Blizzard states brand-new AI principle art tool represents “significant advancement”
‘Blizzard Diffusion’, a new generative AI tool created by Blizzard, may generate the conceptual art for fresh projects.
The New York Times obtained an email from the studio’s chief style officer, Allen Adham, informing staff about Blizzard Diffusion and stating that it puts the company “on the verge of a significant advancement in how we construct and handle our video games.”
According to the email, Blizzard Diffusion can help create concept art for video game backgrounds, characters, and clothing. In addition, it was suggested that Blizzard consider how AI might aid in the creation of “self-governing, smart, in-game NPCS” and be used to aid with procedural level design, game coding, voice cloning, and its anti-toxicity initiatives.
How Blizzard Diffusion works
Blizzard Diffusion appears to create artwork by drawing on already-existing objects, like photos of World of Warcraft characters or Diablo dungeons, similar to other AI art tools. The company is expecting the tool will serve as a springboard for its development team, enabling them to avoid some of the more common steps involved in the creation of art.
It was previously rumoured that Blizzard wanted to use AI to create art for its video games, but it was unclear what kind of technology the company would try to use. Then-President of Blizzard, Mike Ybarra, claimed that detractors were “trying to associate current AI advancements (generative AI) to something entirely unassociated.”
“At Blizzard, our approach is to use artificial intelligence and AI in ways that are additive, emphatic, and free up more time for our skilled teams to work on the highest-quality projects and projects,”
Many studios are presently using or developing AI solutions to help with various aspects of development. While Squanch Games’ humorous shooterHigh up on Life used AI voice acting and art, Ubisoft is creating a new AI tool called “Ghostwriter” that it thinks will help authors create complex NPC interactions with less manual work.
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