The obvious problem is that speed of tactical execution can make up for a lot of strategic thought. The famous example: you can rush a line of siege tanks with zerglings if you can micro them fast enough[0].

[0]:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IKVFZ28ybQs

I hope that in the interest of fair play they'll limit their AI to 300 APM or so. Make it win not on mechanical execution, but on decision making.

Even with that though, They say Starcraft is still 5-10 years out for AI to beat pros: http://www.newyorker.com/tech/elements/deepmind-artificial-i... (ctrl+f for Starcraft at the bottom of this article) -----

Good luck with that.

Starcraft in many ways is a much easier game for an AI to beat top pros at than Go.

They say Starcraft is still 5-10 years out for AI to beat pros: http://www.newyorker.com/tech/elements/deepmind-artificial-i... (ctrl+f for Starcraft at the bottom of this article)

That's great and all, but it's already been done by much more simplistic algorithms by abusing the mechanical nature of the game.

Some units are balanced by the fact that no human can manipulate them to their full potential. Once you remove that restriction, the AI can abuse the speed of execution, acting as a force multiplier that will cover any strategic lackings.

If they want DeepMind to really "play" Starcraft in the traditional sense, i.e. make it win based on decision making and reasoning about the game, then they'll need to artificially rate limit its APM.