Like every other industry in the tech realm, AI is transforming game development too.
In a recent Google Cloud survey, which included over 615 game developers from different countries, 90% of them admitted to using AI in their work.
The question is, how are they using it? And what impact will AI have on the future of game development?
So we asked them directly.
The answer is not straightforward and has many nuances to consider.
How Is AI Used in Game Development
Since the release of ChatGPT in 2022, AI has become widely used across many different fields. And game development is one of them.
According to Google, game developers use AI for a variety of tasks, including:
- Speeding up testing (47%)
- Localizing and translating game content (45%)
- Improve coding generation (44%)
Overall, the striking majority of developers who use AI do so for one main reason: to reduce repetitive tasks (95%).
However, things change when we take a look at the creative side of game development.
Only 36% of developers say that they use AI for design, animation and dialogue writing.
In another survey conducted by Gamedev.js, the number was even lower:
- 22.5% of developers use AI to generate graphic design assets; and
- 11.7% use it for creating sound or music.
What Game Developers Told Us
To confirm these findings, we asked the communities of game developers on Reddit and LinkedIn directly.
The general sentiment is of cautious acceptance: most developers who use AI are very clear about what it should and shouldn’t be used for, with strong boundaries around core creative work.
Analyzing the answers to our question, these are the results:
| Reddit (Based on 44 comments) |
|---|
| They don’t use AI and strongly oppose it: ~30% |
| They make a selective use of AI: ~60% |
| They make frequent use of AI: ~10% |
| LinkedIn (Based on 212 votes) |
|---|
| Don’t use AI at all: 37% |
| Only use AI for basic tasks: 24% |
| Use AI frequently: 24% |
| They find AI essential to the game development process: 15% |
The tasks that are more frequently handled with the help of AI are:
- Debugging and code review
- Placeholder code
- Temporary creative assets during development
- Visual references for animations, mood boards
- Learning/education: understanding difficult concepts, debugging help
- Documentation: code comments, meeting summaries, technical docs
On the other hand, game developers strongly oppose the use of AI in these cases:
- Creating a game from scratch using only AI
- Using AI for core game design decisions
- Using AI for narrative voice, dialogues or music: it’s described as flat and less interesting than original music and real voices
- Production code
AI is commonly used in game development, but mainly for repetitive tasks. Developers still prefer handling the creative side of business themselves.
AI Tools For Game Development
We also asked game developers who are using AI what their favourite tools to use are.
Here are some that they mentioned.
Coding
While game developers don’t recommend you let AI do all the coding – without the necessary experience, you don’t know where to intervene when the AI makes mistakes – this is one of the tasks that is more often automated.
The most common tools are:
- GitHub Copilot
- Claude and Claude Code
- Bezi, a coding assistant specifically made for Unity.
- Codex by OpenAI
- Gemini
Design
For design, some tools can help you with design concepts, illustrations or videos. However, many developers complain that it’s often difficult to generate and scale a design that is completely coherent using only AI.
A few tools worth mentioning here are:
- Midjourney, for design concepts and style
- Nano Banano for images creation
- Scenario AI, for complete design
- Leonardo AI for videos, images and editing
- Pixel Engine, for pixel animation
Music and Voices
Lastly, music and voices can also be produced using AI, although some of the developers we asked do not recommend it.
- Lyria by Google is a good option for creating soundtracks.
- ElevenLabs can help you with voices and dialogues.
The Rise of AI Agents in Game Development
Besides these tools, there’s another thing that is on the rise.
It’s AI agents, which, according to Google, are being used by 87% of developers.
While some of the tools we mentioned earlier can be considered AI agents (like, for example, GitHub Copilot), some agents act directly on the game, creating more dynamic gaming environments.
Take NPCs for example.
Non-player characters have always existed in video games, but, with AI, they’re becoming more complex and cooperative.
Moreover, these agents allow developers to vary the difficulty of the game, matching the player’s ability.
AI in Game Development: An Ethical Issue
While AI today is more of a copilot than a substitute for developers, some ethical issues remain.
That’s why many of them are openly hostile to it, and with reason.
From our conversation with game developers, some recurrent issues emerged that are worth mentioning.
Plagiarism and Lack of Transparency
The first problem, which is common to all creative jobs, is that AI tools are built on the unauthorized use of creative work.
Without proper attribution and the recognition of intellectual property, creating a game with AI isn’t seen positively in the community.
Especially when developers lie about it.
Exploitation and Devaluation of Human Labor
Another issue lies in the business pressure of using the tools, even when it’s not a genuine choice.
You may have heard it, too: “If you’re not using AI, you’re behind”.
But while these tools can definitely help in managing everyday tasks, there’s also a downside to them.
Many big companies are using them to speed up productivity and lay off workers.
For example, in 2024, Microsoft laid off 1900 employees from its Gaming unit, Xbox and Activision Blizzard.
And you can find more stories about gaming layoffs at this Layoff Tracker.
Erosion of Learning and Skill Development
Several game developers told us that they don’t trust developers who make extensive use of AI, because often they don’t have the hands-on experience to tell what is a good product and what is not.
Quality Degradation
AI slop is a term you see everywhere today, and games are not exempt from it.
Many developers complain about the rise of AI-generated games that are low-quality, and thus harm the whole industry.
This is because high-quality games become harder to find, since they’re buried among the AI-generated ones.
“Collaborations are happening less frequently because discovering actual games amid the slop is getting harder and borderline not worth the effort.”
Final Thoughts: Can AI Replace Game Developers?
Looking at the state of the industry today, AI in game development is here to stay and it will only become more pervasive.
However, it’s difficult to say that it will entirely replace game developers.
Human creativity will always have an advantage over AI tools, and AI alone can hardly replicate it.
On the other hand, fewer people may be necessary to complete the same tasks, and this shows in the number of companies laying off employees.
What we can say is that there’s nothing definitive right now, and the landscape will surely evolve.
What’s your view on this topic?
