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Do you remember Catly? The possible NFT scam that somehow managed to air its announcement trailer – with what definitely appeared to be AI-generated visuals – at The Game Awards 2024? Back then, some predicted that this "game" would set a precedent for other development studios to use visuals generated by machines for their own trailers, and unfortunately, this prediction has indeed come true at this year's Game Developers Conference.
Introducing the official reveal trailer for ARK: Aquatica, an upcoming DLC for ARK: Survival Evolved, in development at Snail Games. Shared at GDC 2025, the trailer in question quickly captured everyone's attention for all the wrong reasons, the largest one being that almost the entirety of the video was generated by AI.
Unlike, for instance, the aforementioned Catly, where the use of generated visuals was almost certain, ARK: Aquatica's AI imagery is blatantly obvious and in-your-face, complete with the usual hallucinations, whimsical art style, and that unmistakable "AI-slop" vibe that's hard to put into words but instantly recognizable at first glance.
What's more, the trailer also doesn't even offer any meaningful information about the DLC, with its description, along with the prompts used to generate this mess, only revealing that it will be an underwater-themed expansion featuring new creatures and mechanics – none of which are present in the trailer due to its very nature.
At the moment, the trailer sits at a mind-blowing 143-to-3,000+ likes-to-dislikes ratio – reflecting the gaming community's general sentiment about AI-generated imagery – and over a thousand comments ripping the trailer, the DLC, ARK: Survival Evolved, Snail Games, and Studio Wildcard to shreds. The backlash was so intense, the creators of this monstrosity even delisted the trailer from their YouTube channel, though it still remains accessible via a direct link.
Funnily enough, shortly before the trailer's launch, Studio Wildcard reaffirmed that ARK: Aquatica is being developed by Snail Games and that they have nothing to do with it – likely anticipating the wave of negativity the expansion would face because of the AI use.
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