SUMMARY
- AI has been seeing a recent boom in all industries including gaming with AI being used for voices, and images etc.
- Steam has been making sure that developers use AI in moderation and announced new policies for the developers to comply with.
In what could be considered a revolutionary move in the gaming sector, Valve has recently issued a new set of rules about how game developers can publish AI (artificial intelligence) technology-driven games on its PC game storefront, Steam. The new announcement comes sometime after the company faced complaints regarding the publishing of AI-generated content on the platform.
Around six months ago, several developers noted that Valve was denying Steam game submissions that included AI-generated assets. Back then Valve spokesperson Kaci Boyle had stated that the company’s objective was “not to discourage the use of [AI] on Steam; instead, we’re working through how to integrate it into our already-existing review policies.”
They announced the new rules via a blog post titled ‘AI Content on Steam.’ The blog highlights that the company is making changes to how the platform handles games that use AI technology.
What is Steam’s new AI policy?
After Valve stated that it was “continuing to learn about AI” and “the ways it can be used in game development,” last year, Valve apologized in the recent blog. They said they were sorry for “taking some time to figure this out,” adding that they didn’t want to rush into its new policy.
The blog states, “Today’s changes are the result of us improving our understanding of the landscape and risks in this space, as well as talking to game developers using AI, and those building AI tools. This will allow us to be much more open to releasing games using AI technology on Steam. The only exception to this will be Adult Only Sexual Content that is created with Live-Generated AI — we are unable to release that type of content right now,” Valve said in its post.
As per the new AI policy on Steam, game developers will be required to reveal if their games include “pre-generated” content. This includes art, code, or sound created with the help of AI. The blog further reassured developers that it is not “illegal or infringing.”
The developers also need to mention if their game has AI content that is “live-generated” when the game is running. Besides, if the game generates live AI content during gameplay, developers must also detail the safety measures they use to stop their AI from generating illegal content.
Thus, players will be able to see if a game contains AI on the game’s store page itself. This also means players will have new options to report illegal AI-generated content if they come across any while playing the game. In the blog post, Valve noted that these changes will enable them to release the vast majority of games that make use of AI.
What does the industry say about the use of AI?
While Steam may have released its set of regulations about AI in games, the community, particularly, the developers remains divided about the topic. On one hand, some developers have shown interest in integrating AI technology into their games as well as production processes. On the other hand, the others are still ambiguous about the issue.
Several studios have highlighted how AI could help with game testing, early conceptualizing, and easing out the expensive parts of the game development process such as voice acting recording sessions. However, others are worried that AI could cheaply replace existing artists and other creatives. Thus they are against companies who publish AI-generated content.
Notably, Valve’s blog post also mentioned that its approach and rules around AI-generated content may likely change as the technology and its legal framework evolve. “We’ll continue to learn from the games being submitted to Steam, and the legal progress around AI, and will revisit this decision when necessary,” it states.
Nonetheless, Steam allowing AI content with tagging is a huge step in the direction of embracing the controversial technology. The topic about the use of AI is set to be debatable in not just gaming but every other field, at least, for some more time till a legal framework is unanimously decided upon.