author: Michal Harat
The Last of Us and Uncharted Creator in Firing Line of Devs Criticism. They Want to See Neil Druckmann Use AI to 'Push the Boundaries of Storytelling in Games'
Controversial statements made by the director of The Last of Us about AI haven't been well received by some industry insiders. Among others, David Gaider, co-creator of the Dragon Age series, spoke critically.
In the latest interview given by Neil Druckmann, there were many mentions about using AI in game development. The dev of The Last of Us emphasized the "revolutionary" nature of this technology and even stated that it would allow "to push the boundaries of storytelling in games." However, some people in the industry criticized the developer's positive stance on artificial intelligence.
Co-creator of Dragon Age criticizes AI again
A critical voice regarding Druckmann's position on the use of AI-based tools was expressed by, among others: David Gaider, an RPG veteran more widely associated with Baldur's Gate 2 and the Dragon Age series. This is not the first time Gaider has expressed his aversion to artificial intelligence. He completely criticized the boss of Electronic Arts on a similar occasion recently.
Gaider primarily focused on the part of Druckmann's statement concerning writing dialogues and creating characters. It's worth quoting:
AI will allow us to create nuanced dialogues and characters, expanding creative possibilities. However, it's crucial to precisely direct these tools to achieve the intended outcomes.
Druckmann reduces everything to directing, suggesting that with the right "guidance", AI will be able to handle what passionate and creative writers have been doing so far, according to the co-creator of Dragon Age. As Gaider points out:
That all those people [...] are all storytellers, at heart, and they love games. They're not an impediment to be cast aside for an AI Yes Man.
Gaider commented on his statement by saying that AI is not "some magic wand."
When one meme expresses more than a thousand words
Not everyone was as expressive as David Gaider. Josh Sawyer, the director of Fallout: New Vegas, posted an iconic meme on X as a response to the interview mentioned above. Apparently disgusted José Mourinho expresses more than a thousand words.
Another noteworthy criticism is the statement of Nessa Cannon, a screenwriter currently working on the Star Trucker game. The writer said that she would love to see a video in which Druckmann demonstrates how he uses AI to "push the boundaries of storytelling in games." In her opinion, the content generated by, for instance, ChatGPT is the result of combining the contents of "writing manuals" and "stolen texts" - and there is nothing "revolutionary" about it.
