‘I Don’t Understand’: The Internet Can’t Wrap Its Head Around Sony Testing AI-Generated PlayStation Characters

The worrying trend of adding AI to video games appears to show no sign of slowing down. A leaked video of Aloy from the Horizon franchise shows that Sony is experimenting with making its PlayStation characters fully AI-generated.

This report comes from The Verge. The prototype that was shown off on YouTube has been taken down via copyright strike, but the clip has made its way onto the social media platform, X.

Sharwin Raghoebardajal, Director of Software Engineering at Sony PlayStation, shows off the AI technology with Aloy. The machine-powered Aloy responds to questions from Sharwin with synthesized voice and facial movements. The entire experience is eerie in that Aloy does not sound remotely like a human being.

The reactions to this demo on social media have been quite negative, as you can imagine. Here are some examples:

Alanah Pearce, who used to work at Sony Santa Monica, can’t believe the footage since Sony explicitly told her and her team this would not happen.

Anna Megill, a writer at CD Projekt Red, makes a good point, saying there is no need to talk to a character because we experience their stories and personalities through gameplay.

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How do gamers like you and me feel?

Bluesky user Satyros Phil Brucato cleverly showcases that the whole point of the Horizon titles were to show the dangers of technology.

Miggs Boson mentions Ashly Burch, the voice of Aloy, in their comment, saying she would deserve royalties if this nightmarish future came to pass (Ashly is part of the voice acting strike going on precisely for this very real concern over AI replacing human actors).

I’m very concerned if Sony is taking AI this seriously. I have friends and family in the voice acting business, and their jobs are not secure if AI is going to take over voice work and motion capture. Microsoft is already pursuing this kind of tech, too, leaving Nintendo as the only holdout of the big three, so my only hope is that this crashes and burns sooner rather than later.