1. Comme il Faut 2: A fully realized model for socially-oriented gameplay
Josh McCoy, Mike Treanor, Ben Samuel, Brandon Tearse,
Michael Mateas and Noah Wardrip-Fruin
Greetings! I am Josh McCoy, a PhD student in the Expressive Intelligence Studio at UC Santa Cruz. I am presenting “Comme il Faut 2: A fully realized model for socially-oriented gameplay” which is research done with Mike Treanor, Ben Samuel, Brandon Tearse,
Michael Mateas and Noah Wardrip-Fruin.
Comme il Faut (CiF) is a playable computational model of social interactions designed specifically to allow autonomous characters to play social games. The design goal of CiF is to represent and reason over compelling social situations along with the variations of the resultant behavior that arise from different personalities being placed in similar roles.

2. Game Physics

3. CiF is Social Physics!
Social Game A pattern of multi-character social interactions whose function is to modify the social state existing within and across the participants.

4. The gameplay is about the social story.
The Prom
About high school kids and their dramatic lives in the week leading up to their prom
A storytelling game
The gameplay is about the social story.
Social puzzle game.

5. The Prom
This early screenshot of the prom shows a few important facets of the game.
The first is the level, or scenario, objective.
[Scenario based]
[Robert is selected]
[relationship lines]
[Edward is second selection]
[social game buttons]
[main ui Robert is selected]
[options to show more social state]

6. Social Games The primary mode of interaction for The Prom
Actions characters take to modify social state
Example….

7. Debbie and Edward’s Angry Breakup

8. Why Debbie would want to break up with Edward
She has the character trait of jealous
Her sense of romance is low with him
He did something that could be cheating
And possibly many more reasons…

9. Being in accord with conventions or accepted standards; proper.
Comme il Faut (CiF)
as it should be
Being in accord with conventions or accepted standards; proper.
A computational model of social interaction
Characters, relationships, social history, zeitgeist…
Designed for player experience and not simulation
Comme il Faut (CiF) is a playable computational model of social interactions designed specifically to allow autonomous characters to play social games. The design goal of CiF is to represent and reason over compelling social situations along with the variations of the resultant behavior that arise from different personalities being placed in similar roles.
Authoring Strategy for Game-based Interactive Narrative

10. CiF’s Architecture

11. The Social Facts Database

12. The Cultural Knowledgebase

13. Social Networks

14. Resolution of social game

15. CiF’s Flow: Intent Formation

16. CiF’s Flow: Intent Formation

17. CiF’s Flow: Intent Formation

18. Preconditions Karen and Robert are dating. Robert cheated on Karen.
Social game preconditions are used as a check to ensure that the game is possible in the social environment.

19. Initiator’s Volition via Influence Rules
For:
Responder cheated on Initiator.
Responder cheated on Initiator with a friend.
Initiator is has low confidence.
Against:
Initiator is a cheater.
Initiator is not confident.
Responder is aggressive.
Initiator thinks Responder is really cool.
Volition to play the game is strongly based on specific of personality traits.

20. Initiator’s Volition via Influence Rules
For:
Cheat(Responder) and Dating(Responder,Other) +20
Cheat(Responder) and Dating(Responder,Other) and Friend(Initiator, Other) +20
~Trait(Initiator, Confidence) +20
Against:
Status(Cheat, Initiator) -20
~Trait(Initiator, Confidence) -20
Trait(Responder, Aggressive) -10
Cool(Initiator, Responder) >

21. CiF’s Flow: Intent Formation

22. CiF’s Flow: Social Game Play

23. Responder’s Reaction
For: Responder is inarticulate. Initiator did something bad to responder in the past Responder is a pacifist. Against: Responder is domineering. Responder has strong romantic feelings for Initiator.

24. Responder’s Reaction
For: Trait(Responder, inarticulate) +20 Trait(Responder, Pacifist) +10 SFDB(Negative, Initiator, Responder)+20 Against: Trait(Responder, Domineering) -10 Romance(Responder, Initiator) >

25. Choosing an Outcome Accept: Flavorless: Robert is a pacifist: Reject:
romance/buddy down
Karen has low confidence:

26. CiF’s Flow: Social Fallout

27. Social Trigger Rules
Cheating Has a character been in two dating relationships with two other characters simultaneously? At a point in game time: Dating(X,Y) and Dating(X,Z) -> Cheat(X)

28. Social Trigger Rules
Third Party Enmity Has someone the character does not like done something negative to a friend? Buddy(X,Z) < 40 and Friend(X,Y) and SFDB(Negative,Z,Y) -> Enmity(X,Z)

29. Lots of detail.

30. Design Tool

31. Design Tool

32. Future Work Polish The Prom. Incorporate feedback to improve CiF.
Additional CiF capability:
Planning over social games
Role negotiation
Deeper character personality models.