“It’s Laughable,” Take-Two CEO Dismisses Notion That AI Can Make a Game like GTA 6

The stocks of major video game publishers, including Rockstar’s parent company Take-Two, saw a brief decline following the release of Google’s Project Genie back in February. The AI model, capable of generating interactive environments within seconds, turned heads online with many users suggesting that game development could be one of Genie’s use cases. Soon enough, AI snake oil salesmen jumped into the conversation, proclaiming that the model would change game development forever.

The flaws behind the idea became obvious soon after, with Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick even reassuring concerned shareholders during an investor call. Zelnick has now shared his extended thoughts on the matter and even responded to the notion of a game like GTA 6 being developed by AI.

Strauss Zelnick Says AI Cannot Make GTA With the Press of a Button

During an interview with The Game Business, Zelick first spoke on the market’s reaction to the initial release of Project Genie. “I was kind of stunned by the market’s reaction,” he said, “because its reaction was somehow seeing it as a threat to what we do, when it’s quite obvious that creation tools are beneficial for our industry.”

“I think the bear case for big entertainment companies is somehow that AI tools will mean everyone can create hits, but that doesn’t stand to reason. These tools may help you create assets, but that won’t help you create hits. Equally, you can create assets that might look like a big release, that might look like NBA 2K or EA Sports FC. But creating a hit of that magnitude is a completely different animal and does require human engagement and creativity.”

When asked about the possibility of Project Genie ‘levelling the playing field’ for others looking to make games like GTA 6, Zelnick brushed the idea off, stating, “The notion that somehow new tools would allow an individual to push a button and generate a hit and bring it to many millions of consumers around the world, it’s a laughable notion.” Take-Two’s commander-in-chief went on to emphasize that game development will continue to be spearheaded by human creativity.

These comments come at an interesting time as far as the adoption of AI in gaming is concerned. Just 24 hours ago, the community let out an audible groan at the debut of Nvidia DLSS 5, which ‘upscales’ visual output by slapping an AI-enhancement filter over actual gameplay. The results are dreadful, of course, so it’s nice to hear a more nuanced take on AI in video games from one of the most prominent executives in the business.

What do you make of Strauss Zelnick’s take on AI? Let us know in the comments below.