The launch of Crimson Desert has been tumultuous, to say the least. The game has garnered both praise and criticism, yet has achieved exceptional sales figures. However, amidst reports of technical issues and questions regarding the game’s quality beyond its technical aspects, the development team is now also facing scrutiny due to AI-generated graphics spotted by eagle-eyed players.
Shortly after the game’s release, observant individuals began to suspect that several artworks featured within the game appeared to have been created by AI. The key issue was Pearl Abyss’s failure to disclose this information upfront, despite platforms like Steam now requiring transparency regarding the use of such technology. Developer Pearl Abyss has since come forward and issued an apology. In an official statement, the studio acknowledges that AI was utilized during development — but only in the early stages to rapidly generate assets for in-game testing. These elements were then “accidentally” left in the final game.
In their statement, the team clarified:
“During development, certain 2D visual assets were created as part of early-stage iteration using experimental generative AI tools. These assets helped us quickly explore tone and atmosphere in the initial phases of production.
However, our intention was always for any such asset to be replaced, after final work and review by our art and development teams, with work that aligns with our quality standards and creative direction.
Following reports from our community, we have identified that some of these resources were unintentionally included in the final version. This does not comply with our internal standards, and we take full responsibility.”
To address the situation, Pearl Abyss has initiated a comprehensive review of Crimson Desert’s content to identify and replace all remaining AI-generated elements. Concurrently, they have pledged to re-evaluate their internal procedures to ensure that similar situations do not recur in the future.