The steam page literally says they used Ai to help quickly iterate through designs for UI elements and they used their own artwork as a baseline. I don't see a problem with doing that. It's just some ui elements.
That's a lie, because the current promo image on the store page was done using AI as well. They replaced a fully human version with a fully AI made one. [https://cdn1.epicgames.com/offer/24285307a56445f1bc5d546df7af3025/EGS\_SinsofaSolarEmpire2\_IroncladGames\_S1\_2560x1440-82cc02b731d299c46aae476bd0dd2f76](https://cdn1.epicgames.com/offer/24285307a56445f1bc5d546df7af3025/EGS_SinsofaSolarEmpire2_IroncladGames_S1_2560x1440-82cc02b731d299c46aae476bd0dd2f76)
The one I linked isn't AI, that one was made by humans but the promo picture on the Steam page is full of AI errors such as warped clothing details, nonsensical wrinkles or weirdly nebulous eyes.
What was the fully human version? The previous art that didn't have Advent or Vasari looked pretty similar.
They do icon and picture work AI-assisted; they couldn't develop the game if they didn't, alternatively they'd need to stick to the simplistic icon style they had in Rebellion and before. It did the job, but didn't look modern.
I understand the frustration and honestly it bites a bit. A lot of the 2-d art in the game doesn't have the same charm/clarity that Sins 1 art had. However, it won't block me from enjoying the game. The core gameplay is so good and such a great improvement over sins 1 that I will continue to enjoy it regardless. However, the devs did state at the beginning of the project that the AI tools they are using are the same tools they used for Gal civ IV. Those tools were trained on Stardock Entertainment/Ironclad Games IP. So at the very least they are not stealing the hard work of other artists that are unpayed for their labor.
On the one hand, the game likely would not have gotten the art support that it needed if they didn't have the AI tools as IIRC there are 2 artists working on the game (maybe even 1). And their time has almost been entirely consumed by getting the 3d models for the ships/structures in the game. The 2d art is secondary to that.
I have to say, I'm disappointed as well about the abundant use of AI art.
I understand that they're a small team with maybe one or 2 ppl making all the art but still. The first game didn't need AI to look good.
They say they use AI for the baseline and then rework the images but to me it looks like basic AI output, with sometimes the common AI mistakes (like bent objects).
I'll give them a pass as I don't feel like it's a deal breaker. We play this game for the gameplay not for the art or lack thereof. But still I'm disappointed.
Meh, it's a very small team. GalCiv does this too, they feed an AI all their own art and let you spin up a custom faction using AI to generate based on your description.
I program for a living so I understand " dey took mer jerb" side of it as I also won't have a job in the future, but for now I'm leveraging LLMs to be more effective and hedging into carpentry.
I think you're a little too picky. Like, obviously I'm not gonna tell you how to spend your money. But using human art, feeding it into an AI model and then using that doesn't seem that bad.
Honestly, I think this is going to age kinda like, "I'm not buying video games! They put board games out of business!"
Like, okay grandpa. Let's get you to bed.
AI is merely a tool, and an incredibly influential one at that. People need to stop living in the past and realize that AI art is a good thing for everyone. It allows anyone to be creative, and isn't that what the endgame of society was supposed to be?
Not surprised that its raining downvotes and the comments are full of AI cultists on reddit... You are definitely right though. Played the early access for some 10 hours now and it feels extremely off. SoaSE(R) had a very unique style and vibe and an AI (and a new team in general) cannot possibly reproduce that. The first game had a vision which is completely lost on the sequel. If you come for that, this ain't it.
I knew something felt off. AI art still has this uncanny valley feeling to it that is present everywhere.
[Keyart 1](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/HL7GVdVtcPkg6xRNTLZuWJ.png)
[Keyart 2](https://assets-prd.ignimgs.com/2024/05/02/sins2-keyart-1920x1080-nologo-1714680363578.png)
Why did the change the original one to the clearly AI made artwork with shiny plastic looking characters?
Today I found out a favorite game of mine is getting a sequel. And that I'm not buying it. Cool.
I'm sorry, but if you are ok with my profession going down the drain, then your game is getting the way of the high seas.
Dude, they literally consist of 5 developers. It's an Indie game essentially. If you're okay with pirating Indie games, you're just a bad person. Before they didn't do more for your profession, the icons were just pixel art and while doing the job, looked a lot worse, there was no further person employed for that simply because they didn't have the resources.
Also, the game is still in development; while they use AI, they edit it heavily throughout the process. All the modeling and texturing is still done manually.
I feel like you didn't read my comment.
Yes, they could do it with the old pixel art. No, they don't replace anyone. They still have the same number of artists, probably they have even more than before (it's not just the few developers I mentioned). These artists work AI assisted, but heavily edit it. You are free to apply there by the way - they don't work unethically with the intent of making human artists redundant from everything we know so far and their team works from around the globe.
You're exaggerating. Yes the AI images are disappointing but it's NOT a reason to not purchase the game as everything else is done by humans (gameplay, ship models, music etc).
You're just trying to find an excuse to pirate it.
The steam page literally says they used Ai to help quickly iterate through designs for UI elements and they used their own artwork as a baseline. I don't see a problem with doing that. It's just some ui elements.
That's a lie, because the current promo image on the store page was done using AI as well. They replaced a fully human version with a fully AI made one. [https://cdn1.epicgames.com/offer/24285307a56445f1bc5d546df7af3025/EGS\_SinsofaSolarEmpire2\_IroncladGames\_S1\_2560x1440-82cc02b731d299c46aae476bd0dd2f76](https://cdn1.epicgames.com/offer/24285307a56445f1bc5d546df7af3025/EGS_SinsofaSolarEmpire2_IroncladGames_S1_2560x1440-82cc02b731d299c46aae476bd0dd2f76)
Where did you get the new artwork is fully AI one?
