AI is becoming increasingly more integrated into our world. It has its pros and it has its cons. There have been AI videos of celebrities, some studios using generative AI in movies, and even the world’s first ever AI actress. Hasbro, the popular toy and game company, has used AI models of characters to help design products in the past. But, rest assured, CEO Chris Cocks swears that Hasbro will never use AI tools to design Dungeons & Dragons and Magic: The Gathering.
Both Magic and D&D carry a massive universe on their respective backs. With each set comes unique designs and art to capture the magic of the expansive fantasy world. While discussing the integration of AI into Hasbro’s workflow in an interview for The Verge’s Decoder podcast, Cocks said that some brands, namely Wizards of the Coast, won’t do it.
“Garbage in, garbage out.”
“There are some brands that the audience, the creators, just don’t want it,” he said. “So we don’t even have it in our pipelines for our video games or for Magic: The Gathering or D&D.”
Cocks referred to AI usage in the creative process as “a bit of garbage in, garbage out.” He went on to say that “it’s humans who inspire the good ideas and follow through on them.”
This is a sentiment a lot of people seem to share about AI. “AI slop” is a term often thrown around on the internet. It’s reassuring for players to hear that the authenticity of their beloved RPGs are safe from AI corruption. AI may be weaving through the creative process more and more, but not for Wizards of the Coast and Hasbro, thank goodness.
Fans have criticized recent Magic sets for their art design, such as Avatar: The Last Airbender and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Cocks squashes any speculation that AI was involved in the design process. And it doesn’t look like that’s changing anytime soon.