Blizzard Developers Defend Use of Artificial Intelligence

Artificial intelligence, which is developing day by day and gaining new features, has become a technology we use in every aspect of our lives. One of the sectors most affected by this development is, of course, the gaming industry. Blizzard developers touched on these controversial topics in their recent interview with Eurogamer and talked about their strategies for using artificial intelligence.

Blizzard, the developer of long-standing and massive series like World of Warcraft, Hearthstone, Overwatch and Diablo, is one of the game companies that has come under fire for allegedly using artificial intelligence instead of paying real artists. The company, which used AI in a promotional image for the Hearthstone and Diablo Immortal collaboration in July, had previously been accused of using generative AI in an image released for Call of Duty Black Ops 6 .

However, Blizzard officials who participated in the interview argue that they use artificial intelligence to make employees' jobs easier and to avoid tedious work. Let's take a look at the interesting statements made in the interview.

Blizzard Developers Are Pleased with Using Artificial Intelligence

First, according to World of Warcraft’s lead visual development artist Gabriel Gonzalez, what makes WoW feel unique is its hand-drawn feel. However, cosmetics like helmets that change appearance for each race can be easily adapted to different ear shapes and horns with the help of artificial intelligence. Gonzales also says the following on the subject:

“I think the way we think about AI and tools is based on the question of how we can or cannot integrate them, ‘how can we eliminate the simpler parts of the job,’ and how we can free up more time for people to be creative. I can say that our philosophy has always been to create more time for our team to be creative and to eliminate trivial tasks.”

World of Warcraft’s associate design director Maria Hamilton adds that AI cannot replace real artists and developers in creating a narrative that connects with the player community. “I think the stories that really stood out in the last two expansion packs were stories that touched the heart of human experiences, and these were mostly things that people experienced firsthand,” says Hamilton. The company reportedly resorts to this technology so that incredibly talented people don't have to do incredibly boring things and can simply edit and approve the content processed by AI.

Overwatch 2 game director Aaron Keller agrees with his colleagues at Blizzard and adds:

“We are not currently using artificial intelligence to create characters or gameplay. I think Blizzard is known for its handcrafted games and handcrafted worlds. So we try to devote all our creative energy and passion to that. For us, it's more important to get the details right, to ensure the game is as flawless as possible and maintains Blizzard standards, rather than trying to do something as quickly as possible.”

Also, Keller notes that they are aware that the AI industry is growing and that the scope of this technology will increase even further. Although not directly referring to Blizzard games, Keller doesn't fail to mention that we will be “seeing more” of AI.

What are your thoughts on this? Do you think the use of AI by companies can be beneficial for real artists? Let's meet in the comments!

Source:

https://www.eurogamer.net/its-about-incredibly-talented-people-not-doing-incredibly-boring-stuff-blizzard-devs-say-its-possible-to-use-ai-tools-while-still-feeling-handcrafted

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