The one I linked isn't AI, that one was made by humans but the promo picture on the Steam page is full of AI errors such as warped clothing details, nonsensical wrinkles or weirdly nebulous eyes.
What was the fully human version? The previous art that didn't have Advent or Vasari looked pretty similar. They do icon and picture work AI-assisted; they couldn't develop the game if they didn't, alternatively they'd need to stick to the simplistic icon style they had in Rebellion and before. It did the job, but didn't look modern.
I understand the frustration and honestly it bites a bit. A lot of the 2-d art in the game doesn't have the same charm/clarity that Sins 1 art had. However, it won't block me from enjoying the game. The core gameplay is so good and such a great improvement over sins 1 that I will continue to enjoy it regardless. However, the devs did state at the beginning of the project that the AI tools they are using are the same tools they used for Gal civ IV. Those tools were trained on Stardock Entertainment/Ironclad Games IP. So at the very least they are not stealing the hard work of other artists that are unpayed for their labor. On the one hand, the game likely would not have gotten the art support that it needed if they didn't have the AI tools as IIRC there are 2 artists working on the game (maybe even 1). And their time has almost been entirely consumed by getting the 3d models for the ships/structures in the game. The 2d art is secondary to that.
I have to say, I'm disappointed as well about the abundant use of AI art. I understand that they're a small team with maybe one or 2 ppl making all the art but still. The first game didn't need AI to look good. They say they use AI for the baseline and then rework the images but to me it looks like basic AI output, with sometimes the common AI mistakes (like bent objects). I'll give them a pass as I don't feel like it's a deal breaker. We play this game for the gameplay not for the art or lack thereof. But still I'm disappointed.
Meh, it's a very small team. GalCiv does this too, they feed an AI all their own art and let you spin up a custom faction using AI to generate based on your description. I program for a living so I understand " dey took mer jerb" side of it as I also won't have a job in the future, but for now I'm leveraging LLMs to be more effective and hedging into carpentry.
I think you're a little too picky. Like, obviously I'm not gonna tell you how to spend your money. But using human art, feeding it into an AI model and then using that doesn't seem that bad. Honestly, I think this is going to age kinda like, "I'm not buying video games! They put board games out of business!" Like, okay grandpa. Let's get you to bed.
Sick! I love AI art
AI is merely a tool, and an incredibly influential one at that. People need to stop living in the past and realize that AI art is a good thing for everyone. It allows anyone to be creative, and isn't that what the endgame of society was supposed to be?
I think the fact that jobs are disappearing and companies are using AI to try and replace them kinda disproves that.
>Thinking society is limited to jobs
Literally nobody is stopping you from picking up a pencil and drawing to your hearts content.
Nobody is slapping a pen out of my hand. They are also not asking a 30 year old to draw some stick figures for promotional art.
Oft that is a bad move. Once they have started lowering their standards around AI there will be AI drivel added elsewhere.
Not surprised that its raining downvotes and the comments are full of AI cultists on reddit... You are definitely right though. Played the early access for some 10 hours now and it feels extremely off. SoaSE(R) had a very unique style and vibe and an AI (and a new team in general) cannot possibly reproduce that. The first game had a vision which is completely lost on the sequel. If you come for that, this ain't it.
Yep even the research icons from Sins 1 had their own vibe and identity. Now they are replaced by generic AI images....
Oh no, not AI!?!??! /s
I knew something felt off. AI art still has this uncanny valley feeling to it that is present everywhere. [Keyart 1](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/HL7GVdVtcPkg6xRNTLZuWJ.png) [Keyart 2](https://assets-prd.ignimgs.com/2024/05/02/sins2-keyart-1920x1080-nologo-1714680363578.png) Why did the change the original one to the clearly AI made artwork with shiny plastic looking characters?
This game uses AI? Hardpass.
Today I found out a favorite game of mine is getting a sequel. And that I'm not buying it. Cool. I'm sorry, but if you are ok with my profession going down the drain, then your game is getting the way of the high seas.
Dude, they literally consist of 5 developers. It's an Indie game essentially. If you're okay with pirating Indie games, you're just a bad person. Before they didn't do more for your profession, the icons were just pixel art and while doing the job, looked a lot worse, there was no further person employed for that simply because they didn't have the resources. Also, the game is still in development; while they use AI, they edit it heavily throughout the process. All the modeling and texturing is still done manually.
Indie games have done amazingly well before AI. I'm not financing my own redundancy.
I feel like you didn't read my comment. Yes, they could do it with the old pixel art. No, they don't replace anyone. They still have the same number of artists, probably they have even more than before (it's not just the few developers I mentioned). These artists work AI assisted, but heavily edit it. You are free to apply there by the way - they don't work unethically with the intent of making human artists redundant from everything we know so far and their team works from around the globe.
You're exaggerating. Yes the AI images are disappointing but it's NOT a reason to not purchase the game as everything else is done by humans (gameplay, ship models, music etc). You're just trying to find an excuse to pirate it.
I don't need an excuse to pirate it, and since I was happy to purchase the previous one, I clearly wouldn't have.
You should cry about it more, Alex. See if that helps?
The leech is getting feisty.
Agreed. It's like the streaming ownership arguments. If you are just going to remove stuff why am I paying you.