At the time, Steam, the biggest platform for PC games, did not allow the use of generative AI in games released using the storefront. “[Companies] kind of skip that step now [using AI], which I think is not great.”Left: a composite AI illustration of the Roottrees. When it comes to finished products, though, he still sees generative AI as “not doing that well in general” among players. “The vast majority of people are like, ‘I’m very happy you got rid of the AI,’” Ward says. The Roottrees are Dead is now a critical and commercial success, which would not have happened without both generative AI and a human artist.