Larian Studios Clarifies Its Application of AI Tools for Upcoming Project

The developer behind acclaimed role-playing games like Baldur's Gate 3 and Divinity: Original Sin just teased its upcoming project, creating immense excitement within the player base. However, subsequent statements from the company's co-founder have added clarity to the conversation, focusing on the team's philosophy toward AI tools.

A Tool for Ideation, Not Replacement

In a latest message, the studio's founder outlined that the company is using machine learning for certain preliminary tasks. These include developing pitch decks, producing initial concept art, and writing draft dialogue.

Notably, Vincke emphasized that the shipping content in the game will be crafted entirely by real artists. "Our team is creating all the content ourselves," he said.

Larian is constantly expanding our team of concept artists and are currently putting together writing teams.

Given that visual development is being specifically called out — we presently have over twenty visual developers and have job openings for further creatives.

All our efforts we do is additive and aimed at letting our team spend greater focus on making content.

Any machine learning application used well is supplementary to a artist's process, never a stand-in for their talent.

Tempering Reactions with Clear Intent

The admission of AI usage at first provoked concern among a segment of the fanbase. In response, Vincke offered additional elaboration on social media.

"We use AI tools to explore references, just like we use Google and physical media," he wrote. "In the initial brainstorming phase we use it as a basic framework for composition which we then replace with hand-crafted artwork."

He noted, "Larian brings on talent for their creative vision, not for their willingness to execute what a AI generates."

Key Areas of AI Integration

Vincke had in the past broken down the company's targeted approach to this technology, defining its use into primary pillars:

• Automation of Tedious Tasks: This encompasses refining animations, audio processing, and Larian-specific work like adjusting assets for various species.
• Rapid Prototyping ('White Boxing'): Using systems to speedily create rough versions of mechanics to experiment with concepts ahead of complete implementation.
• Long-Term Aspirations: Researching how AI could one day facilitate new forms of player agency, especially in creating dynamic reactions in a detailed game universe.

He clearly affirmed that central narrative domains — like music composition — are are absolutely not fields where the studio is reducing human talent. In fact, Larian is actively hiring in these exact fields.

"Larian is neither shipping a game with AI-generated content, nor looking at reducing creatives to substitute them with artificial intelligence," Vincke stated definitively.