One of the irritating sides of the AI hullabaloo—as somebody reasonably invested in making issues—is the assertion that AI lastly ‘unlocks creatives to expand, higher issues’ or another codswallop.
Bah, I say—the reality being that inventive arts like writing, drawing, portray, or performing are immensely difficult professions, and once I have a look at AI, I have a look at a really difficult Google search that fills me with about as a lot inventive motivation as… properly, a Google search.
It is good to see that sentiment echoed by the narrative lead of Clair Obscur, who spoke to our mates over at GamesRadar+ throughout GDC 2026.
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Jennifer Svedberg-Yen, who want I remind you set collectively a sport that snagged “Finest Story” in our very personal Sport of the 12 months Awards, tells the location that whereas she’s fascinated by generative AI from a technical standpoint, it isn’t one thing she’s excited by for inventive work:
“It’s basically a number of regressions with linear algebra and matrices and many information, which tickled my mathematical thoughts … however from a writing perspective, it’s not actually one thing that I discover helpful in my private work. It is not one thing that’s a part of my workflow.”
That is regardless of the very fact (or, maybe, due to it) that Svedberg-Yen finds writing a large headache: “Writing is a part of the enjoyment. It is also a part of the ache. They are saying that there is two varieties of writers: those that write and so they’re impressed and fired up, and so they get pleasure from it. After which there are writers who write by way of the ache. I believe I write by way of the ache.”
The individuality Svedberg-Yen brings to her work, the end result of her human expertise (reasonably than the grey-goo amalgamation of the works of humanity AI has swiftly grow to be) is what’s necessary: “It is a painful course of, however that course of is extremely important to me as a author.
“To truly work by way of what the characters are feeling, work by way of what they’d say, suppose by way of how the feelings really feel inside myself, after which understanding the characters and who they’re, like translating that into their phrases, and discovering the reality in that second. I do not understand how to try this with AI.”
After which, she strains up the hammer and strikes the nail totally on the pinnacle: “The entire level of writing is to precise what I’ve in my head. Proper?” There’s this perception, largely held by individuals who don’t make issues (which is one thing I sympathise with, making issues is difficult) that AI has someway unlocked their latent inventive potential.
It actually hasn’t. Making artwork is difficult and complex, and there are a couple of thousand small selections that go into any piece of labor like Clair Obscur that AI utterly automates from the scraped grist:
“It is meant to precise our, as writers, our viewpoint, our understanding of the world, and relay one thing about our private, lived expertise channeled by way of these characters on this fantastical state of affairs. I really feel that you simply danger dropping a few of that when it is put by way of basically a black field the place you’ll be able to’t essentially perceive all of the ways in which AI will get from A to Z.”
Thoughts, that is to not say Sandfall Interactive is past suspicion. Clair Obscur, I am unhappy to say, did get dragged by way of the mud for utilizing generative AI in its manufacturing—which the studio claimed have been for “placeholder” textures, although the extra manufacturing and publicity blunders I see on account of utilizing AI for idea artwork and placeholders, the extra I believe Lorem Ipsum is the way in which to go.
However given the standard of Clair Obscur’s story, nevertheless, I am greater than keen to take its narrative lead at face worth when she says she would not contact the stuff.
