Only days after announcing the closure of a big AAA games studio, Netflix has gone and made a big splash about the future of its games division, with executive Mike Verdu posting on Linkedin that he's left his role of VP at games and is now the "VP for GenAI for Games".
It's a lengthy post, which reads like it was written in 2022 and that Verdu has learned nothing from the backlash, legal turmoil and financial strain the entire AI project is currently facing as its masters scramble to keep the line going up. I'm going to post most of it here because it's important you read each unhinged line:
At long last, I am ready to talk about what I'm doing next: I am working on driving a "once in a generation" inflection point for game development and player experiences using generative AI. This transformational technology will accelerate the velocity of development and unlock truly novel game experiences that will surprise, delight, and inspire players.
I am focused on a creator-first vision for AI, one that puts creative talent at the center, with AI being a catalyst and an accelerant. AI will enable big game teams to move much faster, and will also put an almost unimaginable collection of new capabilities in the hands of developers in smaller game teams.Â
Verdu then moved onto some staffing and internal policy stuff before closing with:
GenAI is that next challenge. I don't think I've been this excited about an opportunity in this industry since the 90s, when we saw a new game launch every few months that redefined what was possible. It was an incredible time to be making games as talented creators showed all of us what the future looked like. Guess what? We're back to those days of seemingly unlimited potential and the rapid pace of innovation, which resulted in mind-blowing surprises for players every few months.
I can't believe how lucky I am to be alive when a wave this big is about to hit the game industry. Many view this technology with fear, but I am a game-maker at heart and I see its potential to unlock all of us, to create mind-blowing new experiences for players, to lift us to new heights. Yes, we'll have to adapt and change, but when have we failed to meet that challenge as an industry?
I dunno man, the games industry seems utterly incapable of meeting any of the challenges it's currently facing? Let alone a "wave this big" that he thinks is made of money and great games but will actually just be more layoffs and machine-generated slop?
Also great work trumpeting this just days after closing down a whole studio, including three of its very experienced leaders. It didn't "enable" shit for them!
