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Sony’s patent proposes using machine learning to make computer-controlled opponents react to how players perform against them. A boss might counter a tactic that keeps working—or stop using an attack that keeps defeating players. The filing describes a possible system, not a feature confirmed for any released game.
How would Sony’s AI change a boss fight?
The proposed loop starts with players’ attempts against an opponent. The system records tactics and outcomes, uses a machine-learning model to analyze what succeeded or failed, and may apply adjusted opponent behavior in a later gameplay instance. The opponent could then respond differently based on the observed play.
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For example, if a player repeatedly lands a particular punch, a boss might move faster to evade it or gain a shield against the weapon the player relies on. If an attack repeatedly causes players to lose, the system might stop the opponent from using that attack. Those are examples in the filing, not results from a working game.
What data could the system use?
The patent allows for learning from one player’s attempts, multiple players’ gameplay data, or a selected group’s data. That creates different possible behaviors: an opponent might respond to an individual’s habits, or reflect tactics and outcomes drawn from a wider pool of players. The filing does not establish which approach Sony would use in a released game.
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The patent discusses reinforcement learning, but it also allows supervised and unsupervised machine-learning methods. It therefore does not describe only one specific AI architecture.
Could the opponent get easier or harder?
Both directions are part of the proposal. The system could reduce difficulty when a player is struggling, for example by removing an attack that repeatedly defeats players. It could also increase difficulty when players beat an opponent too easily, such as by helping the boss evade a tactic that often succeeds. These are adjustments to an opponent’s behavior or the difficulty of defeating it; the filing does not limit the idea to a conventional difficulty-menu setting.
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The patent includes a hypothetical developer-set threshold—beating a boss less than 50 percent of the time—as an example. That is an illustration, not a measured success rate, player study, or recommended threshold.
What player controls and rewards does the patent describe?
The filing describes possible options for players to opt in to adjusted difficulty or choose opponents already altered using other people’s gameplay data. It also gives examples of potential rewards for beating an opponent at a changed difficulty, including trophies, medals, points, in-game currency, or e-commerce currency. These are possibilities described in the patent, not announced controls or promised rewards in a Sony game.
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How does this differ from a released Sony feature?
The U.S. filing, titled “Use of machine learning to increase or decrease level of difficulty in beating video game opponent,” was filed on July 25, 2019, published on July 20, 2021, and later granted as US 11,065,545 B2. The patent record names Sony Interactive Entertainment LLC as the original assignee and lists Matthew A. DeVico in its assignment history. It records a maintenance-fee payment in December 2024; that record alone does not establish the patent’s current enforceability. Google Patents: US 11,065,545 B2.
A patent documents claimed inventions and illustrative embodiments. The patent record and cited coverage do not establish that Sony has deployed this system in a commercial game. The Next Web’s February 2, 2021 article described the idea as adjusting boss behavior when players struggle and noted the possibility of data from one or multiple players; the patent itself also allows difficulty to move in the harder direction. The Next Web’s coverage is a summary, while the patent is the source for the proposed mechanics.
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What the patent does—and does not—show
The filing is a proposal for opponents that can adapt using gameplay data, with options for both personalized and broader data, easier and harder encounters, and possible player choice. It does not name a specific game or demonstrate how effective such a system would be. Neither the patent nor the cited report provides empirical statistics on player preference, performance, adoption, or commercial deployment.
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- Play on more devices Connect using a USB Type-C cable or Bluetooth wireless technology so you can easily play on more devices including Windows PC and Mac computers, Android and iOS mobile phones.
- Elevate PC gaming with advanced features like haptic feedback and adaptive triggers in a range titles
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