Kotetsu

EDIT: As I sometimes do, I'm locking this post now that it went bigger than I intended

I'm so tired.

I was excitedly going to spotlight this game, Mech Builder, on @indiegamesofcohost tomorrow. Such an amazing idea, exactly the type of game I've wanted to come out, bought it and enjoyed the tutorial. Such a great idea for a solo-dev, taps into a really satisfying loop. And really clever, using 2D drawn assets instead of it needing to be a 3D game.

Of course, a few hours later, I realize that the dev used AI Art to make mech designs, then traced over them.

I was rooting for this game so hard. I wanted to be its biggest cheerleader. Day 1 of it being released and I had excitedly showed it to a bunch of people already, even before drafting the IGOC post. And now I feel like an idiot for not spotting it sooner.

What pisses me off the MOST though is this: Steam ALREADY ALLOWS AI Art games! All Valve asks is that you fill out a short form on your store page that divulges what you used AI for. This dev, as of writing, hasn't added that at all. He claims that only whiney haters care about AI use, and yet chickened out of being honest and upfront in the Steam store description.

If you're gonna use AI Art to make your art-centric game, at least have the guts and the dignity to be upfront about it and see how your sales do.

daily knowledge: on the night of the Valleyschwag Hoedown, Noah Glass introduced Twttr to some who were in attendance. The service was never publicly announced, but buzzing from the alcohol and excitement, he called out to people in the crowds and showed them how to sign up from their cell phones. March 21st may have been the day the first tweet was sent, but July 14th was when Twitter broke street date. The next day, a couple tech bloggers who were at the party posted their reviews of the service, giving Noah top billing. While the idea was generally lauded as fun and unique, they were less enthused about the seemingly aimless state of his company. Although Odeo’s CEO, Evan Williams, didn’t seem to care, Jack Dorsey, Twttr’s lead developer, was furious. Not long after the event, Noah was forced to resign.

In 2013, Mark Zuckerberg famously described Twitter as “a clown car that crashed into a goldmine.” It’s moments like this that make that apparent. Because while the company’s birth was truly just some guys fucking around, despite everything they somehow stumbled upon a new medium, an entire concept that was far bigger than any of them.

THE END