LukeZaz's recent activity
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Comment on Indie Game Awards rescinds Clair Obscur's GOTY wins over use of generative AI [for now-removed background assets] in ~games
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Comment on The truth about AI (specifically LLM powered AI) in ~tech
LukeZaz LinkRandomized controlled trial on AI coding tools speed up (predicted v. observed) (METR, July 2025) The LLMentalist Effect: How chat-based Large Language Models replicate the mechanisms of a...Randomized controlled trial on AI coding tools speed up (predicted v. observed) (METR, July 2025)
The LLMentalist Effect: How chat-based Large Language Models replicate the mechanisms of a psychic’s con (Baldur Bjarnason, July 2023)
Color me skeptical.
Fundamentally, though, I've realized I don't actually care too much about whether coding AI works or not. Even if it is helpful, I still feel very strongly that the problems surrounding it precludes ethical use of it. I'd list out those problems, but I've been talking about AI use so much in the past 24 hours that I'm sounding like a broken record. And besides, you've heard it before.
Suffice to say that I'll use AI when it stops ruining lives.
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Comment on Indie Game Awards rescinds Clair Obscur's GOTY wins over use of generative AI [for now-removed background assets] in ~games
LukeZaz Link ParentWell, if you'd like to be technical: It didn't say anything about LLMs. Personally I'd want those out too, but detecting that's kinda hard, so here we are. As for the survey, you're going to get a...It only takes one dev, one line of code.
Well, if you'd like to be technical:
Games developed using generative AI are strictly ineligible for nomination.
It didn't say anything about LLMs. Personally I'd want those out too, but detecting that's kinda hard, so here we are.
As for the survey, you're going to get a very different group of people responding to a StackOverflow developer survey than if you'd polled a large group of indie game developers. So my point stands.
Really though, I don't find this unreasonable at all. The rule is clear-cut, and it was clearly broken. As for whether the rule itself is justifiable, that's easy to me: GenAI is very harmful to the world and the people in it, and this rule strongly discourages its use. Hell, even moreso now that a prominent IGA GOTY winner had this rule enforced against them. So if you ask me, this brouhaha has actually done a lot of good.
Where I'm curious now is which part of my stance you disagree with. I'm assuming it's the justification for the rule, since the breaking of it hasn't been questioned. Do you feel that GenAI is not harmful? Or do you think it's inevitable and that we'll have no choice but to live with that harm? Something else?
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Comment on Indie Game Awards rescinds Clair Obscur's GOTY wins over use of generative AI [for now-removed background assets] in ~games
LukeZaz Link Parent...What? This is a pretty wild claim to provide without any backing evidence. Motivated single individuals are already making games. We've had that since Cave Story released in 2004. I'm honestly...Almost all successful “Indie“ games are still multimillion dollar operations.
...What? This is a pretty wild claim to provide without any backing evidence.
AI tools have the potential to open the space to motivated single individuals.
Motivated single individuals are already making games. We've had that since Cave Story released in 2004. I'm honestly starting to question how much attention you actually pay to the indie scene, because single-person dev teams are so frequent as to almost be common knowledge.
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Comment on Indie Game Awards rescinds Clair Obscur's GOTY wins over use of generative AI [for now-removed background assets] in ~games
LukeZaz (edited )Link ParentFirst, I have seen a great many developers who've outright stated that they have zero interest in using AI. Some are outright hostile to the concept, and a lot of AI use is forced on people by...First, I have seen a great many developers who've outright stated that they have zero interest in using AI. Some are outright hostile to the concept, and a lot of AI use is forced on people by their employers. So I feel you may be taking Silicon Valley hype at face value a little too much. Which is understandable given the AI hype machine, but still.
More concretely, though:
This company actually admitted their mistake, stated clearly that it wasn't intended to be present in the released product, and corrected it almost immediately.
That doesn't really matter much here. Generative AI use in development is prohibited for the purposes of the IGA. It doesn't matter if it was supposed to be published or not; using it at all disqualifies them automatically, and that's on them.
If you still like Sandfall despite this, that's perfectly fine! I'm sure the IGA judges do too. The GenAI use here is meager and hardly worth throwing out the team over. It's a matter of fairness, not of "Expedition 33 sucks actually."
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Comment on Indie Game Awards rescinds Clair Obscur's GOTY wins over use of generative AI [for now-removed background assets] in ~games
LukeZaz Link ParentThat's because "AI" as a term tends to mean generative AI or large language models these days. In this specific case, it was the former. Those two tools have very concrete and severe negative...That's because "AI" as a term tends to mean generative AI or large language models these days. In this specific case, it was the former. Those two tools have very concrete and severe negative consequences for their use; the same can't be said for most any pre-2020 techniques.
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Comment on Indie Game Awards rescinds Clair Obscur's GOTY wins over use of generative AI [for now-removed background assets] in ~games
LukeZaz Link ParentIf it helps any, I've seen a great many artists who've outright stated that even very simple/badly made references can be immensely helpful on their own. It might take less than you think to...That should at least get my stuff presentable to artists who can iterate on my game to make it truly shine.
