Google announces Genie AI that can create video games from a text prompt 

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Google announces Genie AI that can create video games from a text prompt (Image via Logo Kwik)

Google DeepMind recently introduced Genie, an artificial intelligence (AI) model that can create interactive video games from just a prompt or image. This development allows new possibilities for game design and interaction. What makes this model so unique is the fact that it was trained on 200,000 hours of unsupervised public internet gaming videos.

Genie can create video games without any coding, which makes it targeted towards making development more accessible. Impressively, the AI can identify the main character in these titles. This allows users to control that character in the new environments.

This Google AI model can generate games at one frame per second (FPS) for a more retro gaming experience. However, it is interesting to consider the possibility of higher frame rate development in the future.


How does Genie AI work?

The technology behind Genie involves a Latent Action Model, Video Tokenizer, and Dynamics Model. These components work together to understand and predict the dynamics of video games, enabling Genie to generate interactive experiences. This release shows a future where making personalized virtual worlds could be easy for everyone.

Despite its impressive capabilities, Genie is, for the time being, a research-only project. Google has not made it publicly available, sparking both disappointment and humor within the community. This technology sparks debates on gaming's future, creativity, and how AI might shape game creation and entertainment.

Responses to this have been varied, blending excitement with concern about accessibility and its impact on professional game design. Experts are discussing how it might transform the field, making game creation more accessible and spurring creativity and innovation.


Looking forward

Google's new model is shaking things up by letting people make their own video games with AI. It's a big deal because Google usually tells us to be careful with AI-generated content. Now, they're jumping into gaming with it. This sparks a big discussion about how we use AI to come up with new titles but still keep things real and creative.

We're in a spot where blending AI with creativity in gaming is the game itself. The goal? To boost our creativity with AI without losing out on the human nuance that lights up our favorite games. It's not just about making cool games; it's about using AI to simplify the process of development and not be a substitute.

This approach isn't limited to gaming; it's about reshaping the digital world to be more supportive, inventive, and welcoming to AI and using it as a tool and not an alternative.

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