Kotaro Uchikoshi, the creator of Zero Escape, was invited to speak at the WePlay Expo 2024 in China. During the event, he discussed generative AI and its effects on the video game industry. According to an article published by Famitsu, his two main topics in the lectures were whether AI could create game scenarios that surpass Zero Escape‘s and Danganronpa‘s and how human creators could beat generative AI.
Kotaro Uchikoshi stated that he believed AI had started an era in which anyone could easily make video games alone as long as they could proficiently utilize the new technology. At the start of the lecture, the man showed several slides featuring images from a simple classic adventure game. This game was made in an hour using ChatGPT, which generated everything, such as images, music, and programs.
Based on this example, Uchikoshi concluded that game production had become easier for individuals as long as they had a good grasp of generative AI. He believed that due to this new technology, we would see more short indie games appear everywhere. At the same time, he also noted that it was unlikely that games made by professional studios would disappear.
Uchikoshi believed that generative AI could not yet make masterpieces because it had major issues with creating strong narratives. He said that the technology could not infer connotations and it had bad habits of considering endless unnecessary possibilities.
Uchikoshi then discussed the possibility of generative AI creating sequels to Zero Escape or Danganropa. He said that it was unlikely to happen due to the “compressed information” contained within these series. However, he admitted that things might change in the next ten years.
When the lecture reached the topic of humans beating generative AI, Uchikoshi said, “It may sound cliché, but it all comes down to originality.” He believed that all top creators had their own unique style and character that you could notice at a glance. He called it “a uniqueness that cannot be expressed in words.” He then said that people would need “a leap of imagination” that would make their work unique and different from those generated by AI.
