The video game industry once again discussed the limits of artificial intelligence (AI) after the presentation of Genie 3, a new Google tool capable of generating interactive digital worlds with few commands. In videos that went viral on social media, technology recreated scenes reminiscent of famous titles such as Fortnite, Dark Souls e Grand Theft Auto (GTA), producing interactive clips of around 30 to 60 seconds.
According to Forbes, in one of the most talked about demonstrations, the system starts from a static screenshot previously published in a PC Gamer report and builds, by extrapolation, basic three-dimensional environments, with simple movement and mechanisms. The result resembles an excerpt from Fortnite, but, as the report points out, it was generated from existing material and not created “from scratch”.
Despite the visual impact, industry professionals interviewed by the magazine highlight that the technology is still a long way from producing a complete AAA standard game, which requires years of development, numerous teams, complex narrative, progression systems, balancing and online infrastructure. For them, the clips demonstrate advances in prototyping and experimentation, but do not replace the traditional process of creating great titles.
On the other hand, AI tools have already been incorporated by studios for specific tasks, such as preliminary design, testing or asset generation, but experts emphasize that this occurs within the production companies themselves, and not as a shortcut capable of eliminating entire production cycles.
Even so, the repercussion of the videos was enough to generate nervousness in the financial market, with shares of companies in the gaming sector registering significant drops amid fears that AI could, in the future, profoundly change the dynamics of the industry. Shares of Take-Two Interactive, creator of GTA, fell 10%, online gaming platform Roblox plunged more than 12%, while Unity Software, a developer of video game engines, fell 21%.
Analysts, however, consider that the current stage of technology is still far from representing a direct threat to the business models of large publishers.
Continues after advertising
