Former 'BioShock' Director Ken Levine Talks About Lack of AI Work on 'Judas'

Former director for "BioShock" and "System Shock 2," Ken Levine, recently talked about his new project, "Judas," and the game's lack of use of artificial intelligence (AI).

Levine said that he does not believe AI has any place in the development of developer Ghost Story Games' newest title. "Judas" is said to be an ambitious take on humanity and the different philosophies that influence how people behave and think.

Ken Levine Talks About Judas

It has already been labeled by many fans as a spiritual successor to "BioShock," but its events will take place on a spaceship controlled by computers. People also believe that using AI to generate stuff within "Judas" would have been ironic, given the game's settings and topics.

Levine also revealed that despite "Judas" being incredibly reactive and interactive, the game did not take advantage of AI technology in its development. The topic was touched on during a recent interview with the former "BioShock" director, according to Screen Rant.

He also spoke about the general process of making the game as well as his ideas about the state of video games as an interactive medium. Furthermore, Levine talked about the merits of using AI technology in game development.

Levine talked about how video games are unique compared to other types of media, such as movies because they are much more interactive. He argued that the closest thing to video games is interactive theater, which has the benefit of real-life humans reacting to the audience.

A Player-Driven Game

The former "BioShock" director said that "Judas" is trying to explore the limits of video games regarding graphics and production quality. It will mix up the story's events depending on the relationship that players develop with key characters, Games Industry said.

He argued that the biggest challenge in video game storytelling is getting players to participate and have the game react to how people participate. Levine said he has never been a big fan of cutscenes because they were not interactive enough.

Levine said that a video game should be player-driven and simply react to the decisions that they make throughout their runs. He added that the approach he and the Ghost Story Games team were taking with "Judas" is heavily based upon recognition of player action and response to player action.

This means that the game could give players much more control over the entire story, including its pace and conclusion. The developer is also trying to cut out cutscenes altogether to make players feel more urgency, according to Comic Book.