Level 5 boss admits using AI for Professor Layton, Yo-Kai Watch reveals

Level 5’s CEO has confirmed that generative AI was used for its recent Yo-Kai Watch and Professor Layton game reveals and apologized to disappointed fans.

Last week, the Japanese studio held a digital showcase, where it announced new entries in many of its beloved series. However, the showcase was quickly met with criticism after social media users gathered evidence that most of the showcase utilized generative AI.

“I was SO excited when Level-5 announced their big comeback with Professor Layton, Decapolice, Yo-Kai Watch, and more,” wrote one fan. “But seeing this much blatant genAI being used across their games… yeah, this ain’t it.”

Another user added: “The LEVEL5 we knew is long gone at this point. What came back seems to rely way too much on GenAI. Going from making literal artwork like Ni No Kuni to this is so sad.”

The criticism prompted a response from Level-5 president and CEO Akihiro Hino, who confirmed the company used generative AI to make their game footage “more spectacular,” but conceded it had gone too far.

“It was entirely due to the desire to make the presentation more spectacular that we incorporated processing that also served as an experiment using the latest AI,” Hino explained. “It appears that some people felt uncomfortable about this, so I deeply apologize.”

He added: “However, at our company, the parts that relate to the charm and individuality of the released works—such as scenarios, character designs, and basic settings—are all created by human hands.”

The CEO claimed that Level 5 is using AI to digitize “creative work made by people”, such as “converting original artwork into polygons”, but insisted that “no simplistic AI-generated output data is included in the games that are released”.

He continued: “On the contrary, thanks to the time created by AI efficiency, creators are now able to dedicate more time to the essence of creation, and I believe the finished products are turning out to a level that will satisfy everyone even more than before.

“Ultimately, under the plan to shorten the current 5-year development period for major titles to 2 years, we are in the stage of trial and error, and struggling forward.

“That said, it’s undeniable that this time, out of the desire to create a clear and flashy presentation, we ended up using AI in a wide variety of ways. We will take this as a lesson and carry it forward to the next one, so please look forward to Level Five’s next presentation.”

A recent report on Japanese online game developers claims that 100% of those surveyed use generative AI tools.