Gaming Stocks Plunge As Google AI Clones 60 Seconds Of ‘Fortnite’

In a development that frustrated the gaming industry, publisher stocks fell sharply after the premiere of Google Genie 3, a new AI generation tool that purports to be able to make video games out of thin air.

The problem, of course, is that it’s often not actually doing that, and the most viral examples are showing clear rip-offs of existing games from Fortnite to Dark Souls to Grand Theft Auto. These clips are only about 30-60 seconds long, and the idea that an entire, sprawling AAA video game, the kind these generations are aping, could be developed with this tool is not something that is remotely close to reality.

The clearest example is a Genie 3 Fortnite video that generates a minute-long clip of the game. But what it’s doing is taking a screenshot of the game posted in a PC Gamer article and extrapolating from there. In an added twist, Fortnite’s Tim Sweeney of Epic seems to celebrate the idea, referencing a past experiment where Fortnite inserted an AI Darth Vader using James Earl Jones’ voice rights.

Another example is a clip of a game that looks almost exactly like Dark Souls, demonstrating the ability to die and respawn. (Criticizing this video got me blocked by the poster).

Those actually in the gaming industry don’t even know where to start when it comes to how far away this is from generating anything close to an actual, full video game in these genres, and are frustrated that the market seems to not understand that in the least, wiping billions in value off these companies in a day because of a handful of videos like this. There is so, so much that goes into building video games that even if you say, “well, it will do it someday!” the time scale we’re talking about here is vast.

GenAI moves at different speeds for different media. We have already reached a point where it is genuinely difficult to tell AI-generated art from real art, and real artists are being replaced by AI as we speak. Video is evolving, but is less far along, and Hollywood seems nauseated by the idea of AI movies or shows. That was demonstrated by a newly released historical AI “film” by director Darren Aronofsky that was lambasted from all sides this week.

Video games, at least games of this scale, are nowhere close to being able to be made through this kind of AI. While AI tools are increasingly used within video game development, that’s being implemented by these companies that the market now seems to think are in danger.

Yes, the future of AI is unpredictable. It can make vast leaps forward or stall out, depending on the territory. While seemingly impressive to the uninitiated, the idea of AAA games being generated by a handful of prompts (that so far, are mainly ripping off screenshots and YouTube gameplay footage) is miles away, if it ever happens at all. That seems unlikely, even with the pace of genAI progression in many fields today.

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