This morning, the news broke that Larian Studios, developer of Baldur's Gate 3 and the upcoming, just-announced Divinity, is apparently using generative AI behind the scenes. The backlash has been swift, and now Larian founder and game director Swen Vincke is responding to clarify his remarks.
There’s nothing to complain about here. Games require tons of placeholders, in art, dialogue, and code.
They will iterate dozens of times before the final product, and given Larian’s own production standards, there’s no chance anything but the most inconsequential or forgotten items made by an LLM will stay in.
Among the devs responding is a former Larian staffer, environment artist Selena Tobin. “consider my feedback: i loved working at @larianstudios.com until AI,” Tobin writes. “reconsider and change your direction, like, yesterday. show your employees some respect. they are world-class & do not need AI assistance to come up with amazing ideas.”
there’s no chance anything but the most inconsequential or forgotten items made by an LLM will stay in.
Concept art is not a placeholder. It’s part of the creative process. By using AI to generate text and images you already influenced the creative process negatively.
A few hours ago, reports surfaced that Larian are making use of generative AI during development of their new RPG Divinity - specifically, to come up with ideas, produce placeholder text, develop concept art, and create materials for PowerPoint presentations.
The actual quote from Swen is that they use it in the “ideation” phase of concept art. Basically: throwing shit on the wall and seeing what sticks. After that, the process is taken over by any of their almost 30 concept artists on payroll.
Idk but that seems pretty obvious to me from reading the quote by Larian CEO Swen Vincke that they used to, or are still using it to generate or “enhance” concept art and that’s it’s a highly discussed topic within the company?
What he actually said was that they use it in the “ideation” phase of concept art. Basically: throwing shit on the wall and seeing what sticks. After that, the process is taken over by any of their almost 30 concept artists on payroll.
There’s nothing to complain about here. Games require tons of placeholders, in art, dialogue, and code. They will iterate dozens of times before the final product, and given Larian’s own production standards, there’s no chance anything but the most inconsequential or forgotten items made by an LLM will stay in.
https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/larian-boss-responds-to-criticism-of-generative-ai-use-its-something-we-are-constantly-discussing-internally
Concept art is not a placeholder. It’s part of the creative process. By using AI to generate text and images you already influenced the creative process negatively.
The article doesn’t say Larian is using it for concept art.
Those were hypothetical statements from people outside the studio.
Literally the first sentence
You’re right, I missed that
The actual quote from Swen is that they use it in the “ideation” phase of concept art. Basically: throwing shit on the wall and seeing what sticks. After that, the process is taken over by any of their almost 30 concept artists on payroll.
Yes, So AI comes up with the basic concepts.
No, it doesn’t.
Doodles are not concept art. Ideation is not concept art.
Not the powerpoint presentations! Isn’t anything sacred anymore?
Idk but that seems pretty obvious to me from reading the quote by Larian CEO Swen Vincke that they used to, or are still using it to generate or “enhance” concept art and that’s it’s a highly discussed topic within the company?
What he actually said was that they use it in the “ideation” phase of concept art. Basically: throwing shit on the wall and seeing what sticks. After that, the process is taken over by any of their almost 30 concept artists on payroll.