Black Ops 7 uses generative AI, confirmed on Steam page

The Steam page for Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 confirms that the team uses generative AI to create assets, and players already know the obvious culprit.

Generative AI has been increasingly appearing in games over the past few years. While this technology started out as a rare occurrence that caused developers to backtrack, more and more big-name companies are adopting it. Call of Duty is one of those big names, as we all know from last year’s Zombie Santa in Black Ops 6.

So it shouldn’t be too surprising that the latest installment of one of the most prolific video game series of all time once again uses generative AI. Black Ops 7’s Steam page confirms the use of AI in in-game assets, and it’s clear where AI is being used.

Black Ops 7 uses AI and what fans think they know

Some calling cards have AI written all over them

On Twitter, Kumesicles shared an image of some of Black Ops 7’s calling cards, sarcastically pointing out the “unique art style” the team was going for. As you can probably tell, they all feature very similar designs to each other, similar to the cartoonish AI style that Grok and other AIs produce.

Black Ops 7’s calling card is full of examples of this, and Kumesicles also pointed out another set with the same Ghibli rip-off style, only this time with a zombie theme. Another in-game calling card depicts a savage character who also appears to have been generated by AI, suggesting that it was also used there.

As someone who has played Call of Duty for years, it’s disappointing to see a once-proud calling card fall so far.

While there are some calling cards that appear to be original rather than AI-generated, it’s still disappointing to see one of the biggest gaming franchises on the planet use AI so blatantly and in so many of its calling cards. However, at this point it has become pretty clear that the situation is not going to change anytime soon.