Call of Duty publisher Activision has updated its Steam page for Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 to include a disclosure about the use of AI-generated content in developing the latest installment of its flagship first-person shooter game.
The acknowledgment follows a new requirement from Steam—the leading PC gaming platform—that developers disclose the use of artificial intelligence in game development.
“Our team uses generative AI tools to help develop some in-game assets,” Activision wrote.
Activision did not specify which assets were created with AI assistance, and did not immediately respond to a request for comment by Decrypt.
Call of Duty is one of the video game industry’s biggest franchises, spawning massive hits annually for the last two decades. According to data from industry group Circana, Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 was the best-selling video game in the United States in 2024, even though it released in late October.
According to PC Gamer, players have long speculated that awkward-looking loading screens and “calling card” backgrounds in Black Ops 6 and 2023’s Modern Warfare 3 were made with the help of generative AI tools.
The update to the Call of Duty 6 Steam page comes amid ongoing debates over the role of AI in the entertainment industry. Two frontrunners for Best Picture at the 2025 Academy Awards, The Brutalist and Emilia Pérez, faced criticism for using artificial intelligence to enhance actors’ vocals.
In January 2024, Steam creator Valve introduced a new “Content Survey” requiring game developers to disclose AI usage when submitting titles to the platform.
“Valve will use this disclosure in our review of your game prior to release,” Valve wrote. “We will also include much of your disclosure on the Steam store page for your game, so customers can also understand how the game uses AI.”
According to Valve, AI usage in games falls into “Pre-Generated,” or AI-generated content made during development, and “Live-Generated,” which covers AI-generated content produced while the game is running. Content in both categories must follow Steam’s rules, with Live-Generated AI requiring disclosed safeguards against illegal content.
Steam clarified its AI content policy after developers accused the platform of rejecting games due to copyright concerns about AI-generated content. Rival gaming platform Epic Games used the controversy to lure developers to its Epic Game Store, much as it did after Steam banned blockchain games—though some creators have found workarounds.
Edited by Andrew Hayward
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Source: https://decrypt.co/307729/call-of-duty-black-ops-6-generative-ai
