Steamworks Development - AI Content on Steam
Steamworks Development - AI Content on Steam
Back in June, we shared that while our goal continues to be shipping as many games as possible on Steam, we needed some time to learn about the fast-moving and legally murky space of AI technology, especially given Steam's worldwide reach. Today, after spending the last few months learning more abou...
Key points:
- new questions for devs submitting their games (about pre- and live-generated AI content, guardrails preventing generation of anything illegal)
- disclaimers on game's store page
- new system for reporting illegal content straight from in-game overlay
I have a very strong gut feeling that some 98% of all games mades "mostly with AI" will be shit, cheap shovelware.
So nothing will really change? Seriously though, I'm just glad this stuff will be properly marked so people can make an informed decision.
Isn't that practically the same as all games in general?
Disappointing, but somehow inevitable.
"This will enable us to release the vast majority of games that use it. "
So it sounds like the floodgates are opening and now it'll be up to the users to sort out the flood of BS. None of this is truly surprising, while I'm not cynical enough to suggest their temporary stance was a quick way to score some easy points with the anti-AI crowd, we all kind of have to acknowledge that this technology is coming and Steam is too big to be left behind by it. It stands to reason.
I also understand the reasoning for splitting pre/live-generated AI content, but it's all going to go in the same dumpster for me regardless.
I certainly think it's possible to use pre-generated AI content in an ethical and reasonable way when you're committed to having it reach a strong enough stylistic and artistic vision with editors and artists doing sufficient passes over it. The thing is, the people already developing in that way would continue to do so because of their own standards, they won't be affected by this decision. The people wanting to use generative AI to pump out quick cash grabs are the ones that will latch onto it, I can't think of any other base this really appeals to.
Valve seems to see the amount of shovelware games released on steam last year as rookie numbers
That’s a decent middle ground, let the minority with the issue with it be able to avoid it while letting devs use the latest tools.
I can think of one legitimate use: character portraits in RPGs. I strongly doubt that there are more.
texture work. you can generate seamless repeating textures pretty quickly
Dope. I can't wait to have meaningful generative content in a game I play. Will it be perfect? Nah probably not for another 10 years to be honest. But it's a start. It'll be nice to not have to rely on a greedy publisher to make a sequel to a beloved game series especially when they're taking in billions a year from microtransactions. Bring on the human-serving AI
Unsurprising. With how ubiquitous AI content is becoming, it was only a matter of time until the rules were relaxed.
Pretty cool. I almost had to start liking Epic Store for not having such a dumb stance. The disclaimer on games using generative content is weird, but it's a solid step forward.
Is it really dumb?
AI generated content has a lot of unanswered legal questions around it which can lead to a lot of headache with moderation and possibility of illegal content showing up (remember that not only "well meaning" devs will use these tools). It's seems reasonable for a company to try minimize the risk.
As for disclaimer, it will allow people make an informed decision - not sure what's wrong with that.
AI generated content has a lot of unanswered legal questions around it which can lead to a lot of headache with moderation and possibility of illegal content showing up (remember that not only “well meaning” devs will use these tools). It’s seems reasonable for a company to try minimize the risk.
There were never any unanswered legal questions would prevent you from being able to use generated assets in a game. That's why Valve's old stance was so odd. I'm not sure what you mean by the possibility for illegal content, can you elaborate?