Smash Bros. Director Sakurai Thinks the Game Industry May Need AI

The director of the Super Smash Bros. franchise, Masahiro Sakurai, thinks that the game development industry may have to rely on AI in the future if it keeps going in the direction it has been. Many opinions have been voiced on the use of AI in video game development, and the Super Smash Bros. director has his own stance on the matter.

Recently, game development news has been peppered with stories of mass game industry layoffs, canceled games, and plenty of delays to ensure that games are as bug-free as possible, or at the very least, are actually playable on arrival. These issues have arrived alongside the increasing price of video games, leading to disappointment in the industry from both its customers and its workers.

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Now, Sakurai has offered his own thoughts on the game industry as a whole, and he seems worried about the future for AAA large-scale game development. In an interview with Yahoo Japan, Sakurai talked about the gaming industry’s current direction, and expressed that he felt that large-scale game development is unsustainable in its current state, with it taking far too much time. He expressed that the game industry will likely need to change, and the only solution he can think of is for AI to be utilized to improve work efficiency to make larger projects sustainable. In general, Sakurai seems uncertain about the future of game development.

Sakurai’s Words Echo Other Game Development Concerns

Developing major games, especially when it comes to new IPs, can be extremely time-consuming and costly for game developers and publishers. Concord was in development for nearly a decade, yet ended up being shut down in less than a month. Call of Duty games have had budgets reaching as high as $700 million in recent times, and inflation has seen the dollar weaken while games have primarily continued selling for the same prices. Using AI might be helpful in shortening the amount of time spent developing games like this, potentially cutting costs, or it could allow for better quality control, as developers might have more time to work on ironing out the bugs, which could help prevent some games from becoming dead on arrival.

However, there has been plenty of concern regarding AI being used to simply replace workers. Game developers are worried that rather than using AI to support their work or to make their jobs a little less tedious, they’ll instead be fired, and AI will be utilized in their stead. Players are already frustrated by the use of AI in some games, and voice actors are also concerned about their jobs being lost. If the game industry continues focusing on large-scale projects like Sakurai is talking about, one can hope that AI is utilized to supplement the existing workflow, not replace it entirely.