Unreal Tournament 2004 custom bots pass a deathmatch Turing test

We may look back on this moment and realize it was the beginning of the end for the human race. Scientists and students at the University of Texas at Austin created bots in Unreal Tournament 2004 that were perceived by other players as human opponents more often than the actual human opponents.

Need more convincing? You'll find clips of UT^2 stalking and killing its human opponents here . "People tend to tenaciously pursue specific opponents without regard for optimality," said student Jacob Schrum. "When humans have a grudge, they'll chase after an enemy even when it's not in their interests. We can mimic that behavior." I assume the bot's auditory receptors were probably playing this on loop as it mercilessly hunted down its horrified masters.

Omri Petitte is a former PC Gamer associate editor and long-time freelance writer covering news and reviews. If you spot his name, it probably means you're reading about some kind of first-person shooter. Why yes, he would like to talk to you about Battlefield. Do you have a few days?