the sky, clouds, buildings, and grass. Despite a technical hiccup with the screen capture software, I managed to complete the visuals by 5 p.m.

To further enhance the visual appeal, I added animation to the bird, making it tilt up when flapping and tilt down while falling. With the game's aesthetics now more closely resembling Flappy Bird, it was time to move on to the final step.

Integrating AI

To elevate the challenge, I decided to integrate artificial intelligence into the game. Leveraging the NEAT (NeuroEvolution of Augmenting Topologies) algorithm, I connected neural networks to the game. This allowed the AI players to observe their surroundings, make decisions Based on distance measurements, and gradually improve their performance over time.

Specifying the players' field of view and available actions was straightforward. They could observe the distance to the next pipe, the bird's vertical velocity, and the vertical distances to the top and bottom pipes. As for actions, the players had a binary choice of jumping or not jumping.

To determine how well each player fared, I relied on their survival duration. The AI would generate multiple generations of players, favoring those with longer survival times. With everything set up for AI training, it was already 9 p.m., and I had to call it a day.

Conclusion

The Flappy Bird challenge pushed me to create a fully functioning game with AI capabilities in just one day. From coding the mechanics to designing the visuals and integrating artificial intelligence, each step presented its own set of challenges. However, the experience allowed me to test my skills and explore the process of game development in a condensed timeframe.

Spread the Love of Learning

With Christmas approaching, the challenge of finding the perfect gift for loved ones can be stressful. Instead of material possessions, why not consider gifting the gift of knowledge? Brilliant, an online learning platform, offers engaging and thought-provoking content that simplifies complex subjects for easy understanding. By supporting the development of problem-solving skills, Brilliant provides a gift that will benefit your loved ones in all aspects of life, including school, job interviews, and their future careers. Visit boondog.com/codebullit to gift a Brilliant subscription and help your loved ones finish their day a little smarter.

Merry Christmas and Thanks

As the year comes to a close, I want to express my gratitude to everyone who has supported me. Recently, my Channel reached 500,000 subscribers, an incredible milestone. Although I won't be creating a special video for this occasion, I am truly thankful for the support. I will be taking a short break during the holiday season to spend time with family and learn more advanced techniques, such as deep Q learning and Proximal Policy Optimization (PPO) used by OpenAI in defeating Dota 2. If You have any recommended resources for learning these techniques, feel free to reach out to me on Twitter. Merry Christmas and here's to a fantastic year ahead!

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