Crimson Desert developers have apologised after fans uncovered AI-generated images within the ambitious open-world game.
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Crimson Desert was released last week (March 20) and introduces players to the fantasy land of Pywel. There, you take control of warrior Kliff on his journey to rebuild the Greymane faction after a brutal assault, in order to save the world from a terrible danger. “From vast wilderness and cities to ruins and the mysterious Abyss, forge your path through battles and discovery,” reads an official description.
The action-adventure game has been praised for its scope and the freedom it gives players, while others have complained about Crimson Desert’s controls and gameplay mechanics. Crimson Desert currently has a “generally favourable” score on review aggregate site Metacritic and now has a “mostly positive” user-review score on Steam after early backlash.
Over the weekend, players uncovered a number of in-game assets that looked as if they were created by AI. “I’m okay with the game being generic but I want it to be human made generic at least,” wrote one Reddit user.
A Redditor has discovered an AI generated artwork in Crimson Desert.
There are other posts that also claim to have found AI generated images throughout the game.
It’s not even a “good” image. Pure slop, just look at the horses legs LMAO. Really disappointing. pic.twitter.com/kUSvqDcUtR
— GameRoll (@GameRoll_) March 20, 2026
Responding to the criticism, Crimson Desert developers Pearl Abyss shared an apologetic message on social media that confirmed a number of AI-generated images had accidentally been included in the final game after being used for “early-stage” development.
“These assets helped us rapidly explore tone and atmosphere in the earlier phases of production. However, our intention has always been for any such assets to be replaced, following final work and review by our art and development teams, with work that aligned with our quality standards and creative direction,” they explained.
“Following reports from our community, we have identified that some of these assets were unintentionally included in the final release. This is not in line with our internal standards, and we take full responsibility for it.”
We would like to address questions regarding the use of AI in Crimson Desert.
During development, some 2D visual props were created as part of early-stage iteration using experimental AI generative tools. These assets helped us rapidly explore tone and atmosphere in the earlier…
— Crimson Desert (@CrimsonDesert_) March 22, 2026
“We also acknowledge that we should have clearly disclosed our use of AI. While these tools were primarily used during early production, with the expectation that these assets would be replaced prior to release, we recognise that this does not excuse the lack of transparency. We sincerely apologise for these oversights.”
Pearl Abyss is currently conducting a “comprehensive audit of all in-game assets” and will be replacing all AI-generated images in upcoming patches.
Last year, the teams behind Baldur’s Gate 3 and Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 were both criticised for their use of AI in early development of the hit games.
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