IGF jurors' no-AI stance and Big Walk's AI disclosure split indie games community

Left · 2On Monday 9 November, a group of Independent Games Festival (IGF) jurors published a signed statement saying they would not vote for games that use generative AI in "any capacity". 1 2 Left · 2Ars Technica reports that 19 of the jury's 50-plus members signed. Signatories include Telling Lies and Immortality creator Sam Barlow and Celeste composer Lena Raine. 2 1 Left · 2The statement cites a significant increase in submitted games developed with generative AI tools. It says generative AI has negative effects, that AI-generated code is not an exception to these harms, and that use of AI is not a foregone conclusion in the industry. Ars Technica adds that it names ecological, economic, psychological and labor harms and urges the IGF to adopt a strong anti-AI policy for future years. 1 2

Left · 1The jurors say the statement does not speak for the IGF as an organisation or for all jury members, and some said they worried about signing safely "without professional blowback". 1 Left · 2The statement named no games, but Big Walk, a co-op exploration game from Untitled Goose Game developer House House, became central to the debate. In a statement to Aftermath, also posted on its website and FAQ, House House said it used LLMs sparingly late in development to help with technical challenges and bugs. 1 2 Left · 2House House estimated that well under 0.1% of Big Walk's code was involved and said generative AI was not used in any other context. Its main use was researching problems with third-party code via chatbots, including a Unity shadow bug. After researching extensively and speaking to a Unity engineer, it used an LLM-suggested fix that it modified extensively into about 10 lines in the final game. 1 2

Left · 2House House said it disclosed the AI use when submitting to the IGF but not on Steam, because Valve does not request disclosure of code or chatbot usage. It said it made the disclosure public because it had become a matter of public interest. Ars Technica notes that one social media user says the bug was fixable with significant human effort. 2 1 Left · 2House House said its statement is not an endorsement of AI tools, that it supports those trying to limit generative AI's harms, and that it apologises that Big Walk's LLM use may not meet their standards. It also said it had no AI policy while making the game, which it called a failure, and will work toward a more comprehensive one. 1 2 Left · 1Jurors Austin Walker and Damon Reece praised Big Walk but said even minimal AI use overrode that for awards consideration. Reece wrote that "this is pain that has to happen" to steer the culture away from AI. Big Walk's Steam page has received over 400 negative reviews, though its overall rating remains "Very Positive". 2

Left · 1Others say the response is disproportionate. Juror Liz Ryerson did not find the use personally disqualifying and objected to treating all AI use alike. Curator Dominic Tarason called Big Walk "very mildly compromised art", and Brendan Keogh called zero tolerance counterproductive. 2 Left · 1AI researcher Mike Cook argued House House's actions are "part of the same problem", while Hannah Nicklin called zero tolerance "a viable political position". Ars Technica notes the Indie Game Awards rescinded Clair Obscur: Expedition 33's awards last year over AI-made textures. 2