ChatGPT, Gemini, and other AIs have become common “co-developers” for small creators, particularly for those using engines like RPG Maker. It is currently estimated that over 20% of new games on Steam involve some form of AI-assisted content: a number that has doubled since 2024. Is this good, okay, non-issue or actually horrible? And should you, as a new indie game developer, use this artificial magic in a project?
The “Solo Dev” AI Toolkit
Lonely wolves in game development actually often need assistance that is unaffordable for 90% of people who work outside of companies. In this case, GPT or the like can very much do the entirety of this:
- Coding & Plugins: This is the most popular use. Even if you don’t know JavaScript (the language for modern RPG Maker), you can describe a feature to an AI (like “Make a day/night cycle that affects monster spawns) and it can write the code.
- Character Art & Portraits: Creating 50 unique “face sets” for NPCs used to take months or thousands of dollars in commissions if you can’t draw. Creators now use AI to add consistent portraits, though the most successful ones “over-paint” or edit them.
- Sound & Music: Tools (Suno, Udio, and the like) allow small devs to create orchestral battle themes or ambient dungeon sounds that are tailored to their game’s specific mood. Hiring a professional composer will be, in turn, $500+.
- Dialogue & Lore: ChatGPTing events and stories is nothing new. Most creators have tried it at least once.
The Problem Is That Niche Audiences Hate This
Really, players nowadays instantly drop a game with signs of AI. They prefer novelties that are simple but human-made, even if a game with a bit of artificial intelligence is objectively better. So, a regular niche player (who is your target audience, since you’re a small creator) will prefer something as simple as the Chicken Road game, which is literally about helping a silly bird cross a dangerous road without complex lore and goals—just because it was developed by a team of real people that came up with a concept, drew the elements with their own hands, and coded it with their unique solutions.
The huge division in the indie game community manifests in many ways…
- The “Gameslop” Problem: It’s now too easy to generate content, and thus storefronts are being flooded with low-effort games that feel “soulless.” This has led to a vocal backlash from players who prefer handcrafted art.
- Ethics & Copyright: There are still ongoing debates about AI being trained on artists’ work without permission. Some indie platforms (and many players) are very protective of human-made art.
- The “Uncanny” Valley: AI-generated tilesets or sprites often have small errors (like blurry edges or nonsensical patterns) that can make a game feel cheap if the developer doesn’t manually clean them up.
Platforms Don’t Combat AI, But…
The rules for AI in gaming have moved from “suggested guidelines” to strict requirements on huge platforms like Steam. If you are a solo developer using RPG Maker and AI, here is the exact breakdown of how these rules affect you!
The Steam “Content Survey”
When you submit a game to Steam, you are now required to fill out a mandatory AI Disclosure Section. It divides AI use into two categories:
- Pre-Generated AI: This includes any art (character portraits), code (scripts), or music you made using AI during development. You must describe exactly what was used and promise that none of it infringes on existing copyrights.
- Live-Generated AI: This is for “active” AI, like an NPC that uses a chatbot (LLM) to talk to the player in real-time. If you use this, you must prove you have “guardrails” in place so the AI won’t say anything illegal or offensive.
Player Transparency & “The Box”
On your game’s store page, players will see a specific label called the AI Generated Content Disclosure.
- The Label: It usually says: “The developer describes how it uses AI-generated content like this…” followed by your explanation.
- The “Ignore” Filter: Many players now use a setting on Steam to automatically hide any game with an AI label. This is a major risk for small creators: sure, a bot mind helps you make the game, but it might make a project “invisible” as well.
Copyright Drama
This is the most dangerous part for a solo creator. As of 2026, the law in both the US and EU is very clear: AI-generated content cannot be copyrighted. So, if you generate a character using AI and someone else steals that art for their own game, you cannot sue them. The law views artificial art as “public domain.” You didn’t draw it. You’re not a legal owner of it. Go away.
There’s actually a solution. Most serious developers use AI for the “rough draft” but then manually paint over it or edit it significantly. This “human touch” is what allows you to legally own your characters. Still, it’s a bad idea to let your audience know this.
Other Platforms (Epic, Itch.io, Consoles)
- Itch.io: Has a “No Slop” policy. They allow AI, but they will remove your game if it’s “predominantly created by algorithms with minimal human intervention.”
- Epic Games Store: They are more “pro-AI” than Steam, but they still require you to disclose it. Their CEO has argued that AI will eventually be in every game, so they focus more on quality than the tool used.
- Nintendo & Sony: They are the strictest. Nintendo has publicly distanced itself from generative AI due to copyright concerns. It is currently very difficult to get a game with heavy AI assets approved for the Nintendo Switch eShop or PlayStation Store.
So, Will You Use It?
Out of all these issues, distrust and hate from players is the #1 problem. Huge companies and platforms work in accordance with unbiased law, but the people who actually buy your games? They will not focus on anything but emotions. Your game can have just 3% of artificially created content, but the buyers will see it as a 100% violation anyway.
AI is objectively great for prototyping and boring tasks (like debugging code), but the most beloved indie games are still the ones where the “heart” of the game is clearly human-driven. Still, the decision is yours.
