A few hours ago, reports surfaced that Larian are making use of generative AI during development of their new RPG Divinity – specifically, to come up with ideas, produce placeholder text, develop concept art, and create materials for PowerPoint presentations. In the same Bloomberg article, Larian CEO Swen Vincke sought to balance these revelations with the promise that Divinity won’t directly contain any AI-generated materials, commenting that “everything is human actors; we’re writing everything ourselves.”
As with generative AI in gamedev generally, the disclosure has sparked anger online – anger that is all the sharper for the love that has hitherto been directed at Larian, creators of amazing fantasy RPGs with sexy bears and demons. Inevitably, some of the outrage is from people who appear minimally familiar with game development, and in a few cases, haven’t read the report in full (unhelpfully, it’s behind Bloomberg’s paywall). Some of it, though, is from other game developers.
It’s great to see Larian engaging in discussions about the use of generative AI in their development process. It’s an important topic that many in the industry are navigating. Looking forward to seeing how this evolves!
Absolutely! It’s encouraging that they’re being thoughtful about the implications of AI in their projects. This kind of transparency can really help build trust with the gaming community as they navigate new technologies.