Of course, if players hadn’t noticed, the developers would have gotten away with it.

AI has played a significant role in many cases thus far, and the latest target is Crimson Desert, released on March 19 for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series, and PC. Since the game’s release, many players have posted on Reddit to draw attention to assets that appear to be AI-generated. We also discussed this over the weekend. Developer Pearl Abyss responded to the allegations in a statement posted on Twitter:

We would like to address questions regarding the use of AI in Crimson Desert.

During development, some 2D visual props were created as part of early-stage iteration using experimental AI generative tools. These assets helped us rapidly explore tone and atmosphere in the earlier…

— Crimson Desert (@CrimsonDesert_) March 22, 2026

“We would like to address questions regarding the use of AI in Crimson Desert. During development, some 2D visual props were created using experimental AI generative tools as part of early-stage iteration. These assets helped us rapidly explore tone and atmosphere in the earlier phases of production. However, our intention has always been to replace any such assets with work that aligns with our quality standards and creative direction following final work and review by our art and development teams. Following reports from our community, we identified that some of these assets were unintentionally included in the final release. This is not in line with our internal standards, and we take full responsibility for it.

We also acknowledge that we should have clearly disclosed our use of AI. Although these tools were used primarily during the early stages of production with the expectation that the assets would be replaced before release, this does not excuse our lack of transparency. We sincerely apologize for these oversights. We are conducting a comprehensive audit of all in-game assets and will replace any affected content. Updated assets will be rolled out in upcoming patches. In parallel, we are reviewing and strengthening our internal processes to ensure greater transparency and consistency in our communication with players moving forward,” wrote Pearl Abyss.

Ubisoft and Sandfall Interactive offered similar explanations to those of Pearl Abyss: development placeholders, mapping the mood and atmosphere, and not meeting their standards. Larian, the studio behind Divinity and Baldur’s Gate, defended and later abandoned the use of generative AI for early concepts, and it is clear that there is growing demand for proper disclosure wherever AI is used…

Source: PCGamer