Upcoming PlayStation Exclusive Game Uses Some AI-Generated Art

Sony will step up to the spotlight this week with a PlayStation State of Play broadcast, it's been reported.

A recent update to Microsoft's website suggests that Square-Enix's upcoming Visions of Mana may be headed to Xbox Game Pass alongside its release. Square-Enix first announced the newest entry in the long-running RPG franchise during the 2023 Game Awards, surprising fans with the reveal of the newest Mana game. The RPG is set to arrive as the first brand-new main-series entry in the franchise in nearly two decades, with Mana's recent releases coming as remakes of older titles. Now, the newest Square-Enix game may be coming to Game Pass as well.

PlayStation’s next wave of first-party PC ports has been leaked online, and if this rumor is true then some of the company’s biggest exclusives are branching out in 2024. While Sony’s staple of first-party studios has naturally focused on making exclusive titles for PlayStation consoles, Sony has been working toward bringing some of these games to a wider PC audience in recent years. This has had mixed results so far, with titles like Horizon Zero Dawn and 2018’s God of War finding major success while others like Uncharted: Legacy of Thieves Collection and The Last of Us Part 1 struggling to make sales on PC outlets like Steam.

If the latest rumors are to be believed, a Final Fantasy 16 port could be in the works for Xbox Series X. Final Fantasy 16 is one of the few true PS5 exclusives available at the time of this writing, meaning it can only be played on Sony's newest console and has no cross-gen presence or availability on any other platforms.

Almost anything can happen in the untamed open world of Red Dead Redemption 2, including Arthur flying through the air like the God of Thunder himself thanks to a strange glitch. Just like Rockstar’s various Grand Theft Auto titles, Red Dead Redemption 2 allows players to distract themselves from the story of outlaw Arthur Morgan to engage in all kinds of entertaining side activities like hunting animals for their pelts and tracking down dangerous criminals for a hefty bounty. This in turn can open the door to wild and unexpected moments, such as one unlucky player being chased off a cliff by an angry bear.

Japanese publisher Square Enix has revealed that it used generative artificial intelligence to produce some of the artwork in the upcoming Foamstars.

Fans were just surprised with two exciting Tekken 8 trailers, one revealing the game’s opening cinematic and another showing off the returning character Lee Chaolan. The next chapter of Bandai Namco’s blistering 3D fighting franchise is now over a week away, and much of Tekken 8’s roster and premise have already been shown to the eager gaming public. Many fan-favorite characters from past entries are returning in Tekken 8, with one of the most recent ones highlighted being the warrior tombkeeper Zafina.

Square Enix has confirmed that upcoming online shooter Foamstars includes AI-generated art.

PlayStation exclusive shooter Foamstars will feature AI-generated artwork, Square Enix has confirmed, with Foamstars producer Kosuke Okatani clarifying to VGC that «in terms of the content of the game, this makes up about 0.01% or even less.» 

Foamstars, Square Enix's Splatoon-like 4v4 online party shooter announced last year, is coming next month. The PlayStation exclusive will release February 6 as a day-one launch title on PS Plus, Sony and Square Enix confirmed Tuesday. The game will be available to download for free on PS5 and PS4 as part of the PlayStation Plus Monthly Games lineup for next month, starting February 6 through March 4. Foamstars was announced at a PlayStation Showcase in May last year, showing off soapy shooting and colourful characters, both heavily inspired by Nintendo's Splatoon games. A PS Plus release will likely attract more players to the multiplayer title in its early days.

Foamstars is the next big game coming from Square Enix, which recently announced the game will be launching on February 2 and will be available on PlayStation Plus on the day of release. Unfortunately, that's not everything that was revealed about Foamstars, as the title has come under fire after producer Kosuke Okatani admitted AI was used for some of the game's art.

As reported by VideoGameChronicle, Square Enix confirmed at a recent press event that their upcoming live service game, Foamstars, uses some assets generated by AI. This follows a New Year’s letter from the company’s president, Takashi Kiryu, that stated the company would more aggressively pursue the use of the technology.