Cygames Steps Into AI And Fans Push Back
Cygames, the developer behind Umamusume and a major name in anime style game production, recently announced a new subsidiary called Cygames AI Studio. According to the companys own blog, this new division is designed to focus on artificial intelligence and to create what it describes as a unique creative cycle that goes beyond simple efficiency and instead expands creators creativity.
On paper that sounds like a typical corporate AI pitch. In reality the reaction from fans was anything but positive. The announcement went out on social media and was met with a wave of criticism, frustration, and outright contempt from players and artists who are already wary of generative AI in games.
For almost a week the company faced strong backlash online, especially from dedicated Umamusume fans. Many users saw the move as a threat to human artists and game developers and as part of a broader trend where publishers lean on AI instead of investing in people. The tone of the replies made it clear that a large portion of the community did not trust the idea of an AI focused studio inside one of their favorite game companies.
The Apology That Did Not Reassure Anyone
After several days of criticism Cygames posted what it framed as an apology. The company admitted that its original announcement was simplified and did not address any of the major social concerns around generative AI. It acknowledged that it had received many angry and disappointed comments and said it was sorry for causing concern.
Cygames also tried to calm fears by making a few key points:
- It says its products do not currently use art generated by generative AI.
- It claims to respect players and to value the dignity and passion of human creators and artists who build gaming culture.
- It promises that it will not implement generative AI in its products without giving prior notice.
However that last point is exactly where the apology fell flat for many fans. Saying you will announce generative AI use before doing it is not the same as promising not to do it at all. For a community already nervous about AI replacing human jobs and diluting artistic quality the statement sounded more like public relations damage control than a real change of direction.
Players quickly pointed out another detail that undermined the message. On the official Cygames career site there are already open positions for generative AI engineers and even AI related artist roles. That makes it very clear that the company is not just experimenting on the side but is actively building teams to bring AI deeper into its pipeline.
How This Fits Into The Wider Games And AI Landscape
The Cygames AI Studio move is not happening in a vacuum. Its parent company CyberAgent has been investing in AI for years. It has run an AI Lab research and development group since 2016 and in 2023 it launched another division focused specifically on using generative AI in animation and game development. From CyberAgents point of view doubling down on AI in Cygames is a logical extension of that long term strategy.
Across the wider games industry AI tools are spreading quickly. Studios use machine learning for tasks like animation cleanup, background asset generation, and even playtesting. The controversial side comes from generative AI that creates art, dialogue, or other creative content trained on massive data sets that often include the work of human artists.
Japanese publishers have been especially open about exploring this space. Square Enix for example has talked publicly about using AI for quality assurance work and other operations. A recent survey suggested that more than half of Japanese game companies are already using AI in some part of development, including large names like Level 5 and Capcom.
For players and creators the fear is that AI will be used not to enhance creativity but to cut costs. When executives talk about efficiency, automation, and AI doing large portions of work, it raises red flags about potential layoffs, devaluing human art, and a flood of content that feels less personal and less crafted.
Cygames positioning of AI as a way to expand creator freedom could be positive in theory. Smartly used AI can handle repetitive tasks, help with prototyping, or assist small teams in experimenting faster. The problem is trust. Fans have watched multiple companies use similar language right before pushing aggressive monetization, weak game launches, or major staff cuts. So when they hear that a beloved studio is building an AI focused subsidiary, they assume the worst until proven otherwise.
That tension explains why the Cygames apology did not land. Players were not only upset about the tone of the first announcement. They were reacting to a growing pattern across the industry where AI is rolled out with minimal transparency and human workers are treated as secondary to shareholder driven efficiency plans.
Going forward Cygames will be under close scrutiny. If it genuinely wants to convince players and artists that AI will support and not replace human creativity, it will need to offer more than vague reassurances. Concrete commitments, clear disclosure about AI generated content, and visible support for human staff and freelance artists will matter far more than carefully worded posts.
For gamers this story is another reminder that the future of game development is going to be tightly connected to how studios choose to use AI. The tech itself is not going away. The real fight is over who benefits from it and whether the games we play in the next few years feel more handcrafted and human or more automated and disposable.
Original article and image: https://www.pcgamer.com/software/ai/umamusume-developer-cygames-bullied-into-apology-by-outraged-horse-girl-enthusiasts-after-announcing-ai-subsidiary-we-sincerely-apologize-for-the-concern-weve-caused/
