i have had a interest going way back to before microcomputers. but i never went anywhere with it.
i think a.l.i.c.e may be the way to go. i have seen some bots in second life and i believe that are a.l.i.c.e based. of course they cant see so they are limited. i also ran across
http://http://www.personalityforge.com/. once again, it is web base.
anyway, there are already things that people can use (even MUDs).