Artificial Intelligence has been ubiquitous in the video game industry for decades. But Generative AI is a new tool in the game developer’s arsenal as it is expected to revolutionise game development besides the criticisms. AI technologies, such as Machine Learning, Computer Vision, etc., enhance in-game behaviours of the Non-Playing Character (NPC) and deliver enriched gaming environments. These NPCs allow gamers to play with them in a multiplayer game if they don’t want to wait for other human players too. For example, in the renowned game Call of Duty, the mobile version allows gamers to play a ‘Practice vs AI’ mode to train and earn skills by playing against bots. Here the Machine Learning tools observe the strategy and skill of the player during their previous matches and update the gameplay according to their approach. As voice chat has already become common in games, which helps the players communicate in real-time during multiplayer games, tools with Natural Language Processing are gaining more significance.  

How Generative AI enhance the gaming experience

The famous chatbot, ChatGPT has already topped the trends within months after its launch, raising the popularity of Generative AI worldwide. Game developers use it mainly during their development processes to generate text and art assets. Generative AI allows game developers to generate content accordingly so that gamers can enjoy fresh content rather than repetitive ones. Games like Minecraft have already adopted this technique which never bores the gamer. Minecraft’s competitor Roblox is also reportedly testing a similar tool that enables them to build items using natural language than codes.

Scenario, a startup by Emmanuel de Maistre and Herve Nivon, recently opened their Generative AI platform for artists and game developers to create their image generators trained according to the specific style of their games. “Digital artists must be empowered to train their own generators, have control over their art direction and work alongside, not against, AI. No GenAI product delivers these critical elements today; Scenario exists to deliver all of them. Generative AI will be as transformational for game development as Photoshop has been for digital photography, but it cannot get there without the same commitment to consistency and ease of use,” De Maistre said in a statement. De Maistre mentioned that Generative AI products like DALL-E 2 inspired them to launch Scenario. He added, “The gaming industry is the best fit for Generative AI as the game developers and artists have to continually produce content while time and resources are often limited.”

Looking forward to the future

Generative AI will be a boon for the game industry, enabling them to create personalised content for their users. The giant companies will be investing more in the no-code AI tools that use natural language prompts than complex codes. Another significant challenge the industry faces is that creating and deploying 3D models in games are extremely resource intensive. Hence using Generative AI can save time and resources. It will accelerate the creation of game prototypes and reduce the testing time. Similarly, using generative models like NVIDIA’s Get3D aid, the developers create 3D models from a text prompt. OpenAI’s Point-E directly generates 3D point clouds that can be easily imported into 3D workspaces.

Though people are still sceptical about the inclusion of Generative AI in game development, most game developers have a positive approach towards the integration. Developers like Ready Player Me, a metaverse 3D avatar creation platform, recently launched its trial Generative AI creator. Some developers have used Generative AI to enhance conventional in-game AI as well. The company Inworld is encouraging developers to use Generative AI for creating AI characters with unique personalities. They have already used it to create a demo version of a virtual Santa Claus who responds to children’s interaction which caught the attention of the internet. They also plan to use this technology to give their NPCs in the game more dialogue while responding to the players. The games like Slay the Spire use Generative AI to randomise levels of the game, which makes the gamer experience every level unique and different, enhancing its replayability.

Though the use of Generative AI in the gaming industry is in the initial stage, it is competent enough to change how game developers develop a game from scratch. The next-generation games are more likely to be Generative AI-integrated compared to the present ones.

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