Modeling autobiographical memory for believable agents

Abstract

We present a multi-layer hierarchical connectionist network model for simulating human autobiographical memory in believable agents. Grounded in psychological theory, this model improves on previous attempts to model agents' event knowledge by providing a more dynamic and nondeterministic representation of autobiographical memories. From this model, a Java-based proof-of-concept prototype system was created for use as an enabling technology in video games. This prototype was leveraged in the creation of a Minecraft modification (mod) implementation of the model that is able to demonstrate context-dependent recall and the effects of recency on memory recall. Wider implications of the model in agent and game design are discussed.