If it helps any, I've seen a great many artists who've outright stated that even very simple/badly made references can be immensely helpful on their own. It might take less than you think to communicate your idea to an artist, depending on what it is.
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Comment on Indie Game Awards rescinds Clair Obscur's GOTY wins over use of generative AI [for now-removed background assets] in ~games
LukeZaz Link ParentSo, two points to this. First, and less important, is that creativity often thrives under restriction. I don't know what you're imagining when you say "unable to create a drawing to save their...Consider someone with a physical defect unable to create a drawing to save their life but with oodles of vision that an AI can realise.
So, two points to this.
First, and less important, is that creativity often thrives under restriction. I don't know what you're imagining when you say "unable to create a drawing to save their life" (given that there are many kinds of drawing and many ways to make each kind), but if someone was truly incapable in this way, I would adore to see what other solutions could work for them that aren't AI slop.
Second and more importantly, this is a high-minded idea that – while commendable as a goal – doesn't really work so well in our current vulture-capitalist-turn-technofuedalist world. The reality is that modern GenAI/LLMs are plagiarist energy hogs that cause mental health crises and mass unemployment, and don't even make anything half-decent in the process. That's a lot of harm to weigh against.
I've said before that this tech could've been good if it'd been spearheaded by open-source communities on small scales (and hell, 15.ai was a thing, wasn't it?), but instead we've got tech bros and CEOs, and all they want is to fire people. In a world like this, the "it's for the disabled" argument that'd otherwise be simple well-meaning allyship will get twisted by money into "Anything we do is justified, because disabled people could theoretically use it."
In practice, the argument is better left on the table for now, saved for a post-AI-bubble world, if or when AI stops damaging so much of the planet. Modern AI, as it is, does not deserve the defense.
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Comment on Indie Game Awards rescinds Clair Obscur's GOTY wins over use of generative AI [for now-removed background assets] in ~games
LukeZaz Link ParentIndie games, taken as a category, already are competitive with major studios. The most fascinating artistic endeavors of the year almost all came from AA-or-smaller groups, with several being...Indie games, taken as a category, already are competitive with major studios. The most fascinating artistic endeavors of the year almost all came from AA-or-smaller groups, with several being debut indies. They do not need GenAI or LLMs to accomplish any of this.
All introducing AI to the mixture does is waste time, money, energy, water and people, all for the sake of dramatically increasing homogeneity. It's a tool designed to try and save time on art so artists can spend more time on work; or in other words, the opposite of what we should strive for.
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Comment on Indie Game Awards rescinds Clair Obscur's GOTY wins over use of generative AI [for now-removed background assets] in ~games
LukeZaz Link ParentI'm curious as to why you think this. To me, this reads as a perfectly reasonable disqualification regardless of other factors. Personally, I find both disqualifications that the IGA did this year...They have been looking for any reason to disqualify E33 for months now from the indie game awards
I'm curious as to why you think this. To me, this reads as a perfectly reasonable disqualification regardless of other factors. Personally, I find both disqualifications that the IGA did this year to be heartening, because the good reasoning behind them (and the presence of a GenAI ban to begin with) gives me cause to believe that they genuinely care about the games they judge.
(I'd say "genuinely care relative to The Game Awards," but that'd be damning with faint praise, because TGA is practically a marketing festival.)
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Comment on Indie Game Awards rescinds Clair Obscur's GOTY wins over use of generative AI [for now-removed background assets] in ~games
LukeZaz LinkFrom The Indie Game Awards' FAQ page: (My edits to the question title are to keep focus on Expedition 33, since there was another award retracted this year due to the game in question – Chantey –...From The Indie Game Awards' FAQ page:
Why [was] Clair Obscur: Expedition 33['s award] retracted?
The Indie Game Awards have a hard stance on the use of gen AI throughout the nomination process and during the ceremony itself. When it was submitted for consideration, a representative of Sandfall Interactive agreed that no gen AI was used in the development of Clair Obscur: Expedition 33. In light of Sandfall Interactive confirming the use of gen AI art in production on the day of the Indie Game Awards 2025 premiere, this does disqualify Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 from its nomination. While the assets in question were patched out and it is a wonderful game, it does go against the regulations we have in place. As a result, the IGAs nomination committee has agreed to officially retract both the Debut Game and Game of the Year awards.Each award will be going to the next highest-ranked game in its respective category:
Debut Game: Sorry We’re Closed
Game of the Year: Blue PrinceBoth à la mode games and Dogubomb have been notified and were invited to record acceptance speeches. Since the IGAs premiere took place just ahead of the holiday break, we expect both acceptance speeches to be recorded and published in early 2026.
(My edits to the question title are to keep focus on Expedition 33, since there was another award retracted this year due to the game in question – Chantey – being tied to ModRetro, which is in hot water due to ModRetro advertising that their consoles are made using the same metal that's used to manufacture attack drones.)
I added the bracketed text to the title of this post because I felt that the scope of the AI use was an important factor – don't want to spook anybody into thinking the game was ¼-AI or something – but if any title editors here feel it's unnecessary, I don't mind its removal.
