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You may already be aware of a pretty loud anti-AI sentiment in the world of gaming, and polls have even shown that many gamers remain skeptical of AI disclaimers, a purely trust-based disclosure on Steam. Either way, video game lawyer Haley MacLean, known as @haleyfax online, has revealed that many companies are now turning away from generative AI.
MacLean is a corporate IP lawyer at Voyer Law, serving as the video game lead attorney. She deals with “indie up to AA” studios, and according to a recent interview with GamesRadar+, many publishing studios are now “sticking in ‘no gen AI’ clauses” in response to backlash from gamers. These clauses are effective in marketing, porting, or QA of games.
Generative AI in games and potential copyright quirks #
More developers and publishers are pushing to reduce generative AI usage, at least in the West. “If I did encounter one that didn’t have a gen AI clause, if the publisher was creating assets too, I would say we need to push for that,” says the lawyer. “Don’t touch it. It’s not worth the legal liability that it brings to you,” she advises studios. The comments come after the publishing lead of Palworld, John “Bucky” Buckley, said developers Pocketpair avoid using AI because “gamers don’t want it”.
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“In this last year alone, it’s gone from being in a decent chunk of agreements, maybe the more risk-averse publishers are sticking in ‘no gen AI’ clauses, and sort of trickled down to, ‘The big guys are doing it. We should do it too’. Even the smaller, more simple publishing studios are like, ‘Let’s include this just to cover our butts.'”
Haley MacLean, Video game Lead Attorney at Voyer Law, via GamesRadar+
Another interesting point MacLean raises is the issue of the copyright act(s). Generative AI is pretty messy in this regard, as purely AI-generated content lacks human authorship and therefore is not protected. She points to Tomb Raider: Legacy of Atlantis, which is due in February 2027. It has already faced backlash; the Steam store page disclosure notes that “Any AI-assisted assets” have been replaced or “refined by humans” before making it into the final game.
The video game lawyer says if game devs, such as the creators of Legacy of Atlantis, get “sloppy about it” and create “a bunch of assets that are not humanly transformed into original works of IP,” there is an argument that others could lift those from the game and reuse them in another work without penalty.
Using AI-generated tree models as an example, MacLean says, “you have no ownership title over them if you didn’t put in the sweat equity to have an artist go in and, inspired by that original first pass of the tree, then transform it into an original tree asset”. “Gen AI can’t assign copyright; it can’t transfer copyright,” she says, noting the Copyright Act “wants humans making art”.
“I think these major companies who are always laying off, trying to cut the bottom line, increase the value of the company, they’re going to cut corners when they can, and I think they’re going to get sloppy. And I think we’re going to see lawsuits of those types in the coming years when they want their protection but they want to do everything faster and cheaper.”
Haley MacLean, Video game Lead Attorney at Voyer Law, via GamesRadar+