Interpretable Reinforcement Learning for Sequential Strategy Prediction in Language-Based Games
Jun Zhao, Jintian Ji, Robail Yasrab, Shuxin Wang, Liang Yu, Lingzhen Zhao · Algorithms · 2025
Accurate and interpretable prediction plays a vital role in natural language processing (NLP) tasks, particularly for enhancing user trust and model transparency. However, existing models often struggle with poor adaptability and limited interpretability when applied to dynamic language prediction tasks such as Wordle. To address these challenges, this study proposes an interpretable reinforcement learning framework based on an Enhanced Deep Deterministic Policy Gradient (Enhanced-DDPG) algorithm. By leveraging a custom simulation environment and integrating key linguistic features word frequency, letter frequency, and repeated letter patterns (rep) the model dynamically predicts the number of attempts needed to solve Wordle puzzles. Experimental results demonstrate that Enhanced-DDPG outperforms traditional methods such as Random Forest Regression (RFR), XGBoost, LightGBM, METRA, and SQIRL in terms of both prediction accuracy (MSE = 0.0134, R2 = 0.8439) and robustness under noisy conditions. Furthermore, SHapley Additive exPlanations (SHAP) are employed to interpret the model’s decision process, revealing that repeated letter patterns significantly influence low-attempt predictions, while word and letter frequencies are more relevant for higher attempt scenarios. This research highlights the potential of combining interpretable artificial intelligence (I-AI) and reinforcement learning to develop robust, transparent, and high-performance NLP prediction systems for real-world applications.