Nintendo Boss Doug Bowser Comments On AI-Generated Games

Summary

AI developments in gaming are causing concerns about potential job loss among developers.
Nintendo acknowledges AI's potential but prioritizes developers and artistry.
Nintendo seems unlikely to replace employees with AI, focusing on traditional game development.

The president of Nintendo of America, Doug Bowser, has weighed in on Nintendo's stance on using AI to create its games. As AI has become more popular, fans and developers alike have expressed both curiosity and concern regarding its rise, and now Nintendo has revealed some of its thoughts on the matter.

Recent developments have led to a great deal of AI-generated content appearing on the web, for better or worse. AI's ability to do things like recreate elements like voices or create new images has led to concerns regarding how it might be used to take shortcuts, with worries of AI potentially slashing game jobs in the process.

Now, Nintendo's Doug Bowser has shared his and Nintendo's thoughts on the matter while speaking with CNBC. Bowser acknowledges that there's a lot of potential with AI, and that, internally, Nintendo is "discussing" how its tools might be able to help the company. However, Bowser says that it's the general belief at Nintendo that it's the developers and their artistry that make its games great, and that Nintendo as a whole has no intention of replacing its employees with AI. From the sound of it, there's a chance that Nintendo could end up utilizing AI in some way to navigate tedious tasks, but the developers aren't going anywhere.

AI's Use in Gaming Has Already Sparked Controversy

While Nintendo's thoughts on AI seem to indicate that it will be limited in its use, if it's used at all, at least for the near future, other companies have already embraced what AI can do for them. However, it hasn't all been received well by the community. For example, there was a backlash when it was revealed that Call of Duty is using AI-generated assets. Players had suspected it for some time, with particular suspicion arising around certain skins and an odd six-fingered hand in an image that appeared during an event.

However, another example is InZOI. InZOI has a built-in AI system that lets users do things like generate objects and textures by typing in information or using a picture. However, Krafton revealed early on that its AI system has been trained on "company-owned copyright issue-free" data, and the AI performs the task on the user's computer without contacting an external server. This helped to allay some fans' concerns, as players have not only been concerned about developers losing jobs, but also about the questionable nature of material other AI systems have been trained with.

Nintendo has regularly come up with unusual ideas for its consoles and games over the decades, and isn't afraid to experiment. However, for now, it sounds like Nintendo will continue to develop games the traditional way, with the expertise and creativity that skilled developers provide.

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