Microsoft Patent Allows for AI, or Another Human, to Swoop in And Help Complete Your Games

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Microsoft has patented a method for an AI model to take control of your game, should you need a helping hand.

The idea, which Microsoft initially registered back in 2024, is designed for players who might be stuck in a video game. Patent documentation dug up by Tech4gamers shows a Clippy-style pop-up that suggests another player who can “take over your game.”

Players would be able to see the name and identity of this player, as well as a rating for how helpful they had been in the past. Associated notes confirm that Microsoft is exploring the idea of this player either being human — another Xbox gamer keen to help — or, alternatively, an AI model.

While the other player (real or not) is in control of your game, another image suggests you’ll be able to chat with them to share advice and receive further explanation behind what they’re doing — handy if the solution involves some kind of process not immediately apparent just from watching on-screen. It’s not too dissimilar from the Copilot AI already available in the Xbox app.

The patent discusses the need to accurately track who was playing when an achievement is unlocked, and also to ensure human helpers are paired with players in the same age range — so you don’t have a scenario where a child is able to jump in and help slice up zombies in Resident Evil Requiem, for example.

Other features include the ability to pull the plug on this assistance at any point, and also to ultimately choose whether to continue on from where the assistant has left you, or return back to the point where you previously relinquished control.

If all of this sounds familiar, that’s because PlayStation has patented a similar-sounding system, albeit a more simplistic one that relies on displaying an AI “ghost” player for you to follow. Both Microsoft and Sony regularly patent all manner of gaming ideas that never ultimately come to pass, though it’ll be interesting to see if this concept bears fruit.

Last month, Microsoft’s newly-installed gaming CEO Asha Sharma responded to concerns around her AI background and said she had “no tolerance for bad AI” as she begins her reign in charge of Xbox.

Image credit: Microsoft.

Tom Phillips is IGN’s News Editor. You can reach Tom at tom_phillips@ign.com or find him on Bluesky @tomphillipseg.bsky.social