This week, the news that Baldur’s Gate 3 developer Larian Studios is using generative AI “at the very early stages” to “explore references” for its concept artists working on its upcoming new game Divinity ignited major controversy, with players and developers alike across the gaming industry criticizing the RPG maker for its adoption of the technology.
Larian’s stance on the matter — as explained by both publishing director Michael Douse and studio founder and CEO Swen Vincke — is that AI is an optional tool its developers can use if they want to, and that “they can experiment with these tools to make their lives easier.” It’s also promised that there will be no AI-generated content in Divinity itself, and compares its use to the way artists might search Google or art books for a reference to look at.
This AI hysteria is the same as when people were smashing steam engines in the 19th century. @LarAtLarian said they were doing something that absolutely everyone else is doing and got an insanely crazy shitstorm.
I’ve even seen someone accuse us of using AI in KCD2. I don’t… https://t.co/l7pNbTxeITDecember 17, 2025
“Larian said they were doing something that absolutely everyone else is doing and got an insanely crazy shitstorm,” Vávra noted. ”I’m no fan of AI generated art, but anyway, it’s time to face reality. AI is here to stay with us. As frightening as it may be, that’s the way it is.”
He went on to voice his frustration with how long making games makes in the modern industry, and said he’s “all for it” whenever AI can handle “the tiresome and boring tasks,” leaving creatives “to focus on the essentials.”
“On the other hand, you know what I hate most about making games? The fact that it takes 7 years and 300 people and tens of millions of dollars to make. And the fact that [Tom McKay, actor of protagonist Henry] had to spend 500 hours in the studio recording completely generic heckling and generic bars,” he continued. “If AI can help me make an epic game in a year with a smaller team like in the old days, I’m all for it.”
Personally, I believe there’s valuable character and artful performance even in simple dialogue lines like “ordering a sausage in a pub or when asking how to get to the castle,” but I digress. Vávra then expressed excitement for the potential of AI to allow you to “ask ANYONE ANYTHING in an RPG,” suggested it threatens the work of programmers the most, and asserted his belief that it could lead to a boom of game development enabled by the low cost of using AI (though he didn’t mention factors like its substantial environmental impact).
“The whole AI revolution may mean the demise of humanity, nobody knows now, but it may also mean that ANYONE, at a fraction of the current cost, will be able to implement virtually any grand idea,” he wrote. “What we saw with boom of indie scene thanks to Steam, we will see with AAA games thanks to AI. Or Skynet will destroy us before all that. Either way, there’s no stopping it.”
“I used AI to translate this text from my native language,” he added. “Let the sh*tstorm begin!”
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