Capcom Experimenting With Generative AI to Create 'Hundreds of Thousands of Unique Ideas' Needed to Build In-Game Environments

Capcom is venturing into the realm of generative AI to address the challenge of generating the "hundreds of thousands" of unique ideas needed for in-game environments. With rising video game development costs, publishers are increasingly turning to AI tools to streamline work and reduce expenses. Notably, Call of Duty reportedly sold an "AI-generated cosmetic" for Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 in late 2023, and there were accusations against Activision for using generative AI for a loading screen the previous year. EA has also emphasized the centrality of AI to its business, stating in September that AI is "the very core" of its operations.

In a recent interview with Google Cloud Japan, Kazuki Abe, a technical director at Capcom with experience on major titles like Monster Hunter: World and Exoprimal, discussed how the company is exploring AI integration into its game development processes. Abe highlighted that one of the most time-consuming and labor-intensive aspects of game development is the creation of numerous unique ideas. For example, designing items like televisions involves crafting unique designs, logos, and shapes. "Including unused ones, we ended up having to come up with hundreds of thousands of ideas," Abe stated (via Automaton).

Abe noted that each game requires thousands to tens of thousands of such objects, with multiple proposals needed for each. These proposals include illustrations and text to effectively communicate the ideas to art directors and artists. To improve efficiency, Abe developed a system where generative AI can analyze various game design documents and generate ideas, thereby speeding up development, enhancing efficiency, and providing self-feedback to refine the output further.

Abe's prototype, which utilizes multiple AI models including Google Gemini Pro, Gemini Flash, and Imagen, has garnered positive feedback from Capcom's internal development teams. Implementing this AI model is expected to "reduce costs significantly" compared to manual methods, while also improving the quality of the output.

Currently, Capcom's use of AI is confined to this specific system, with other critical aspects of game development such as ideation, gameplay, programming, and character design remaining the domain of human creativity.