The video game industry experienced a potential taste of the future last week when Google unveiled its experimental AI tool called Project Genie, which can supposedly create playable game worlds in just minutes. The announcement was so shocking that it wiped billions off the market value of major gaming companies overnight, with Take-Two Interactive's stock plummeting to an 11-month low.
As response, Take-Two's CEO Strauss Zelnick has come forward with a reassuring statement for uneasy Grand Theft Auto fans. In an exclusive conversation with GamesIndustry.biz ahead of the company's quarterly earnings report, Zelnick made it crystal clear that the upcoming Grand Theft Auto 6 will have absolutely no generative AI involved in its creation. Not a single pixel, not a single line of code, nothing.
There was transparency in there, too. Although he has always maintained his position that AI cannot replace human creativity, Zelnick revealed that Take-Two has used AI technology for years. He says that the company currently has hundreds of AI implementations running across its studios, using the technology to cut costs and save time on various projects, but there's a hard line between the rest of Take-Two and GTA 6.
According to Zelnick, every single element in GTA 6's world is being meticulously handcrafted by human developers. Every building, every street corner, every neighborhood is being designed from scratch by actual people, not generated by algorithms. This approach takes considerably more time and money than using procedural generation or AI tools - but is more than worth it.
It's part of the reason why GTA 6 has seen multiple delays, including the latest, which sent the video game industry into a downward spiral, with the current release date set for November 19th of this year. The game has been in development for several years, with rumors suggesting the budget could exceed $2 billion when marketing costs are included.
However, while Take-Two and Rockstar continue to lead the fight against generative AI, even going as far as taking down GTA-like AI-generated videos, the financial markets clearly had their own opinion over the past week. When Google demonstrated Project Genie, creating what looked like playable game footage in mere minutes, investors panicked. After all, if anyone could generate a game with AI in minutes, why would we need expensive game studios anymore?
Zelnick's comments suggest these fears, while real, are overblown. While AI can create something that looks like a game, there's a massive difference between a rough AI-generated prototype and the polished, intricate worlds that players have come to expect from games like GTA. Thankfully, we won't have to wait too long to find out how GTA 6 will set a new standard for video game companies and AI to clear as it's now all but confirmed to come out in November.
