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Originally Posted by That Guy
except its not. if you've got 64, i gaurantee at least 20 suck, and you can win by just picking on them. MMOs are even worse because you're skill level is deeply related to time played (or money used to buy stuff). I've done that and I find UT bots FAR more challenging than most of the humans i've met. The guys that compete for money are generally pretty good, but they rely on memorizing maps and playing 8 hours a day to get there, and i'm just not willing to do that... that's boring. The best games tend to be old ones like total annihilation, alien soldier, civ, xcom, BG/2/planescape etc.
Some new games (like rome total war or unreal tournament) do have good AI though. UT is still path based, so it depends entirely on the mapper, but the illusion works well and at max it's better than 99% of human players.
Huge multiplayer games aren't new though. neverwinter nights (the original one) was up in 1987/88 or I played hundred years war on aol (with 300+ other people) as far back as 1994.
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The difference in playing humans is that unless you're playing a complete F-in' retard, they'll learn. Sure, you might pick some "n00bs" off over and over, but they'll catch on and learn from their mistakes.
I'm not talking about twitch skills. Yeah, AI can jump super fast and can be given perfect aim, but that's boring to play against because the only way to win is just "be faster." Games like BF2 actually de-emphasize twitch skills in favor of teamwork and strategy. Watching a dozen defenders hold a building against attack, and then watching the attackers adjust their tactics, use surprise, diversions, etc. is truly a great gaming moment. AI is decades away from being that intelligent.
"Great AI" is currently when the computer opponent will seek cover or toss a grenade around a corner. Occasionaly the really good AI will try to flank you. Human players can recognize overall strategies and apply the necessary team tactics to adapt. I'd love to see the current crop of AI recognize that it's being dominated from the air, organize an attack on an airfield effectively utilizing armor, air and infantry assets, secure the airfield and hold it from counterattack. Even if it WERE able to do this now, a human player could eventually recognize a pattern in the AI programming and exploit it. Humans can adapt - AI can't (yet).
Games like X-Com (one of my all time favorites) and Civ are great games in their own right, but at this point I like them more for nostalgia's sake as opposed to the challenge offered by the AI.