Robin Ward was recovering from a damaged arm when he fell in love with The Roottrees are Useless, a free browser recreation hosted on itch.io, an indie video games salesfront. He reached out to its creator, Jeremy Johnston, and informed him, “This ought to be a much bigger deal than it’s.” On the similar time, Ward says, he “knew why” it couldn’t be.
The browser model of The Roottrees are Useless used AI-generated artwork for its photographs, a central a part of the puzzle recreation that duties gamers with investigating dozens of individuals and filling out its complicated household tree. On the time, Steam, the largest platform for PC video games, didn’t permit using generative AI in video games launched utilizing the storefront. As well as, Ward and Johnston agreed that they felt it was “unethical to promote paintings created on this approach.”
Johnston had initially launched the sport free of charge, regardless of spending 11 months constructing it up from what was initially a International Sport Jam challenge cobbled collectively in lower than per week in 2023. Within the jam’s tight time constraints, and in a time earlier than generative AI was fairly so well-known, he reached out to a pal who was “tremendous into” utilizing Midjourney and requested if he’d be keen to generate photographs primarily based on prompts he had give you for his puzzles.
The photographs had been removed from excellent. Each Johnston and Ward level out a warped, staring picture of a younger woman within the unique model of the sport (which is still available for free) — Ward calls it “demonic.” Different portraits have the twisted palms that had been a telltale giveaway of generative AI on the time.
However regardless of increasing the sport for nearly a yr, including to the story and puzzle elements, Johnston says he “by no means actually thought” to switch the artwork. Not being an artist himself, he was centered on the photographic high quality of the present paintings, and he knew he would by no means be capable of afford to rent fashions and a cameraperson to recreate it.
And though he was placing a variety of work into the expanded model, he wasn’t anticipating the response it will ultimately get. “I’ve launched different issues — not video games, essentially, however issues that I spent a variety of time and vitality on, after which they got here out and nobody cared,” he says. So though he spent a variety of time on Roottrees, he didn’t wish to make investments cash he was by no means anticipating to get again.
When he did launch the itch.io model of Roottrees, although, it was surprisingly standard. It unfold on boards and Reddit, and it obtained some consideration within the video games press. He didn’t cost for it, on account of the AI paintings, though he did embody a donation hyperlink and says he made round $2,000-$3,000 from greater than 10,000 gamers.
And a type of gamers was Ward. After reaching out to Johnston, they agreed that Ward would reprogram the sport and rent an illustrator to switch the AI paintings and get it prepared for a Steam launch. The illustrator he introduced on, Henning Ludvigsen, says he used the AI artwork as a type of idea sketch. Ludvigsen then did his personal analysis into the period and magnificence the image was speculated to evoke, ultimately making virtually 40 illustrations throughout practically a yr of labor.
“I’m not an enormous fan of generative AI,” he says, saying his friends within the illustration business have seen a discount in work, notably idea artists. “[Companies] type of skip that step now [using AI], which I believe isn’t nice.”
Relating to completed merchandise, although, he nonetheless sees generative AI as “not doing that nicely usually” amongst gamers. Massive online game corporations like Take Two Interactive have famous that gamers are likely to not solely keep away from video games that use AI but additionally react negatively to them on-line and in scores, calling it a possible avenue for “lack of gamers, revenues…and fame hurt.” Johnston mentions the case of Cyan Worlds, the developer behind Myst, receiving backlash for utilizing “AI assisted content material” like texture belongings in its newest recreation.
The Roottrees are Useless appeared to skirt these points by being clear about its use upfront, in addition to releasing free of charge, Johnston says. Ward additionally factors out that “on this case, it’s the case of ‘there could be no recreation’ versus ‘there’s a recreation.’” Johnston agrees that with out using AI-generated paintings, the preliminary model would by no means have been launched, which means the eventual full model with Ludvigsen’s work in it will additionally by no means have existed. Ludvigsen himself says he “actually loved” changing the illustrations, given he’s “not an enormous fan of” AI artwork technology usually.
“I believe some folks would say, ‘Effectively, I would like that there isn’t any recreation on this case,’ and I believe they’re entitled to their opinion,” Ward says, citing the environmental concerns and the scrapping of artists’ work for coaching corpuses as potential arguments for that method. “However I ended up enjoying one thing that I actually cherished,” he says.
The sport was launched on Steam in January 2025. “The overwhelming majority of persons are like, ‘I’m very pleased you removed the AI,’” Ward says. Though some have mentioned they like the extra photographic high quality of the generated artwork, Ludvigsen’s work is undeniably an improve, from the untwisted fingers to the elevated consistency in design for characters who seem in a number of pictures, which makes some puzzles extra comprehensible.
The Roottrees are Useless is now a important and industrial success, which might not have occurred with out each generative AI and a human artist. Each Ward and Johnston be aware that the sport took an uncommon path to its present state. However with the rising prevalence of AI instruments, it’s potential extra video games will find yourself on the identical path.