Activision finally admits AI usage in CoD development, but questions remain over just how much

Call of Duty’s sloppy season two for Black Ops 6 and Warzone added another sad chapter recently, as Activision has confirmed that the company uses generative AI game development.

Sadly, no one is really surprised about the news and basically everyone hates it, just like when a winter-themed zombie loading screen went viral this past December as a suspected AI creation. Now that AI usage is confirmed, the news is even more disappointing than most expected it would be.

Thanks to Steam’s new rules about games having to disclose when developers use AI in the making of the game, a new disclosure appears at t

he bottom of descriptions for games like BO6 and Warzone: “Our team uses generative AI tools to help develop some in game assets.” Oof.

If that sounds vague, that’s because it is. It’s purposely vague because now we will never know what the developers use AI for, although most assume that it’s been used for quite some time on cosmetics like loading screens, emblems, and calling cards, which are items that often appear in paid store bundles that cost upwards of $20.

But how deep does the AI rabbit hole go? Many suspect that AI is now being used for voiceover acting, especially considering the ongoing voice actor strike which has negatively impacted games like Destiny 2, where the new season of content features unspoken dialogue because the actor is striking over, guess what, the usage of AI in game development.

This is really bleak, folks. There’s no other way to slice it. When AI is used to “help develop some in game assets,” there’s no knowing where hard work by talented devs begins, and slop created by an artificial intelligence ends. If it’s used for busy work like duplicating things like bushes on a large map versus replicating an entire human being’s job, where is the line drawn for it to be acceptable?

I’m hardly the only person who’s angered over stuff like this. When CharlieIntel posted about the AI disclosure on Feb. 24, the replies were filled with disgust, especially as the game is built entirely around getting players to spend as much money as possible while Activision presumably saves money on dev time by using AI.

Or, AI is being used by devs who must meet otherwise impossible deadlines to create content to keep the seasonal live-service juices flowing. Will we ever get transparency and detailed information on what AI is used for? I doubt it. Do the specifics really matter? Probably not.

Either way, it’s a sad time for CoD, and the industry and world in general, I think. See you soon, SkyNet.