The Creators of Baldur's Gate 3 Clarifies Its Application of Generative AI for New Divinity

The team behind acclaimed role-playing games like Baldur's Gate 3 and Divinity: Original Sin recently unveiled its next major project, sparking immense excitement within the gaming community. However, subsequent comments from the company's figurehead have brought a new dimension to the conversation, touching on the developer's approach toward AI tools.

AI as a Creative Assistant, Not a Substitute

In a recent message, the studio's founder detailed that the company is using machine learning for certain supporting tasks. These involve developing pitch decks, creating initial concept art, and creating placeholder copy.

Importantly, Vincke emphasized that the end content in the game will be authored solely by actual artists. "Larian is developing everything ourselves," he stated.

We are constantly growing our pool of concept artists and are busily forming narrative groups.

As this area is being specifically called out — we currently have twenty-three visual developers and have job openings for further artists.

All our efforts we do is supplementary and focused on letting our team spend more time on the creative process.

Any AI system used well is supplementary to a developer's routine, not a substitute for their skill.

Addressing Concerns and Clarifying the Vision

The news of AI usage originally sparked backlash among portions of the community. In reaction, Vincke provided additional clarification on online platforms.

"At Larian, we employ machine learning to research ideas, in the same way we use the internet and reference books," he wrote. "In the very early ideation stages we use it as a simple sketch for composition which we then substitute with original concept art."

He noted, "Our studio recruits creatives for their inherent skill, not for their ability to execute what a AI generates."

Focused Uses for Machine Learning

Vincke had in the past detailed the studio's targeted method to this technology, grouping its use into primary areas:

• Streamlining Repetitive Work: Areas like refining animations, voice editing, and Larian-specific work like adapting animations for different models.
• Rapid Prototyping ('White Boxing'): Using tools to speedily create basic mock-ups of scenarios to experiment with concepts ahead of full implementation.
• Future Potential for Gameplay: Investigating how machine learning could one day facilitate emergent reactivity, especially in creating player-driven narratives in a complex RPG.

He explicitly noted that core creative areas — including music composition — are are absolutely not fields where the company is cutting artistic input. On the contrary, Larian is actively hiring in these very fields.

"Larian is not shipping a game with AI-generated content, and we are certainly not planning on trimming down teams to substitute them with artificial intelligence," Vincke stated definitively.