Artificial intelligence is now a constant topic in gaming, and many players quietly fear the day it starts replacing writers and designers. Bethesda boss Todd Howard has finally clarified how the studio intends to use AI, and he has also made one thing crystal clear: The Elder Scrolls VI will still be written by humans. In his view, AI is useful to speed up production and handle repetitive work, but it must never replace human creativity. That should reassure fans, even if it confirms that game development will never go back to how it used to be.

Every week brings new and often divisive headlines about artificial intelligence, and while more and more companies are being pushed to take a public stance, it is obvious that the biggest publishers in the video game industry do not want to miss the AI train. Just a few days ago, Sega admitted it is cautiously experimenting with AI in its future games, and Todd Howard’s latest comments suggest that Bethesda is preparing to follow a similar, measured path.

Speaking during an event tied to the second season of the Fallout series, Howard explained how he sees AI fitting into the development pipeline. In an interview with Eurogamer, he said that artificial intelligence is “just another tool” in the studio’s toolbox, and he immediately stressed that “the creative intent comes from the human artists, that’s the first thing”. As the director of The Elder Scrolls VI, he believes AI should be used to take over repetitive, monotonous tasks, not to build vast new worlds in place of human teams.

Bethesda Will Not Hand Creativity To AI

Howard also suggested that AI could eventually help debug Bethesda’s open-world games and smooth out rough edges, but it will never replace the creative spark that makes a game truly special. He said the studio does not see AI as a content generator, but as a support layer that sits alongside their existing internal tools and helps them build and validate their worlds more efficiently. He also emphasized that their goal is to “protect the art”, because “human intention is what makes our creations special”.

For many players, it will be a relief to hear the head of Bethesda state so plainly that AI will not be writing entire stories, characters, or worlds for them, especially not for a highly anticipated project like The Elder Scrolls VI. At the same time, Howard’s words confirm that the development process has been permanently altered by the arrival of artificial intelligence, and that the technology is now firmly part of day-to-day production.

The whole industry is already moving in this direction. Publishers such as Ubisoft, EA, Krafton, and Microsoft, which stands behind Xbox, openly talk about using AI to accelerate content production and streamline pipelines. Used responsibly, AI does not have to be the villain of this story, but the layoffs and studio closures of recent years are a stark reminder of how easily the technology can become a tool to cut jobs when companies choose to replace human labor.

Howard’s message, therefore, walks a fine line between reassurance and realism. Bethesda insists that AI will remain a background tool in the future, while their worlds, stories, and characters will continue to come from human creators.

Source: 3djuegos