Ceptre: A language for modeling generative interactive systems

Abstract

We present a rule specification language called Ceptre, intended to enable rapid prototyping for experimental game mechanics, especially in domains that depend on procedural generation and multi-Agent simulation. Ceptre can be viewed as an explication of a new methodology for understanding games based on linear logic, a formal logic concerned with resource usage.We present a correspondence between gameplay and proof search in linear logic, building on prior work on generating narratives. In Ceptre, we introduce the ability to add interactivity selectively into a generative model, enabling inspection of intermediate states for debugging and exploration as well as a means of play. We claim that this methodology can support game designers and researchers in designing, anaylzing, and debugging the core systems of their work in generative, multi-Agent gameplay. To support this claim, we provide two case studies implemented in Ceptre, one from interactive narrative and one from a strategy-like domain.