On August 5th, Wizards of the Coast, the renowned company responsible for the iconic RPG game franchise “Dungeons & Dragons” (D&D), made a decision that generated intense discussion in the community of fans and artists. The company announced a strategy of using Artificial Intelligence (AI) in the creation of illustrations for its products.
The controversy began on August 4, when author GmBen drew attention on Twitter to a series of peculiarities in the illustrations of the book “Bigby Presents: Glory of the Giants”. Find out more below.
Controversy leads to ban on use of AI
Photo: Microsoft/Disclosure
The illustration images show hands and feet in strange positions that do not match natural human anatomy, characteristics often associated with generated art.
The post quickly went viral, with much of the Dungeons & Dragons community voicing their disapproval of the use of AI-based art. This discontent led many to question Wizards of the Coast’s stance on the artistic quality of its works.
Even before the company made a statement, the artist responsible for the illustrations, Ilya Shkipin, admitted to having used technology to create certain details in the images in question.
The company stated that it was unaware of “some artists’ choice to use AI during their creative processes” and decided to ban its use in official art. Here’s an excerpt from Wizards of the Coast’s statement:
“We are reviewing our processes and updating our guidelines for artists to make it clear that they should not use AI art generation as part of their art creation process for D&D development.”
The use of Artificial intelligence in the arts has become an increasingly present topic in the creative scene and also in social debates. The use of this technology in the entertainment industry, including the recent strike by Hollywood actors and screenwriters, has generated heated discussions.
Some studios want to be able to scan actors to perpetuate their digitized images, without having to pay additional fees for continued use.
The decision of the Wizards of the Coast The decision to ban the use of AI in its official editions can be interpreted as an effort to preserve the guarantee and quality of the art associated with the “Dungeons & Dragons” brand. The community of fans, artists and players is now waiting to see how this change will affect the future of illustrations in products.
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