Internal sources report Ubisoft is testing generative AI for content creation in Far Cry 7, with developers bluntly criticizing the results. This reveals the growing tension between management pushing AI adoption and creators seeing the quality impact firsthand.
The AI hype meets creative reality. And reality is winning, at least according to the people actually building the game.
Tom Henderson, a gaming industry insider with a solid track record on Ubisoft leaks, reports that the company has been testing generative AI for research and development in Far Cry 7. His assessment of the results: "It looks like shit." Not exactly the glowing endorsement Ubisoft's investor presentations promised.
Ubisoft has been public about "accelerating investments" in generative AI for both game development and player interactions. What they haven't shown is what that AI-generated content actually looks like in a AAA game. Based on these reports, there's a reason for that discretion.
The tension here is real and revealing. Executives see AI as a cost-cutting opportunity. Generate textures, environments, dialogue, and character models with AI instead of paying artists and writers to create them. Ship games faster with smaller teams. Improve margins. Shareholders love it.
Developers see the output quality and realize what they're being asked to ship. AI-generated textures that look fine in isolation but lack consistency when placed next to hand-crafted assets. Dialogue that's grammatically correct but tonally off. Environments that feel generic because the AI is averaging thousands of previous examples rather than creating something intentionally designed.
This isn't a theoretical debate. This is happening right now in Far Cry 7 development. Ubisoft is testing AI-generated content. The people building the game are telling management it's not good enough. And management is apparently pushing forward anyway because the strategic direction is "more AI."
To be clear, these are R&D tests, not confirmed to be in the final game. Ubisoft emphasized through Henderson's reporting that this is experimental. But the fact that they're experimenting with AI content quality developers describe as "looks like shit" tells you where the pressure is coming from.
Gamers have largely rejected generative AI in games. The backlash when companies announce AI-generated content has been swift and loud enough that several developers have walked back implementations. Players can tell the difference between intentionally designed content and AI-generated filler, and they don't like the latter.
The business case for AI in game development makes sense on paper. Development costs for AAA games have exploded. Far Cry games take years and hundreds of millions of dollars to produce. If AI can reduce that cost and timeline, publishers will push for it regardless of creative concerns.
But games aren't spreadsheets. The difference between good and mediocre is what makes a game succeed or fail. If AI-generated content makes Far Cry 7 feel generic and uninspired, players will notice. They'll skip it. And the cost savings from using AI won't matter if the game doesn't sell.
Ubisoft has a separate project called "Teammates," an experimental AI NPC system that's distinct from the Far Cry 7 content generation testing. That's a different use case, focused on dynamic AI behavior rather than asset creation. The reception to that has been more mixed than outright negative.
What I want to know is what happens when the R&D phase ends. Does Ubisoft listen to the developers saying the AI content isn't good enough, or do they ship it anyway because the strategic direction demands AI integration regardless of quality?
The answer to that question will tell us whether Ubisoft views AI as a tool to enhance creativity or a cost-cutting mandate to impose despite creative objections. Based on the tension revealed in these reports, it looks like the latter.
The technology exists. Management wants to use it. The actual game developers say it doesn't produce acceptable quality. That's the collision happening inside Far Cry 7 development right now.
We'll find out who wins when the game ships. Or doesn't.
