GamesRPGCyberpunk 2077Cyberpunk’s quest director says CD Projekt Red has experimented with generative AI, but there’s still a ‘gigantic, really long way to go’ before AI NPCs are as good as scripted charactersWhen you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.

GamesRPGCyberpunk 2077Cyberpunk’s quest director says CD Projekt Red has experimented with generative AI, but there’s still a ‘gigantic, really long way to go’ before AI NPCs are as good as scripted charactersWhen you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.

When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.

(Image credit: CD Projekt)

Idris Elba in Phantom Liberty looking at camera while seated at upscale restaurant

Speaking to Aftermath, Sasko revealed that the studio behind Cyberpunk 2077 has done some R&D on AI. He didn’t specify what experiments the company had done, but at a personal level, Sasko is deeply sceptical that AI-generated NPCs can achieve the same level of depth and nuance that a human writer can imbue into a character.

“I could definitely see the ways this could be used to bring up more reactivity,” Sasko said. “But when it comes to writing and voice acting, there’s just a gigantic, really long way to go. I’ve seen a lot behind the scenes. There is a visible gap between authored content—the bespoke content that writers, quest designers, cinematic designers make with their own hands—and something that AI can provide.”

Sasko emphasises that this isn’t a small gap either. Directly comparing recent experiments in AI NPCs to the character workCD ProjektRed did in Cyberpunk’sexcellent expansionPhantom Liberty, he says, “The gap in quality, specifically, is huge. It’s like a canyon.”

You can read Aftermath’s full exploration of AI generated NPCshere. Sasko isn’t the only developer sceptical about the potential of AI being used directly to create art and narrative. Larian CEO Swen Vinckerecently statedthat, while AI does have its uses as a tool, he doesn’t believe “it’ll ever replace the creative side of things”. Given the huge, massive, enormous, very large successes of both Baldur’s Gate 3 and Cyberpunk as handcrafted adventures, Vincke and Sasko together might just know what they’re talking about.

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