Famous game director Fumito Ueda says his studio does not use AI for 'game development'

In an interview with PC Gamer, Ico, Shadow of the Colossus, and The Last Guardian director Fumito Ueda said that he and studio GenDesign are not using generative AI to develop the upcoming sci-fi adventure Gen Atlas, except as a project management tool.

GenDesign uses AI for tasks such as "coming up with schedules," "summarizing meeting notes," and retrieving information about how to use new tools, the director said. "Everything that is considered game development," however, is "made by humans."

The breadth of possible applications for generative AI has made this kind of disclosure commonplace, where using, as an example, Google Gemini features to help write emails is distinguished from more controversial use cases such as "ideation," localization, or generating concept art, in-game assets, music, or voices.

Steam requires game developers to disclose generative AI use that falls into that most-controversial category, but most game stores do not. The Epic Games Store, where Gen Atlas will be available on PC (it is published by Epic Games), does not require disclosure, and Epic CEO Tim Sweeney has said that Steam's requirement "makes no sense."

But the discourse on social media is enough to conclude that many consumers do care to know if and how generative AI has been used in the development of a game—enough that checking a game's Steam page for a disclosure after its announcement has become a new ritual. That was how we and others spotted that generative AI was used in the development of the upcoming Crazy Taxi remake.