The Creators of Baldur's Gate 3 Clarifies Its Implementation of AI Tools for New Project

The team behind hit RPGs like Baldur's Gate 3 and Divinity: Original Sin just shown its new project, sparking immense hype within the gaming community. However, follow-up remarks from the studio's co-founder have brought clarity to the discussion, touching on the developer's stance toward AI tools.

AI as a Creative Assistant, Not a Substitute

In a new clarification, Swen Vincke outlined that the company is employing generative AI for particular preliminary functions. These include developing presentation materials, generating rough concept art, and creating placeholder copy.

Notably, Vincke emphasized that the shipping material in the game will be authored exclusively by human creatives. "Larian is creating everything ourselves," he stated.

Our studio is actively increasing our pool of concept artists and are busily assembling narrative groups.

Given that visual development is being explicitly called out — we currently have twenty-three artistic staff and have positions available for additional artists.

All our efforts we do is supplementary and focused on having people spend additional energy on the creative process.

Any AI system implemented properly is a boost to a creative team routine, not a substitute for their talent.

Tempering Reactions with Clear Intent

The news of using AI originally sparked backlash among a segment of the player base. In response, Vincke offered further elaboration on social media.

"Our team utilizes machine learning to gather inspiration, similar to we use the internet and physical media," he stated. "In the very early ideation stages we use it as a simple sketch for layout which we then substitute with hand-crafted illustrations."

He noted, "Larian brings on artists for their creative vision, not for their capacity to replicate what a AI generates."

Three Pillars of Practical Application

Vincke had in the past outlined the company's focused strategy to AI and ML, grouping its use into key functions:

• Handling Monotonous Jobs: Areas like polishing mocap data, audio processing, and technical processes like adjusting assets for various species.
• Rapid Prototyping ('White Boxing'): Using systems to rapidly prototype basic versions of scenarios to validate concepts prior to complete development.
• Long-Term Aspirations: Exploring how machine learning could eventually facilitate innovative gameplay, particularly in managing dynamic reactions in a vast role-playing world.

He explicitly affirmed that core creative domains — such as writing — are not areas where the studio is reducing human talent. On the contrary, Larian is actively hiring in these exact positions.

"Our studio is not releasing a game with machine-made assets, nor looking at reducing staff to replace them with AI," Vincke stated definitively.