Limit Value in Zero-Sum Stochastic Games with Vanishing Stage Duration and Public Signals

Abstract: We consider the behaviour of $\lambda$-discounted zero-sum games as the discount factor $\lambda$ approaches 0 (that is, the players are more and more patient), in the context of games with stage duration. In stochastic games with stage duration h, players act at times 0, h, 2h, and so on. The payoff and leaving probabilities are proportional to h. When h tends to 0, such discrete-time games approximate games played in continuous time. The asymptotic behavior of the values (when both $\lambda$ and h tend to 0) was already studied in the case of stochastic games with perfect observation of the state and in the state-blind case.We consider the same question for the case of stochastic games with imperfect observation of the state. More precisely, we consider a particular case of such games, stochastic games with public signals, in which players are given at each stage a public signal that depends only on the current state. Our main result states that there exists a stochastic game with public signals, with no limit value (as the discount factor $\lambda$ goes to 0) if stage duration is 1, but with a limit value when stage duration h and discount factor $\lambda$ both tend to 0. Informally speaking, it means that the limit value in discrete time does not exist, but the limit value in continuous time (i.e. when h approaches 0) exists. Such a situation is impossible in the case of stochastic games with perfect observation of the state.