It feels like every other week brings news of developers using generative AI to create game assets, or at least seriously considering it. That's why the latest interview with the Pragmata development team caught my attention—they revealed they're manually crafting one of the game's levels to mimic an AI-generated aesthetic, even though it's entirely human-made.
This insight comes from an interview published by 4Gamer and translated by Automaton, featuring director Cho Yonghee and producer Naoto Oyama from Capcom. They discussed Pragmata's New York City-inspired stage, intentionally designed to give players the impression it was created by AI. (You can catch glimpses of this stage in the trailer below.)
Cho explained, "For Pragmata, we set the premise as 'a fake New York generated by AI.' When players encounter familiar locations, it helps them connect more easily. But to emphasize this isn't the real New York, we wanted to add a subtle distortion."
Oyama added, "It reflects reality, but its charm lies in those intentional glitches that feel out of place—like taxis sinking into floors or buses sprouting from walls. Even though the concept is AI-generated, our human developers worked tirelessly to embed mechanics that evoke that uncanny, AI-like vibe."
Cho further noted that achieving the right level of distortion is challenging. The goal is to make things look slightly off without going overboard. There's a delicate balance between something appearing AI-crafted and just seeming poorly made, as the latter can distract players. "Distortion involves creating shapes people have never seen before, which adds uniqueness," Cho said. "But if the shapes are too bizarre, players might think they're part of puzzles or have hidden meanings. Striking that balance between being distinctive and just background was tough."
I'm eager to see Capcom's take on AI-generated worlds, especially after chatting with them at last year's Tokyo Game Show. They mentioned how real-world AI had seemingly outpaced their initial fantasy AI concepts during Pragmata's development. AI won't have much longer to outdo Pragmata, though—the game is set for release on April 24, 2026. As of earlier this month, over 2 million people have already downloaded Pragmata's free demo.
