Crimson Desert‘s AI art was never meant to be in the final build and was created during the game’s early days, but “unintentionally” made it to release. The developers have apologized for including AI assets and for not disclosing their use of generative technologies, promising to remove all “affected content” and be more transparent in the future.
This was shared by Pearl Abyss via the Crimson Desert account on X, following previous allegations of AI assets and art being in the game. We previously mentioned how a certain painting in the Oakenshield Manor in Hernand was potentially AI-generated, though it turned out there were way more suspected AI-generated assets in the game than we initially thought.
Now, the developers have vowed to remove and replace all AI content in the game, as well as to be more transparent about its development process down the line.
“During development, some 2D visual props were created as part of early-stage iteration using experimental AI generative tools. These assets helped us rapidly explore tone and atmosphere in the earlier phases of production,” the developers wrote.
“However, our intention has always been for any such assets to be replaced, following final work and review by our art and development teams.”
They further added that they “also acknowledge that we should have clearly disclosed our use of AI” and that their plans to replace the assets in question down the line “does not excuse the lack of transparency.”
Finally, they also promised to scan the game thoroughly to remove and replace any remaining AI-generated content in the game.
“We are currently conducting a comprehensive audit of all in-game assets and are taking steps to replace any affected content. Updated assets will be rolled out in upcoming patches,” they said.
Crimson Desert has been experiencing waves of criticism due to its supposedly clunky controls and technical issues, with the AI discussion further fanning the flames of controversy. It is good to see developers taking full responsibility for their actions, as the use of AI, no matter what, should always be disclosed, and assets generated by it should never be allowed to make it into final builds.
I will say that even using it in development isn’t such a great idea, as it takes artists’ minds towards the average, and that ideation should be done manually and without using any artificial tools. While it’s their prerogative, but they should always tell us so we know what to expect.
