New AI In Swordsman VR Breathes Life Back Into This VR Sword Fighting Game

So, Swordsman VR just released a new experimental update that brings big improvements to the combat AI in the game. This new experimental AI feature makes them much more responsive in combat and brings the enemies in Swordsman VR much closer to the feeling of sword fighting an actual opponent.

When I was fighting the improved AI opponents I felt that they defended themselves much better than they used to. Despite the fact that a lot of their attacks still seem to be predetermined animations, they definitely still responded with their attacks in response to what you were doing in a much better way.

An AI Samurai blocking an incoming attack in Swordsman VR.

For instance, if you would go for a risky lunge trying to stab an enemy under the armpit, they would counterattack if they weren't in a good position to defend your thrust. Otherwise, unless their sword was way out of position, they would often be able to at least attempt to block or repost your attacks. This is much different from how fighting the AI in Swordsman VR used to feel and play.

Once you got the hang of the game, the enemies felt a lot like punching bags, where the only challenge was to not get hit when they attacked, and then stab them immediately. Their defense was terrible. Now, their ability to have a back and forth with you when you're fighting makes them feel a lot more like an actual opponent. Their ability to reliably block your incoming attacks makes them both more formidable and more interesting.

With this AI update, Swordsman VR feels a lot more like actual fencing. You'll attack, and if it's not a very good attack, especially when your opponent is ready to block you, they'll often swipe your blade out of the way.

The AI have become much better at defending themselves. After they block, they'll often riposte with an attack of their own, and sometimes they'll stay defensive. Each sword fight is more situational, and not as predictable as it used to be.

There are still some problems with the AI reacting to more dishonorable tactics, however. Rushing in with a shield to block off their sword arm while wildly stabbing them up close still worked too well. It would have been better if the AI backed off if you got too close and they were clearly at a disadvantage.

Bullying an enemy with a shield in Swordsman VR

So, it's definitely not perfect yet. Still, the enemies have a much better defense, they'll see your attacks coming, and they'll also attack you when you're not ready for it a lot more. These are all great improvements. However I did run into a bug where the bosses would basically blow up the moment I engaged them, and I would win automatically. Bugs are to be expected with big changes, though this was a very bad bug. Undoubtedly it will be fixed soon.

The one big complaint I have so far is how enemies defend their legs. I still felt like the enemies did not do a great job defending their legs, which, if you've played Swordsman VR, you know is their primary weak point. The one strategy that I could always use without fail would be to duck really low, and just stab the AI in the legs constantly.

Maybe the AI would advance a little and get a swipe on the back of your head, but when they're trying to block down low, it's like they can't quite cover all of their legs and their feet. The legs are still a major weak point for the enemies. They should have weak points that you can exploit, sure, but you should only be able to exploit them under circumstances that you create to make the fight more favorable to you.

You shouldn't be able to always stab them in the legs so easily. So, they definitely need their defense beefed up there. Still, the fact that they can defend themselves much better and have a back and forth riposte, parry, attack, lunge, exchange with you, at all, is a very marked improvement for this game.

I've always enjoyed Swordsman VR, but after playing through it and defeating all of the bosses, it kind of lost a lot of its luster, because by then you've mastered the game. You could defeat the enemies easily once you figured out how stupid they were. There was nothing new to any of the fights.

Enabling the Combat AI Update makes Swordsman VR a lot more fun

If Sinn Studio continues working on this and continues improving their enemy AI, then they really achieve their goal of having the best Singleplayer sword fighting experience in Virtual Reality.

This update shows a lot of potential for the direction that Sinn Studio is bringing Swordsman VR. I really hope they can bring this game continually forward to the next level. I cannot stress enough that this update is incredible. It's really given me a lot more love for the game, and it's really made me want to play through it again.

After they finish improving the AI though, it would be really great if they took another long look at the campaign and how the levels and progression are structured.

Maybe try to make the game more of an RPG than it already is. There's some great RPG elements in there already. There's already a progression system, but it feels a little boring to go through after you've already done it once. It would be really nice to see a Single Player campaign rework in Swordsman.

This could be something similar to Grimlord or Legendary Tales. That would be really nice to see built on top of the improvements that they're making to the fighting AI. If they bring it just a little bit further, it will definitively be the best single player VR sword fighting game out there.