[lloeki]

> your average company or publisher does not care to fund AI beyond enemies that can throw themselves into your gun barrel

Ironically the game where I've seen the most convincing AI currently is the Forza Motorsport series (increasing with each release). There is nothing short of impressive in seeing opponent drivers trying to pressure you to fault, intentionally breaking on you way after the apex just when you are about to floor it, showing excess of confidence throwing them out of the track, or reacting to pressure you put on them (you can literally see some panicking or getting aggressive in their driving), learning to clock faster times lap after lap and race after race, and even from your own lines. Sure they're nowhere near a real human, and with experience you can land better times than the AI and outsmart them, but there's plenty of physics and graphics going on already and there are trade-offs to be made.