Kingdom Hearts Fans Believe They’ve Solved the Strange Mystery of AI-Generated Box Art

At first glance, the box art for the Kingdom Hearts Collection [I~III] on the Switch 2 looks pretty standard, showcasing Donald, Goofy, Mickey, and various versions of Sora, each referencing the three main games. However, a closer inspection revealed some peculiarities that sparked a debate about the potential use of generative AI in its creation. Fans were left wondering if the image was a messy AI creation or simply altered by the technology.

The controversy kicked off with Donald Duck’s hands. While his left hand has the correct five fingers, it’s an oddity for a Disney character. Fans soon spotted other strange details in the artwork, such as the gears on a clock tower, the mesh of Donald’s zipper, and the treads on Sora’s boot, all hinting at AI’s clumsy touch.

Despite the speculation that Tetsuya Nomura might have used AI for this artwork, it seems more plausible that Nomura created the original illustration, but the version used for the box art was later enhanced with AI.

This led to worries that the entire image could be primarily AI-generated or a mix of various AI-created elements. Some fans noted that Donald appeared to resemble an illustrated version of his 3D model from the game. Was AI being employed to mimic a “hand-drawn” aesthetic for the cover? With the current climate around generative AI, especially from companies that are openly exploring its use, it was tough to decipher the situation.

Enter online artist DekuDraws, who has a solid grasp of Nomura’s style. They asserted, “This is undeniably Nomura’s work! I believe the full illustration was intended to be compiled like this, which is why Donald’s ‘four-finger’ hand is hidden behind Sora. AI was used to separate the cast for alternate box art, as well as to give their 3D models a drawn appearance.”

They elaborated, “Seeing the rapidly spreading claims of AI use prompted me to take a closer look. As someone who has studied Nomura’s work, this is still him! This ‘new’ style is reminiscent of his Halloween illustration from October. The man is overworked; we’re lucky to get any new art at all!” This theory offers a plausible explanation for the key art’s peculiarities, much of which appears to be well-executed.

The suggestion is that while the core artwork was hand-drawn, generative AI may have been applied later to create different variations of the box art for various markets. However, it remains unclear why this approach was necessary, if that indeed was the case. A request for clarification from Square Enix went unanswered.

The CEO of Square Enix has expressed a desire for the company to aggressively explore generative AI, even suggesting it could handle much of the quality assurance work for their RPG titles. This push for AI integration comes amid job cuts in their North American publishing division. At a recent Final Fantasy XIV Fan Fest, one of the company’s localizers even poked fun at the directive to experiment with AI during a live presentation.