The introduction of increasingly sophisticated AI-powered tools is causing major friction in the workplace. According to a World Economic Forum report, nearly a fifth of all US workers worry that artificial intelligence will make them obsolete. Dubbed “FOBO” for “fear of obsolescence,” this AI anxiety is spreading like wildfire in countless industries, fueled by alarming reports showing that the technology could replace close to 300 million full-time jobs. The fear of AI disrupting employment on a large scale is pervasive in the gaming industry amidst extensive layoffs and controversies.
The emergence of AI-boosted gaming development
Many triple-A studios have made no secret of their AI enthusiasm, banking on the technology to streamline their development process. In 2023, Ubisoft acknowledged its use of artificial intelligence, albeit as a mechanism to free up time for devs to focus on more fastidious tasks.
The gaming giant rolled out Ghostwriter, an AI writing tool meant to generate drafts of barks – short lines of NPC dialogue often shouted in the background, triggered by a specific player action or in-game situation.
Defending its AI stance, Ubisoft claimed that Ghostwriter was not designed to replace scriptwriters but to alleviate their workload, effectively giving them more time to polish a game’s narrative. However noble these intentions, many other cases have shaken up the gaming world, whose ethical implications are causing concern.
Earlier this year, several gaming voice actors took a stand against a controversial deal regarding AI-generated voices, which have already been used in games like Naruto x Boruto. Uncertainty is rampant among game developers, many of whom suspect their bosses might see AI as a means to cut costs.
Activision: a case in point of the infiltration of AI in the gaming space
Activision Blizzard has come under fire after its buyout from Microsoft, which led to the layoff of 1,900 employees. In the context of a record-breaking $69 billion takeover, this wave of staff cuts seemed especially tone-deaf, but it was only one of many similar cutbacks. In 2023, the gaming industry reached a grim milestone, leaving 10,000 programmers, artists, and sound designers unemployed. 2024 doubled down on that devastating trend, surpassing 2023’s total in just six months.
Although AI might not be directly responsible for this development, as gaming studios are no strangers to structural hire-and-layoff cycles, whispers of Activision approving the use of Stable Diffusion and Midjourney for concept art arguably rubbed salt in the wound.
Recently, the company was also blasted for allegedly selling an AI-generated cosmetic pack for Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3, despite claiming that generative AI would not be employed for final game assets. As reported by Wired, an employee working for Activision said that his games division had to sign up for AI training – a move that may have been perceived as contrary to their professional interests.
Is artificial intelligence the bad guy in the gaming sector?
Household names like CD Projekt have been vocal about their refusal to replace human assets with AI systems. The heads of independent studios like Strange Scaffold have shared their concerns about AI stories turning games soulless when unfiltered through a layer of human intent.
Still, AI is too complex an issue to be depicted in only a negative light. Almost 90% of all gaming companies have been using artificial development during development to generate character designs or storyboards. Many are trying to strike a fair balance between technological advances and the human factor, such as Riot Games exploring in-house generative AI systems that align with the studio’s core values.
Meanwhile, leaders in the iGaming industry have been relying on AI to beef up their cybersecurity and install effective counter-measures against fraudulent activities. Hence, players can shoot their shots online without fearing their data might be compromised.
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Final Words
The widespread use of AI in gaming leaves many tech observers skeptical, while developers increasingly fear for their jobs. Creative careers are on the frontline of this technological revolution. With that said, experimental attempts at creating video games entirely through AI have failed, highlighting the crucial importance of human oversight and creative supervision.