While artificial intelligence techniques have been used in the video game development process for many years, the emergence of generative AI represents a “game changer” that could revolutionize the way video games are produced.
Traditionally, game developers have used AI to create new environments in immersive game worlds or generate in-game behavior for non-playable characters, but the creative power of generative AI opens up many new use cases that go far beyond these elements.
How Generative AI Aids Game Development
To understand how generative AI will impact video game development, we need to consider the different elements that go into the process of creating a new game and how technology can improve the way these processes are carried out.
One of the first steps in creating a new video game is creating the game world, and generative AI can help create realistic looking virtual terrains and worlds, not only faster, but in a way that increases the visual appeal of the virtual world.
The technology also powers procedural generation in game engines, creating vast, complex and unpredictable environments with enhanced randomness, ensuring a unique experience in each game session. Additionally, it has the potential to streamline the creation of 3D models and characters, shortening the time to design and realize realistic, intelligent in-game characters.
Generative AI has the ability to synthesize human voices, potentially making narration of video game characters more diverse and realistic, and these voices can be translated into different languages, so users around the world can have the same experience.
Ambient soundscapes and music can also be created entirely using generative AI, dynamically adjusting to change based on in-game events, heightening the emotional impact for gamers. Similarly, the technology can recreate more realistic sound effects, making games more immersive.
Another use of generative AI is dialogue generation: this technology can help create more realistic and varied dialogue that changes every time a user interacts with an in-game character, and can also be used to make characters more consistent, enriching the storytelling aspects of a game.
Finally, generative AI can help with more dynamic storytelling by creating non-linear storylines that evolve based on player choices, making every game a unique and personalized experience.
Assassin's Creed developer Jade Raymond has said he will employ generative AI in his big-budget games, saying the technology will dramatically speed up the pace of game development and reduce costs for game studios.
Video Game Testing
In addition to the creative aspects of generative AI, the technology can help enhance processes like bug fixing, quality assurance, and in-game testing. For example, it can automatically detect defects in a game and rank them based on their impact on gameplay. With its predictive capabilities, generative AI can analyze data to forecast issues that may arise in new games, offering developers the opportunity to fix them beforehand.
Generative AI also allows developers to create multiple bots (simulated players) to test gameplay. Each bot is programmed to play the game differently. In this way, the technology helps developers identify areas where gamers may get stuck or parts of the game that are too easy to complete. Using these insights, developers can create a more satisfying gaming experience.
Finally, it could also help with revenue generation, as it could identify factors that motivate human players to spend money on in-game accessories and weapons to progress through the game.
Real-world impact
Generative AI in game development is already seeing results. One notable example is from , a Web3 technology provider that has built and produced a lot for Star Trek fans, among many other projects.
is a generative media intelligence system that brings in-game assets to market in seconds, allowing creators to upload image and video content and transform it into complex, immersive video game experiences that previously required weeks or months to create using time-consuming 3D modeling techniques.
In a showcase for the dropp platform, droppGroup demonstrated its efficiency by creating a “Cultural Universe” for the Saudi Arabian Ministry of Culture – the world’s first government-run national metaverse powered by dropp’s innovative AI system.
“Cultural Universe is essentially a digital twin showcasing Saudi Arabia's rich history and contemporary cultural events, and is a tangible expression of the country's ambition to drive technological advancements and cultural preservation. Drop's pivotal role in connecting cutting-edge technology and cultural stories demonstrates the company's dedication to building bridges in the digital age.
Metaverse , an avatar creation platform, is using generative AI to speed up character creation, and with a recent beta release, it now allows Metaverse users to design their own clothing for their virtual world avatars.
Some developers are leveraging generative AI models to improve upon traditional AI models used in game development. AI has actually been used in video games for a long time, for example to enhance the behavior of non-playing characters (NPCs). A company called says it is using generative AI to enable it to respond in a more realistic way based on what users say. The company recently showed off this capability by creating , which responds based on what kids want for Christmas.
Meanwhile, Chinese game developer NetEase has announced that it will adopt ChatGPT for the mobile version of its popular massively multiplayer online game, Justice Online.
Another example is Ninja Theory, which is said to be using generative AI for its in-game characters, with its models said to be powered by the open-source Altered AI voice library.
And Ubisoft, the creator of the Ghost Recon and Assassin's Creed series, has developed a tool called Ghostwriter to script short phrases for NPCs to utter when triggered by events during gameplay. Ubisoft says it aims to use the technology to create drafts of dialogue for in-game characters that will then be picked and polished by human scriptwriters.
A valuable tool for game creators
While it remains to be seen whether generative AI will completely replace the human artistry, creativity, imagination, and ingenuity required to develop blockbuster games, the technology is already making inroads in the industry in a variety of ways. Generative AI can drastically reduce the cost of game development while simultaneously speeding up and enhancing the creative aspect, and these unique capabilities will make it a valuable tool for nearly all video game publishers in the future.
