Hardware Ready Ready to Bench?
LEVEL-5 AI apology. Artificial intelligence has officially entered the debate surrounding LEVEL-5. In response to the reactions sparked by the recent LEVEL5 VISION 2026 II, President and CEO Akihiro Hino confirmed that certain sequences in the presentation were created using generative AI tools, explaining that the goal was to make the show more spectacular and experiment with technologies increasingly present in the industry.
The statement was not limited to a simple admission. Hino also apologized to users who felt uncomfortable with the use of artificial intelligence, while simultaneously clarifying that LEVEL-5 does not intend to completely abandon these tools. The studio’s position appears very precise: AI may continue to be used to speed up certain production processes, but it must not replace people in the fundamental creative components of video games.
LEVEL-5 AI apology: why it matters
The controversy erupted after LEVEL5 VISION 2026 II, an event during which the company showcased various projects and updates on its future. Some spectators had begun to suspect that certain sequences in the presentation might have been created using generative tools. Hino subsequently confirmed that AI was indeed employed in parts of the showcase.
According to the CEO, the intention was to experiment with new possibilities and increase the visual impact of the presentation. However, the audience’s response was not entirely positive. For this reason, Hino acknowledged the discomfort expressed by a portion of the community and decided to address the issue directly, rather than letting the debate continue without an official position from the company.
This is probably the most interesting aspect of the entire affair: LEVEL-5 has not announced the abandonment of artificial intelligence. On the contrary, Hino considers these tools potentially useful for making some processes faster and more efficient. The company therefore wants to continue experimenting with AI, but while clearly distinguishing between tools used to support production and creative content that defines the identity of its games.
This is a fundamental distinction. According to Hino, elements such as scripting, character design, environment construction, and overall creative direction will continue to be handled by people. In other words, LEVEL-5 is not saying it wants to entrust the creation of its video games to artificial intelligence, but rather to use it as an additional tool within the pipeline.
Hino also provided a concrete example of the type of usage that LEVEL-5 finds interesting. One goal is to leverage AI tools to speed up the transformation of certain 2D materials into elements useful for three-dimensional production, reducing some of the more repetitive work necessary during development. This would allow, at least in the studio’s intentions, to shift a greater amount of time and resources toward what truly requires artistic, narrative, and game design decisions.
LEVEL-5’s promise is therefore not to indiscriminately replace human labor, but to use automation to lighten certain technical operations. Naturally, the concrete application of this philosophy will determine how it is perceived by players.
The goal is ambitious: going from five years to about two. Perhaps the most surprising part of Hino’s statements concerns development times. LEVEL-5 wants to find a way to reduce production cycles that can reach approximately five years down to about two, also using new technologies to speed up certain phases. The costs and time required to create modern video games continue to increase across the industry.
What changes and what are the effects
Increasingly complex productions require enormous teams, massive quantities of assets, and years of work. LEVEL-5 seems to want to address this problem directly, using AI as one of the tools to reduce the weight of longer and more repetitive operations. If the result were truly to give developers more time to focus on the creative part, it would certainly be interesting. The risk, of course, is that optimization becomes a shortcut instead.
It must also be clarified an important point: Hino’s statements do not mean that Professor Layton, Inazuma Eleven, Snack World, or other LEVEL-5 titles are games generated by artificial intelligence. That would be a completely different conclusion from what was declared. The confirmation mainly concerns the use of AI in parts of the showcase and the studio’s willingness to continue experimenting with these tools within its production processes.
LEVEL-5 maintains that fundamental creative components will continue to depend on people. A distinction that will be important to maintain whenever discussing the studio’s upcoming projects.
The issue is no longer “if” LEVEL-5 will use AI, but “how”. After Hino’s words, we know that LEVEL-5 does not consider artificial intelligence an experiment destined necessarily to disappear. The studio will continue to evaluate its usage. The question therefore becomes: to what extent? If AI is used primarily to lighten technical operations, keeping writers, artists, designers, and developers at the center of production, it could simply become another tool in the pipeline.
If instead its use were to progressively expand toward genuine artistic components, the public reaction could become much harsher. Hino acknowledged the criticisms and apologized for the discomfort caused by the showcase, but at the same time sent an equally clear message: LEVEL-5 wants to continue experimenting with artificial intelligence. And it will be exactly how they do so that decides whether this technology becomes a help for developers or a new reason for conflict with the community.
Source and further reading on LEVEL-5 AI apology: original article.
* Content created with the assistance of artificial intelligence systems.