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Indie Game Awards rescinds Clair Obscur's GOTY wins over use of generative AI [for now-removed background assets]
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Comment on AI-designed Linux computer with 843 components boots on first attempt — dual-PCB Project Speedrun was made in just one week and required less than forty hours of human work in ~tech
LukeZaz LinkYeah, I'm not convinced. From the linked VentureBeat article on this: This is not the modern conception of AI at all. Insofar as I can tell, it's basically evolvable hardware, and it has been...Yeah, I'm not convinced. From the linked VentureBeat article on this:
Quilter's technical approach differs fundamentally from the large language models that have dominated recent AI headlines. Where systems like GPT-5 or Claude learn to predict text based on massive training datasets of human writing, Quilter's AI learns by playing what amounts to an elaborate game against the laws of physics.
"Language models don't apply to us because this is not a language problem," Nesterenko explained. "If you ask it to actually create a blueprint, it has no training data for that. It has no context for that."
Instead, Quilter built what Nesterenko describes as a "game" where the AI agent makes sequential decisions — place this component here, route this trace there — and receives feedback based on whether the resulting design satisfies electromagnetic, thermal, and manufacturing constraints.
This is not the modern conception of AI at all. Insofar as I can tell, it's basically evolvable hardware, and it has been around since at least 1996.
Which is good! Because GenAI and LLMs are horrendous and using them for hardware engineering would be ridiculously stupid. So the tech itself is fine. No complaints there.
But that said, I find myself irritated by this anyway. Practically the entirety of both articles are unwaveringly positive, it talks about old concepts as though they've just been invented, and it's clearly using the term "AI" for clout. In other words, it's a sales pitch for investors. Even the title is glazing the hell out of this project. I'll save my excitement for when they do something worthwhile enough that it makes it out of ad copy, thanks.
I'll grant it this, though: It's nice to read about something "AI" that turns out not to be completely useless garbage for once. I'll take clickbait usage of the term over yet more climate destruction any day.
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Why we're boycotting Xbox (and maybe you should too)
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Comment on Disco Elysium on Android | Reveal trailer in ~games
LukeZaz Link ParentI honestly felt (and still feel) that the PMG documentary didn't really help the case of Kompus &c too much. Like, sure, I agree the situation was complicated, and sure, I believe there were...I honestly felt (and still feel) that the PMG documentary didn't really help the case of Kompus &c too much. Like, sure, I agree the situation was complicated, and sure, I believe there were problems with Kurvitz. But I also believe that ZA/UM was a victim of immense fraud, and that no, nobody should give the artless & corporate husk that remains any money.
I don't think these two viewpoints are mutually exclusive.
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Comment on How would you rate adulthood? in ~life
LukeZaz Link ParentA few. I've gotten a better understanding of my mental health alongside the problems I've gotten, and some family members of mine have managed to recently make some huge strides for themselves....A few. I've gotten a better understanding of my mental health alongside the problems I've gotten, and some family members of mine have managed to recently make some huge strides for themselves. It's just not been a good time overall by any stretch.
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Comment on How would you rate adulthood? in ~life
LukeZaz LinkAwful. My adulthood has seen a smorgasbord of mental issues crop up right off the heels of discovering a lifelong disability, followed by a steadily worsening quality-of-life. Much of the last few...Awful. My adulthood has seen a smorgasbord of mental issues crop up right off the heels of discovering a lifelong disability, followed by a steadily worsening quality-of-life. Much of the last few years of my life have been the worst I've yet experienced.
I have more problems than ever, more responsibility than I can possibly handle, more stress than I previously imagined, and have lost almost all my ambition wholesale.
I have extremely little hope for the future.
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Comment on The ugly truth about Spotify is finally revealed in ~music
LukeZaz Link ParentSeconding Pandora, for what it's worth. It's not stellar, and definitely does not have as many artists, but if it's vaguely popular it'll still be there and that's been more than good enough for me.Seconding Pandora, for what it's worth. It's not stellar, and definitely does not have as many artists, but if it's vaguely popular it'll still be there and that's been more than good enough for me.
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Comment on Daniel Penny jury deadlocked on manslaughter charge in subway chokehold case in ~news
LukeZaz Link ParentDoesn't sound like you know cfabbro very well.Doesn't sound like you know cfabbro very well.
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Comment on Man suspected of killing UnitedHealthcare CEO is ordered held without bail after brief court appearance in Pennsylvania in ~news
LukeZaz Link ParentAh, I think I misunderstood what you were saying, then. I thought you were saying "bad for society," not "bad for the gunman personally."Ah, I think I misunderstood what you were saying, then. I thought you were saying "bad for society," not "bad for the gunman personally."
Well now that just makes me wonder what perspective you're encountering that from! I don't want to drag you into this or anything, obviously. It's just that my experience has been that people tend to dislike "AI," which includes both (with a nebulous border) whereas "generative AI" doesn't usually include LLMs, with the possible exception of things like dialogue or creative writing.