The rise of generative AI has made the already grim reality of the modern games industry even more complicated, threatening to accelerate layoffs, climate change, and theft from artists all in one fell swoop. That’s led to rampant accusations (only some of which are accurate) of developers using genAI to make their games. Nintendo is the latest company caught in the crosshairs, thanks to a major part of its Switch 2 reveal.
When Nintendo showed off the Switch 2 in April, its presentation put the spotlight on Mario Kart World, a semi-open world version of the company’s popular racing game. But some players say images shown in a Nintendo Treehouse stream of the game show telltale signs of being made with generative AI, a claim that Nintendo has denied.
