Soulslike Game Director Confirms No AI Involvement in Final Release Following YouTuber Concerns Over Preview Build

The Relic: First Guardian, an upcoming Soulslike from Project Cloud Games, has sparked some controversy among content creators due to its alleged use of AI-generated assets in its preview builds. The game is set to launch on July 31, and the director has addressed these concerns, clarifying that while AI was utilized in the early stages of development, any AI elements present in the demo will not be included in the final version.

If you’re not familiar with The Relic: First Guardian, it’s certainly not for lack of promotion. Trailers have been shared widely, and demo keys have been distributed to numerous content creators within the Soulslike community. This strategy seems to be paying off, as the game has already amassed over 250,000 wishlists on Steam and PlayStation 5.

I was reminded of this title after catching a recent video from Iron Pineapple, which, while generating buzz, also raised eyebrows. Many creators, including FightinCowboy, noted that the preview build appeared somewhat off, with concerns about the artwork, item icons, and dialogue.

In an interview, director In-Hyeok Park confirmed that a few AI-generated elements may have slipped into the preview build, but he assured that none of this content will be part of the final game. “There is no AI used in the final game; however, in the early design stages, AI was used in a very few areas to help in the concept stage of development. This involved a few pieces of concept art for loading screens and a handful of icon images for the consumables,” Park explained.

He added, “Although there may be one or two elements of this AI still in the preview build, the final product will not have any of this AI work in the game. AI was also used in the early stage to help localize text, although all text was then manually reviewed and edited by Project Cloud staff, and no AI was used in the game’s voiceovers.”

It’s possible that any AI-generated content was removed from the final version, or perhaps the creators were misinterpreting elements that were never AI-generated. Notably, the game’s Steam page does not mention any AI involvement.

One early review criticized the game for using AI voiceovers for quest givers, stating that it detracted from the experience. “Truly, no voice at all would’ve been better than the robotic garbage I experienced,” the review noted.