Larian, AI, and a Community Backlash
Larian Studios, the team behind Baldur's Gate 3, is heading into a major Reddit AMA to clear up confusion and frustration around one of the hottest topics in game development right now: generative AI.
After the studio revealed its next big RPG, Divinity, at The Game Awards 2025 with a dark and brutal trailer, excitement was sky high. This is Larian’s biggest project yet, apparently even larger in scope than Baldur’s Gate 3. But the celebration did not last long.
In a follow up interview with Bloomberg, studio head Swen Vincke talked about how Larian has been experimenting with generative AI in the early stages of development. He mentioned that developers at the studio were happy using it and framed AI as part of the workflow.
That was enough to spark a strong negative reaction among a chunk of the fan base. For many players, AI in game development is tied to fears about replacing human writers, artists, actors, and other creatives. Overnight, Vincke’s carefully built reputation as a player friendly studio boss took a hit, with some fans now seeing him as just another executive chasing efficiency at the cost of people.
The reaction was strong enough that Vincke quickly promised a full AMA to explain exactly how Larian uses AI and where they draw the line. That session is scheduled on Reddit at 5 am PT, 8 am ET, and 2 pm CET on January 9.
What Larian Has Actually Said About AI
It is worth looking at what Vincke has already said about AI before this AMA. This was not the first time he had talked about it. Back in April 2024, he called AI a tool that helps the team work faster, and specifically pushed back on the idea that Larian would let a chatbot write dialogue. At that time he emphasized that the studio was hiring writers, not replacing them.
Later, he gave more detail and pointed to areas where Larian already uses AI behind the scenes. These are mostly technical, unglamorous tasks that tend to be tedious for humans:
- Cleaning up motion capture data
- Editing and processing voice lines
- Automating repetitive work that developers generally do not enjoy
Used this way, AI is more of a background tool than a creative author. It speeds up polishing and production work, and in theory lets human developers spend more time on the fun parts: writing good quests, designing systems, and building the cinematic style that made Baldur’s Gate 3 so popular on PC.
However, context matters. Those calmer comments did not attract much attention at the time. The controversy only kicked off when AI talk landed right after a huge reveal of Larian’s next blockbuster RPG. Fans were already wired with hype, so the idea of generative AI touched a nerve at the worst possible moment.
Vincke tried to cool things down with a blunt response on X, using some colorful language to underline that Larian is not secretly plotting to fire its creative teams. But instead of arguing endlessly on social media, he announced the upcoming AMA and promised full transparency on what the studio is and is not doing with AI.
What Fans Really Want To Know About Divinity
Interestingly, when Larian announced the timing of the AMA, many of the replies on X were not actually about AI. Instead, a lot of fans immediately shifted focus to the new game itself and started firing off questions about Divinity.
Players are already asking things like:
- Will the combat be turn based again, or will it move toward real time with pause
- How will Divinity relate to previous games in the series
- Will it have big cinematic cutscenes like Baldur’s Gate 3
- How much romance and relationship content will it offer
It is unlikely that Larian will give clear answers to most of those questions this early. Big RPGs like this go through years of iteration, and studios tend to keep firm details under wraps until much closer to launch. But it shows where the community’s heart is: people care deeply about the quality of the game and want reassurance that Larian is still the same studio that delivered one of the most respected PC RPGs in recent years.
The AMA on the r/Games subreddit will probably focus on two themes. First, clearing up misconceptions about generative AI and making it clear whether Larian plans to use it for writing, art, or performance instead of just support tasks. Second, setting expectations for Divinity without spilling too many spoilers or technical details.
For PC players and RPG fans, this is worth watching closely. Larian has become one of the flagship studios for deep, choice driven computer RPGs, and its stance on AI will influence how other developers talk about similar tools. It is also a rare chance to see a major studio directly respond to community pushback rather than just issuing a scripted PR statement.
If you want to follow it live, be ready on the r/Games subreddit at the scheduled time. Even if Larian keeps the real spoilers locked down, we may get a clearer sense of how this new era of tech will actually fit into big budget PC RPG development, and whether Divinity can live up to the massive expectations set by Baldur’s Gate 3.
Original article and image: https://www.pcgamer.com/software/ai/larians-big-q-and-a-session-on-how-its-using-ai-to-help-make-its-next-game-is-happening-tomorrow-on-reddit/
