In one of the many points made about Generative AI (GenAI) tech in game development within the last year, as the technology continues to be a hot topic in video games, Epic Games chief executive officer Tim Sweeney argued that game stores like Steam having disclosures for when a game was made with GenAI tools "makes no sense."
Sweeney believes that the tech will become as common in game development as game engines, and that "It makes no sense for game stores, where AI will be involved in nearly all future production." Whether you disagree with Sweeney or not, it seems like there are plenty of workers within the video game industry that flat out disagree with Epic's CEO.
A new survey conducted by GamesIndustry.Biz for its currently-ongoing 'AI Week', which includes several stories all to do with AI and GenAI in game development, received 826 responses from workers within the video game industry on a number of topics. One of those was whether video game storefronts like Steam should include disclosures if GenAI tools were used to make the game.
Valve added a new policy requiring developers to include disclosures at the bottom of their Steam pages if their game was made with GenAI tools back in 2024. Crucially, though, the onus is on the developers to be honest about whether they used those tools or not, so it's easy for many to simply not include the disclosure, but many games, including popular titles like ARC Raiders, do include such disclosures on their Steam page.
The vast majority of the responses to GI.Biz's survey, 88.4%, believe that yes, if a developer has used GenAI tools in the making of their game, that should be disclosed on the game's store page. That said, there are more mixed opinions on Valve's approach to the disclosures, with 48.7% saying they don't agree with Valve's approach, 32.1% saying they do, and another 19.2% remaining in the maybe/don't know camp.
Thankfully for anyone concerned that developers would look to simply not include the disclosures, the majority of respondents also said they would indeed include such disclosures should they use GenAI tools in making their games. 70.8% said they would disclose it for administrative purposes, while 76.8% said they would disclose it, even if the tools were only used during conceptual phases of the game's development and not for any assets that went into the final product.
As for how it should be disclosed, more than half of developers believe it should be disclosed in a checklist style, where they can specify if it was used for elements like QA or concepting, while the next largest percentage of respondents said it should be a simple 'Yes or No' statement.
While there are likely other things game developers and Tim Sweeney disagree on, storefront disclosures for GenAI tech is one topic we can be sure they are on opposite sides of. In other GenAI in game development news, a recent study backed by a studio that makes games with AI-powered NPCs claimed that 96% of players enjoy games with AI-powered NPCs. They only asked 68 people, though.
How do you, as players, think GenAI tools should be disclosed on store pages, if you think they should be disclosed at all? Let us know in the poll below.
About the author: David has been writing about videogames, technology, and culture since 2020, with a focus on reporting daily news across multiple publications, including GameDaily.Biz, GameSkinny, and PlayStation Universe before joining Wccftech in 2025. David started contributing as Canada/US reporter for Wccftech's gaming section in 2025. Besides being up-to-date on the industry's movements, he loves interviewing developers, reviewing games, and writing intricate essays about the symbolism and layered meanings to be found in rich narratives as he's done for publications like GamesIndustry.Biz, LostInCult, and others. Outside of games he loves movies, music, theatre, his hometown, and his family, though not necessarily in that order.
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