Benjamin Hanussek is Head of PJAIT Game Lab at the Polish-Japanese Academy of Information Technology in Warsaw, where he acts as project-coordinator, lecturer, and research advisor in the New Media Arts Department for Game Studies & Design. His work emphasizes pragmatic and industry-aligned approaches in game studies, facilitating exchange between academia, cultural institutions and game studios. Moreover, he works as LQA Testing Associate at Lionbridge Games, reviewing indie and AAA localizations for publishers including Team17, THQ Nordic, and Bandai/Namco.
Co-Author:
Yaraslau Kot, Tallinn University
Brace Yourselves, AI Is Coming: How Artificial Intelligence is going to increase revenue and transform jobs in the games industry
FROG 2023 – Talk
This paper critically assesses the impending impact of artificial intelligence (AI) integration on revenue generation and employment dynamics within the games industry through literature review, comparative analysis and qualitative interviews. AI’s role in optimizing production processes presents a compelling avenue for revenue augmentation. Leveraging AI for procedural content generation (i.e., visual, textual) or automated quality assurance holds potential to streamline development cycles, improve efficiency, and bolster creative outputs. However, these advancements also spotlight concerns related to job displacement. Therefore, the adoption of AI technology prompts a critical examination of the evolving employment landscape. Yet, opportunities arise for the industry to transition toward more specialized roles; roles focused on instructing AI, analysing and iterating its generated content. By conducting a literature review in the domain of Game Production Studies and drawing parallels to the transformative effect of the introduction of the Unity game engine in 2005, this study examines the dual prospects of enhanced revenue streams through production process optimization and looming job displacement. Furthermore, through qualitative expert interviews with three industry professionals from different areas (Game Design, Project Management, HR) further insight shall be taken into account. AI’s integration will ultimately reshape the industry’s landscape by enhancing revenue streams through efficiency gains but to which extent and cost? The importance of workforce adaptation is critical, emphasizing the need for strategic planning of both employers and employees to navigate the delicate balance between technological advancement and the preservation of jobs in the games industry.
6
