Summary
After a particularly damning job listing popped up on its website,Wizards of the Coastis responding to allegations of using AI to help create its beloved tabletop games. This follows similar concerns raised against the company beginning late last year after it was discovered thatWizards of the Coasthad used generative AI to create images for theBigby Presents: Glory of Giantssourcebook forDungeons & Dragons.
Last month, the company released an FAQ addressing its use of generative AI in theDungeons & DragonsandMagic: The Gatheringfranchises after another controversy earlier this year. In January, it was revealed that the marketing materials forMagicused AI art despite the publisher promising that the technology wouldn’t be used in the trading card game.
The job listing in question is for a Principal AI Engineer, with Wizards of the Coast seeking someone responsible for designing and building systems “for intelligent generation of text dialog, audio, art assets, NPC behaviors, and real time bot frameworks.” Anxious tabletop fans were quick to assume that the company was going back on its promise, butin a statement given to ComicBook, the Hasbro subsidiary promises that its stance on AI “hasn’t changed.”
Wizards of the Coast Will Utilize AI in Video Games, Not Tabletop Games
A spokesperson for Wizards went on to explain that the position is for future video game projects, of which several are in active development. During The Game Awards in December, the company’s new game division, Archetype Entertainment, unveiledExodus, an upcomingstory-driven sci-fi RPGstarring Matthew McConaughey. In 2022, Invoke Studios was said to be working on a AAA game set in theDungeons & Dragonsuniverse.
More and more companies have shown interest in experimenting with AI, inciting backlash within major portions of the gaming community. In April, Treyarch, a developer behind theCall of Dutygames,posted a job listing mentioning generative AI tools. A report from Unity recently revealed that 62 percent of game studios use AI in some form, though this is often for prototype builds and concepts, not finished works.
Chris Cocks, the former president ofWizards of the Coastand current Hasbro CEO, isn’t shutting the door on the technology just yet, stating that decades of art fromD&DandMagic: The Gatheringcould potentially be used as sources for AI learning databases. Last year,Magichead designer Mark Rosewater said that someday, AI could eventually be used for card design. Eagle-eyed fans have been keeping watch followingthe company’s many slip-ups on the AI front, and many fear that this won’t be the last time.
