The city-building RTS Anno 117: Pax Romana had barely been released when sharp-eyed fans noticed the tell-tale signs of AI artwork in one of the loading screens. But rather than deny it, publisher Ubisoft has promised that it will replace the artwork in an upcoming update.
The image in question was first spotted by a user on Reddit, as seen below. The scene is set at a Roman banquet, and the background elements and characters feature some common AI mistakes including misshapen faces and bodies that don’t line up to human physiology. It may not even be the only AI pic in the game, as Kotaku has pointed out another image that has a pair of Roman senators who are missing their heads.
An Ubisoft spokesperson told IGN that the initial version of the banquet art was meant to be replaced in the final version of the game.
“This image was a placeholder asset that unintentionally slipped through our review process,” said the Ubisoft spokesperson. “The final image … will replace the current version of this artwork with the upcoming 1.3 patch.”
As seen above, the final image appears to be a retouched version of the AI pic. That makes the origin of the picture less obvious. Ubisoft has acknowledged that other AI tools were used for “for iterations, prototyping, and exploration.” Regardless, the company stresses that the final version of the game “reflects the team’s craft, artistry, and creative freedom.”
This isn’t the only game that’s been recently called out over AI. Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 apparently used AI to make the game’s “Ghibli-style” Calling Cards. Activision subsequently acknowledged that some AI was used in the creation of Black Ops 7. Arc Raiders also came under fire for using AI voiceover readings. Congressman Ro Khanna subsequently called for regulation over the use of AI.
