Generative artificial intelligence (AI) is lowering the barriers to game development, ushering in an era where players can create and enjoy their own games. The rapid spread of 'Vibe Coding,' which uses AI to write code, is driving this change. Agile game companies are developing platforms that allow users to create games based on their intellectual property (IP).
According to the gaming industry on August 24, Nexon’s blockchain subsidiary Nexspace and other domestic game companies are working to establish an AI game ecosystem. They are providing an environment where users can create games using generative AI and connecting this to existing game IPs and distribution platforms.
The rise of AI games is transforming the structure of participation in the gaming market. Unlike the traditional model where developers and users had distinct roles, AI enables users to engage in game creation, sharing, and distribution.
Nexters launched an AI game specialty section called 'AI Games' on One Store in August, allowing users to distribute games they created with AI to other users. The company envisions a new platform that connects AI game creation with One Store distribution and payment.
Jang Hyun-guk, CEO of Nexters, predicts that the spread of AI games will lead to the emergence of a new gaming market. He believes that AI can change not only the efficiency of development by reducing time and costs but also the very nature of who creates games and how they are consumed.
“As game development becomes easier and more accessible to users, the number of games will continue to increase. AI will further accelerate this trend,” Jang said. He added, “While the popularity of existing IP games will remain, a new market will emerge where users can play the games they create themselves.”
Changes are also occurring in the production methods of professional developers. Song Jae-kyung, an advisor at Nexters and a developer of 'Lineage,' is working on an 'Open MMO' project that utilizes generative AI to develop a massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) single-handedly.
Nexspace is experimenting with expanding the use of long-standing game IPs through AI. They are opening up official assets of their flagship IP, 'MapleStory,' to support new game creation by users. To facilitate this, they are hosting the AI-based Vibe Coding game development competition, 'MapleStory Vibe Camp.' This initiative aims to extend the IP into a creative ecosystem by encouraging users to create content using existing IP rather than just releasing new sequels.
This effort is a continuation of Nexspace's established blockchain game ecosystem. Despite a slowdown in enthusiasm for blockchain projects among major game companies, Nexspace has focused on player experience and user-to-user transactions through the MapleStory universe, rather than short-term token prices or rewards. The structure allows characters and items acquired during gameplay to lead to new experiences for other users.
The MapleStory universe emphasizes player experience and transactions over short-term token prices or rewards. The assets created by users during gameplay, such as characters and items, contribute to new experiences for other players. According to Vibe Camp, 693 games based on the MapleStory universe IP have been created, with 435 passing review and being serviced. The variety of genres, including RTS, TCG, and idle RPGs, shows that user creations are leading to actual game supply.
By incorporating AI-based game development, the scope of MapleStory IP utilization is expanding into the creative domain. Previously, users played games and traded assets; now, they are also creating new games and content.
Global AI companies are also paying attention to game development using generative AI. OpenAI is set to hold 'OpenAI Game Builders Seoul' on the 31st, testing the potential for game development using the coding agent 'Codex.' Participants will create games with Codex and integrate them with Com2us's game backend platform, 'Hive,' applying features necessary for actual release and operation.
The industry believes that for AI games to establish themselves as a new market, it is essential to lower the barriers to game production and create a distribution structure that connects user-created games to other users. Jang emphasized, “We need to make it easier to create and distribute games, and we must build that structure ourselves.”
* This article has been translated by AI.
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