Dev deletes game off Steam after girlfriend tells him “AI is evil”

An AI-created game called Hardest just shared its last developer update on Steam, a message that the game will be deleted on January 30th.

Hardest is a “Rock-Paper-Scissors Card Game Roguelike” with chaotic elements and trading cards. It currently has mixed reviews on Steam with some gamers saying it’s fun and others accusing the game of being AI slop.

The thing is, creator Eero Laine never made it a secret that the game is created with AI. In fact, he openly discusses the programs he has used if anyone else wants to try it out. He also has “AI-generated content” mentioned in the “about” section.

Hardest removed from Steam for being AI-generated

While Laine previously touted Hardest as a possible inspiration for other AI-interested developers, that all changed on January 10th.

In an update called “AI is bad,” Laine told players that the game was going to be removed from Steam by the end of the month. Previously, he felt AI was appropriate due to his university “brainwashing” students to try out the free programs to creatre unlimited images. However, he has come to the realization that “AI is not actually free.”

“It has a major effect on the economy and environment,” Laine wrote. “Some AI companies can use this game just existing as a reason to get more investment for their AI companies, that benefit no one, but rather suck resources from the economy from hard-working people.”

It may sound like Laine became enlightened on the ethical issues of AI usage, but he actually is parroting his girlfriend of one year. At the end of his update, he pointed out that the “girl I’ve been dating for a month” helped him realize that using AI is bad and his game must be deleted.

AI is evil, gamers say

The removal of Hardest comes amidst a massive AI witch hunt in the gaming community. The concept of AI replacing creatives in the gaming space has led to mass panic and outrage. Even a game with a few AI-generated assets in the background have been stripped of awards and met with uproar from gamers around social media.

The fact is, however, that most game studios utilize AI in some way. Some studios are entirely dedicated to AI content, while others use AI to make their work more efficient and productive. There are many legitimate reasons to hate AI, but I think it’s gone a bit too far at this point. There’d be almost no games left if we truly cancelled every game that used AI in some way.

But maybe we all need a one-month relationship whispering in our ear that AI is bad.