Kingdom Come Dev Responds To Accusation That It Fired A Dev To Save Money With AI

Warhorse Studios, the Czech developer behind the Kingdom Come RPG franchise, has confirmed it does use artificial intelligence systems, but its investments in this space are not meant replace humans.

In a Reddit AMA, Warhorse said, "Some team members find AI useful during early stages of production. However, we do not use AI-generated content in the final game and we have no plans to change this in the future."

This question came up in part due to the AI-based controversy surrounding Warhorse after a developer, Max H., said their job as a translator was made "obsolete" as part of a bid to make the company "more effective" and to "save finances."

Unsurprisingly, many of the questions put to Warhorse in the AMA pertained to this drama. Warhorse responded by saying, "We hear you and your concerns. Hopefully this explains the situation a bit."

In another post, Warhorse said the situation surrounding the person laid off "touches on internal HR matters" and to comment on it directly would be "deeply unprofessional." The studio went on to say it is in the process of hiring new English translators, and they will be "actual humans."

Hosting an AMA in the first place was debated internally, another Warhorse developer said, but doing so "gives us the opportunity to clear the air. Let's see if we manage that."

Warhorse is coming off the successful release of Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 in 2025 and is now making a new "immersive" RPG that some believe could be a new The Lord of the Rings game.

Many other studios use AI tools as well

Warhorse is just the latest developer to acknowledge the use of AI systems in its production processes. Before this, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 studio Sandfall and Crimson Desert developer Pearl Abyss said they used generative AI systems to create art that accidentally got into the full releases. Electronic Arts CEO Andrew Wilson recently said 85% of its QA staff use some form of AI to assist them at their jobs. Larian Studios controversially used generative AI for its upcoming Divinity game.

The Witcher 3's director said his team's new game, The Blood of Dawnwalker, used generative AI early in development and said other studios would be wise to do this as well.

Reporter Jason Schreier recently said almost every big game studio is currently using some form of AI in their processes. Discussion on the topic of AI has been muddied by definitions, since AI systems have existed in games for decades. Relatively newer developments in the space are generative AI and prompt-based systems that can create images, video, and more.

Not every big studio is implementing generative AI systems, though, as the developers of 007: First Light and Subnautica 2 recently came out to say they do not.

There continue to be fears that advancements to AI could lead to job losses and other negative consequences for the people who make games. The video game actor strike, for example, took so long to get resolved because the union representing actors pushed for further protections regarding AI.

One of the biggest beneficiaries of the AI boom has been Nvidia, the company once best known for gaming graphics cards. Nvidia has seen its total market cap surge in the past five years, propelling it to become the world's most valuable company at close to $5 trillion.

The demand for chips and memory units has led to numerous downstream effects, including price hikes on gaming consoles, along with growing sentiment about a future where wealth is even more unevenly distributed than it is today.