Chinese gaming giant NetEase has issued a statement flatly denying that it’s abandoning generative AI use during game development and telling its studios not to use the technology anymore.
In an interview with Eurogamer yesterday, industry veteran Suda51 claimed that not using AI «started as a NetEase policy for all their companies», and that NetEase «folded» its AI research division before telling their studios «not to use AI in games, to not use it at all».
However, in a statement given to FRVR earlier today, NetEase refuted this claim, flatly saying that it «isn’t true» and that the company «even [has] a GDC talk about AI» coming as part of the developer conference later this year.
As FRVR points out, Where Winds Meet, an MMO released in November and published by NetEase, has generative AI woven into its DNA; it’s in everything from NPC conversations to face generation and more.
Niko Partners research director Daniel Ahmad also confirmed that NetEase is still in favor of generative AI, citing a statement in which the company declares that the situation Suda51 describes «did not occur» and that NetEase has «not published any related policies».
Generative AI remains a hot topic when it comes to game development. Almost 20% of the top new sellers on Steam used gen AI last year, and more than 500 demos in October’s Steam Next Fest promo disclosed usage of generative AI as well.
Studios like Krafton, Netflix, and EA have declared in favor of generative AI, but it’s not being embraced by everyone; BioShock and Judas creator Ken Levine has said he’s «not overly impressed» by the technology, while Manor Lords publisher Hooded Horse requires its developers not to use gen AI.
Whatever the case may be, NetEase isn’t ditching generative AI anytime soon, so if that’s a dealbreaker for you, then it’s safe to continue swearing off the company’s games. Stay tuned for more.
