I've finally beaten REDUCED, the AI that I struggled the most to beat, for the first time! At the beginning of the video, you can get a glimpse of the training I did, part of it during my breaks between classes at EPFL, part of it at home (though I should be studying full time, please don't tell my parents).
The score isn't perfect, but I think this is a WR! I haven't searched too long to check that, but I think this is it!
The game speed I played at was at 112%, because 100% is simply too slow for my taste.
I've found that REDUCED has 2 weak points:
- When the ball falls vertically enough, aligned with the AI at the border of the screen, REDUCED just stands there instead of sending the ball to my side
- When I tap on the ball with a specific setup close to the net, REDUCED panics and doesn't react correctly and loses control
In this game, I haven't exploited the first weakness, as I currently don't have a specific method of executing it. The second weakness however, I've kind of managed to execute with training.
When I first started playing against REDUCED, I tried playing safe and simply waited until it lost through its first weakness. However, as it is unpredictable, the games lasted a long time and my focus withered.
Then, in my desperation, for fun I changed my game style and started avoiding jumping, thus eventually finding its second weakness. I realised that I could score more often, but I also suffered losses quicker. I hoped that with training I could overcome that limitation and today I've finally managed!
00:00 Setting replay
00:12 0-0
00:47 0-1
03:13 0-2
03:16 1-2
03:37 1-3
03:59 2-3
06:50 3-3
07:43 3-4
08:07 4-4
09:47 4-5
10:27 4-6
11:13 4-7
13:16 5-7
14:01 5-8
15:46 5-9
19:24 6-9
20:13 6-10
20:17 7-10
22:17 8-10
23:46 8-11
23:48 8-12
24:06 8-13
25:02 8-14
25:33 9-14
25:42 9-15
![](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/mFNh9pDCELQ/maxresdefault.jpg)