Gamers by now realize that the application and adoption of generative AI in games is being forced in by companies regardless of how players and devs feel about it – and they’re often doing so on the sly. In fact, it’s arguable that the bigger the corp, the more likely this will be attempted. So in that framing, the fact that Pearl Abyss’ recently launched former MMO turned single-player RPG Crimson Desert has been found to have gen AI assets shouldn’t be a surprise, but it’s also still disappointing.
Players began calling out several discoveries of AI-generated assets within the RPG, with most bringing up the fact that the use of AI tools to develop the game was never disclosed to players by Pearl Abyss, or that the studio boasted that the game was a hand-crafted experience.
Pearl Abyss released a statement yesterday, admitting that gen AI was used but also claiming the assets that were found in-game were only ever meant to be temporary.
“During development, some 2D visual props were created as part of early-stage iteration using experimental AI generative tools. These assets helped us rapidly explore tone and atmosphere in the earlier phases of production. However, our intention has always been for any such assets to be replaced, following final work and review by our art and development teams, with work that aligned with our quality standards and creative direction.”
The studio further promised that it would perform “a comprehensive audit of all in-game assets” in order to replace AI-gen assets with things made by actual humans; it also apologized for its “lack of transparency” about the use of AI tools.
Meanwhile, the game has gotten several patches to address issues related to mechanics, performance, and crashes, while also selling two million units and earning itself some currently mostly positive reviews on Steam after its debut was initially mixed. Pearl Abyss’ stock, however, has not fully recovered.
