Larian Studios Clarifies Its Application of AI Tools for New Project

The developer behind acclaimed role-playing games like Baldur's Gate 3 and Divinity: Original Sin just teased its new project, creating immense hype within the player base. However, recent statements from the company's co-founder have brought a new dimension to the discussion, touching on the studio's approach toward AI tools.

A Tool for Ideation, Not Replacement

In a recent message, Swen Vincke outlined that the developer is employing AI technology for particular supporting purposes. These include developing presentation materials, producing initial artistic references, and creating draft copy.

Crucially, Vincke emphasized that the end assets in the game will be created solely by real creatives. "Our team is writing all the content ourselves," he said.

We are actively expanding our team of storytellers and are busily forming dedicated writer rooms.

As concept art is being explicitly mentioned — we right now have over twenty concept artists and have job openings for additional creatives.

Each initiative we do is supplementary and aimed at letting our team spend more time on the creative process.

Any machine learning application applied correctly is a boost to a developer's workflow, not a substitute for their talent.

Addressing Concerns and Clarifying the Vision

The revelation of using AI at first generated unease among some the fanbase. In response, Vincke offered more elaboration on social media.

"Our team utilizes machine learning to gather inspiration, just like we use Google and reference books," he explained. "During the initial ideation stages we use it as a basic framework for layout which we then substitute with hand-crafted illustrations."

He continued, "Larian brings on talent for their inherent skill, not for their willingness to replicate what a machine suggests."

Key Areas of AI Integration

Vincke had earlier detailed the team's targeted strategy to this technology, categorizing its use into key pillars:

• Streamlining Repetitive Work: This encompasses motion capture cleaning, voice editing, and Larian-specific work like adapting animations for different models.
• Rapid Prototyping ('White Boxing'): Using systems to quickly build basic versions of mechanics to test concepts ahead of complete implementation.
• Long-Term Aspirations: Exploring how AI could in the future create innovative gameplay, especially in managing player-driven narratives in a detailed game universe.

He explicitly noted that key artistic areas — including writing — are not departments where the team is reducing artistic talent. In fact, Larian is recruiting more in these precise fields.

"We are not shipping a game with any AI components, nor looking at cutting teams to substitute them with artificial intelligence," Vincke concluded.