Divinity Director Says Studio is Not Releasing a Game With AI Components or Trimming Down Teams

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Larian Studios made waves at The Game Awards 2025 with the announcement of a new Divinity game. However, the studio has recently faced criticism following an interview with Bloomberg given by founder and game director Swen Vincke. Vincke discussed Larian’s decision to experiment with generative AI, even though it hasn’t proven to significantly improve their workflow. Bloomberg reports that Larian is using AI for tasks like brainstorming, creating presentations, designing early concept art, and writing temporary text.

The interview sparked a lot of discussion among fans of games like Baldur’s Gate 3 and Divinity: Original Sin 2. While many agreed that using AI for tasks like making presentations is acceptable, the use of AI to generate concept art for the game raised concerns. One Reddit user, Gnl_Winter, pointed out that this practice creates ethical questions about copyright and could stifle the creative process – a process where unexpected ideas from concept art are crucial.

The recent criticism led Vincke to clarify Larian’s approach to AI tools in a statement to IGN. He explained that these tools are meant to enhance the skills of their creative teams, not replace them. He also highlighted that Larian employs 23 concept artists and is actively hiring more, resulting in a constant flow of new artwork for both brainstorming and the game’s development. You can find his complete statement below.

We’re rapidly expanding our creative team, bringing on more concept artists, writers, and storytellers. We’re also forming writers’ rooms, and are currently casting and recording voice actors, as well as hiring translators. We currently have 23 concept artists – and are looking to hire even more – who are consistently producing artwork for both brainstorming and actual production.

We’re focused on making small, continuous improvements that help people spend more time actually creating. We see machine learning tools as ways to enhance the skills of creative teams and individuals, not replace them. We’re actively exploring the latest advancements in machine learning to find tools that can simplify the daily work of creatives and ultimately help us build better games.

Okay, so a lot of you have been asking about AI, and I wanted to be clear: we’re not building any AI into our games right now, and we definitely aren’t planning on replacing anyone on the team with AI. I get why people are worried about this stuff, and we talk about it a lot internally. But honestly, we’re just trying to figure out how to use tools – AI or otherwise – to make our work lives better, not to cause layoffs or change the heart of what we do.

Okay, so there’s been a lot of talk about Larian using AI, and I was getting a little worried! But thankfully, Vincke addressed it again on social media. He basically said they’re not replacing their artists with AI at all – they have a huge team of 72 artists who are all creating original work. He explained that he only talked about AI in the first place because he was asked about it in an interview. What he did say is they use AI tools to help brainstorm and look at references, kind of like how artists have always used books or even just Googled things for inspiration. It’s good to know they’re still committed to real artists!

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2025-12-17 14:44