EA Has Developed a Dynamic Difficulty System to Keep Gamers Playing Longer

EA has applied to patent a new dynamic difficulty system that aims to predict a payer’s behavior and adjust the challenge of a game accordingly.

The patent was filed in October 2020 and made public on March 25. It details a system, which EA has dubbed ‘Dynamic Difficulty Adjustment,” that will allow different software to automatically adjust the difficulty in subtle ways without the user knowing.

Using data gathered from previous gaming sessions, the system aims to predict the mood and behavior of a user. It can then change how hard a game is to ensure it remains as engaging and enjoyable for the player as possible.

According to the patent, this dynamic difficulty system could even adjust the challenge posed by particular types of enemies in response to how the user has performed against them in the past. The ultimate goal is to keep everyone playing games for longer periods of time.

“Often, games that are too difficult or too easy will result in less enjoyment for a user,” the patent states. “Consequently, the user is likely to play the game less. Thus, one of the challenges of game development is to design a game with a difficulty level that is most likely to keep a user engaged for a longer period of time.”

Despite the system becoming public knowledge, it is currently unknown whether it has been implemented in any games that are in development.