Nexon CEO: It's vital to imagine that each sport firm is now utilizing AI – Recreation Developer

The comment comes amidst widespread criticism of Arc Raiders, revealed by Nexon, for its use of procedural and AI-based instruments in content material creation.
November 13, 2025
Talking to Japanese publication GameSpark, Nexon CEO Junghun Lee mentioned that he thinks "it's vital to imagine that each sport firm is now utilizing AI."
This was within the context of being requested concerning the impression of generative AI expertise with regard to Nexon's future tasks—a tech which sport builders are nonetheless not warming up to, and a few of them have gotten more and more fearful that it will lower the quality of games.
Translated by Automaton, Lee mentioned that "AI has positively improved effectivity in each sport manufacturing and dwell service operations," resulting in the private consideration that the "common" high quality degree of video games is on the rise because of it.
But, returning to the belief that everyone is on board with the gen AI prepare, the CEO wonders how studios can stand out amid that competitors.
"If everyone seems to be working with the identical or comparable applied sciences, the true query turns into: how do you survive? I imagine it’s vital to decide on a method that will increase your competitiveness," he mentioned.
To Lee, the technique is "human creativity."
Whereas the CEO was speaking about future Nexon tasks, it's unclear how or by which capability AI shall be applied in the course of the sport improvement course of. In 2017, the corporate launched Intelligence Labs, an in-house AI analysis and improvement crew, which might help paint an image.
Associated:Rockstar hit with legal claims by IWGB over firing of unionizing workers
By way of The Korea Herald, Intelligence Labs has used machine studying and deep studying to "provide you with extra participating and immersive video games," spearheaded by a crew of round 700 engineers that’s now "zeroing in on generative synthetic intelligence analysis to create unique, personalised content material for gamers."
In a extra sensible instance, the crew publicly launched Gamescale in April 2023, which gives a sport matchmaking algorithm primarily based on consumer preferences and playstyles, posing an alternative choice to skill-based matchmaking.
Different instruments embrace the Nexon Voice Creator, a text-to-speech system that creates voices in numerous accents and pitches for nonplayer characters with out separate recordings. The crew has additionally been testing the "AI NPC" perform, permitting NPCs to "straight talk with customers past a single script." As famous by The Korea Herald, this opens the potential of creating "false, biased, discriminatory, and abusive remarks." To this, Intelligence Labs mentioned it's dedicated to "placing effort into constructing moral tips for reliable AI in gaming."
Lee's feedback on using AI on the firm befell amid a wave of criticism round Arc Raiders, the extraction shooter developed by Embark Studios and revealed by Nexon. Over on the sport's Steam page, the studio has an AI-generated content material disclosure, which states the next: "In the course of the improvement course of, we might use procedural-and AI-based instruments to help with content material creation. In all such instances, the ultimate product displays the creativity and expression of our personal improvement crew."
Associated:Federal Judge casts doubt on Epic v. Google settlement terms
Talking to PCGamesN, Arc Raiders design director Virgil Watkins mentioned the sport "on no account makes use of generative AI in any respect," including that there’s "one thing known as machine studying, or reinforcement studying, and that's to do with the locomotion for our bigger drones with a number of legs," however remarked that there's "no generative content material in any respect."
That being mentioned, the text-to-speech system current in The Finals, additionally from Embark, which is a speech instrument that generates audio voice strains for in-game commentators, is utilized in Arc Raiders as properly.
"As [you] acknowledged, [it's] the identical as The Finals, we use that text-to-speech mannequin. That’s, we rent and contract voice actors for it—it's a part of their contract that we use it [AI] for this objective, and that enables us to do issues like our ping system, the place it's able to saying each single merchandise identify, each single location identify, and compass instructions. That's how we are able to get that with no need to have somebody are available in each time we create a brand new merchandise for the sport," Watkins advised PCGamesN.
Associated:Sony unveils Japanese-language-only PlayStation 5 at $350
In an interview with Eurogamer, Embark CCO Stefan Strandberg mentioned the studio makes use of "AI as instruments to help in some content material creation, but it surely's all the time within the context of creativity, as an expression of the crew."
Elaborating on the text-to-speech mannequin particularly, Strandberg mentioned that the instrument permits the crew to "enhance the scope of the sport in some areas" the place Embark thinks it's wanted, or the place there's "tedious repetition" in conditions the place voice actors "might not see it as priceless work."
The CCO's justification, then, is that these instruments are permitting smaller groups to scale their operations. "We began this studio with a large set of procedural instruments in terms of world constructing, and we wouldn't be anyplace close to the place we’re at the moment with out these investments," he mentioned."
Learn extra about:
Diego Argüello
Contributing Editor, Information, GameDeveloper.com
Diego Nicolás Argüello is a contract journalist and critic from Argentina. Video video games helped him to study English, so now he covers them for locations like The New York Occasions, NPR, Rolling Stone, and extra. He additionally runs Into the Backbone, a web site devoted to fostering and supporting new writers, and co-hosted Turnabout Breakdown, a podcast concerning the Ace Legal professional sequence. He’s almost definitely taking part in a rhythm sport as you learn this.
You Might Additionally Like
Midwest Video games CEO Ben Kvalo’s imaginative and prescient for a extra sustainable sport trade – Recreation Developer Podcast Ep. 58
Management classes from Mark Darrah’s days at BioWare – Recreation Developer Podcast Ep. 57
Spooky MMORPG networking tales from Guild Wars and Guild Wars 2 – GDC Podcast Ep. 56
Making a gargantuan sport like Borderlands 4 – Recreation Developer Podcast Ep. 55
Copyright © 2025 Informa. This web site is owned and operated by Informa. Informa PLC's registered workplace is 5 Howick Place, London SW1P 1WG.

source