Silent Hill: Ascension, which made its debut last month, has become embroiled in a series of controversies. The latest issue revolves around an accusation that the game’s storyline is generated by artificial intelligence. This controversy ignited with a viral Tweet from former Giant Bomb video producer @VoidBurger, highlighting peculiar character interactions in the series. Further scrutiny by You Can’t Scare Me! co-host @BobVids revealed Genvid’s CCO, Stephan Vladimir Bugaj, had previously discussed “massively interactive live events” involving human and autonomous AI characters creating simulated narratives.
These accusations reached Genvid’s CEO, Jacob Navok, prompting a response through a series of tweets. Navok vehemently denied the use of AI in crafting the game’s narrative, stating, “Every word in Ascension was written by real people.” He emphasized the extensive experience of the team members, citing contributions to titles such as Telltale, Pixar, GoW Ragnarok, and Resident Evil Village.
However, Navok did acknowledge past experiments with AI. He detailed tests conducted in previous years, exploring programmatically-directed scenes and AI involvement in the Endure scenes. Despite these experiments, he clarified that none of this AI-driven work made it into Silent Hill: Ascension or other projects. Navok defended the team’s dedication, dismissing suggestions of AI involvement as a “veiled insult” to the hardworking human contributors.
While denying the use of AI in creative endeavors, Navok did admit to some AI applications, such as chat moderation. Initially, the developer used AI for this purpose, but it led to a significant controversy. The chat feature was ultimately disabled due to offensive comments, including racism and toxicity. Navok assured players that Genvid is actively working on a new chat moderation solution and plans to reintroduce the feature when they feel confident about its effectiveness. Despite Navok’s explanations, @BobVids remains skeptical, pointing to earlier statements where the CEO mentioned AI characters in Genvid’s projects. The unfolding drama around Silent Hill: Ascension continues, blending the virtual and real-world controversies surrounding AI and game development.
