In another episode of opposing the use of artificial intelligence in the creative space, Palworld developer Pocketpair confirmed has it never used the controversial technology to whip up the adorable Pals you can capture in the game’s enticing open world.
Finally addressing doubts around Palworld embracing AI to mold its creatures, Pocketpair CEO Takuro Mizobe stressed the team’s ideals to manually sketch every Pal, denying allegations of using the technology.
In a tweet promoting the August issue of CGWORLD on July 10, Mizobe said, “Palworld is often criticized for using generative AI, but in reality, it does not. The artists have drawn nearly thousands of rough sketches.” Dot Esports translated this using Google’s language conversion program.
Mizobe then directed “interested” Palworld fans to the CGWORLD article, which detailed the process the Pocketpair developers followed to create our beloved Pals. Besides hand-sketching them, the devs follow a carefully planned approach “that reflects the consensus of the design, modeling, rig, and motion development teams” to create a Pal. This doesn’t just apply to Pals either; the guns you use in Palworld feature “a precise reloading motion realized as a result of a passion for gun motion.” In fact, from effects to lighting, everything in the popular survival crafting game has some form of human touch to it in the design stage.
Considering how prevalent AI use is becoming over time, developers naturally need to clarify the community’s suspicions or risk losing their player base. Interestingly, while the Pokémon vs. Pal IP war still continues, Nintendo shares the same ideals as the Palworld devs when it comes to AI.
When asked about using AI in its games in a recent shareholder Q&A session (translated and reported by Tweak Town), president Shuntaro Furukawa said Nintendo will steer clear of using the tech in its games, a claim made possible by “decades of know-how” and promises to “deliver value that is unique.” “Generative AI, which has been a hot topic in recent years, can be more creative, but we also recognize that it has issues with intellectual property rights,” Furukawa explained in his statement.
Concerns about Palworld using generative AI reached an all-time high after its launch in January, which was further fueled by Pocketpair’s history with the technology. That said, those were apparently just rumors and we now have Mizobe vouching for the game’s originality.
