Last week, shortly after Tomb Raider: Legacy of Atlantis appeared in the State of Play showcase, when the game's Steam page went live, players quickly noticed the page included a Generative AI (GenAI) use disclosure. Since then, we've been trying to get more clarity from developer Crystal Dynamics on how the studio uses GenAI, and experience director Jeff Adams has somewhat clarified its use, identifying GenAI as a "tool," one that helps the team "get the right answers faster."
Adams comments come from an interview with Game Informer, which also includes a short video of his answer to the question of how GenAI is used in Crystal Dynamics' development pipeline and features a PR representative for the studio stepping in before Adams could dig further into it.
He does, at least, provide an example of how the studio is using the technology, which essentially amounts to them using it as a means of concepting ideas without having to put in the time to build assets they'll ultimately never use.
"At Crystal Dynamics, we see AI as a tool that can help our team get to the right answers faster," Adams begins. "So, let me give you an example of what that looks like. So, say in early level development, we have an idea for an object, but we're not sure whether or not we want to take the dev time to build it. We can use a Generative AI tool to help us visualize that object in the world. And if it works, we'll then move it to our traditional pipeline."
"From there, the team will concept it, they'll build it, and we'll make sure that all the finished content in the final game is human-crafted. It's really important for us that our team has the tools to make the highest quality experience possible. Our fans deserve nothing less than that."
The follow-up question tries to get at the heart of how much of that initial GenAI asset is left by the time the team decides they're going to use it, and it's at that point that the PR representative steps in to end the conversation. "I think what I'd probably say is I think we've said all we want to say about it now," the representative says. "Once the game comes out and everyone can see how amazing it is, we'd probably be more comfortable. I think in this early moment, I just wouldn't want us to like start talking about that."
Adams then adds, "We just want to make it as easy as possible for us to make high-quality game experiences. That's really the important thing."
GenAI tools won't stop being controversial anytime soon, though the way in which Adams describes the team using it here will likely be how we keep seeing it brought up in the future, as it also doesn't seem to be going away anytime soon. While players can and will continue to voice their opinions on studios that use GenAI, the reality is we've not yet seen players vote with their wallets against studios that use the technology in a meaningful way.
If that does start to happen, then perhaps we'll stop seeing the technology adopted. In the meantime, we'll just have to hope there's no clear GenAI-slop right in players' faces when they load up Legacy of Atlantis next year.
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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