Blizzard accused of using generative AI for recent Diablo x Hearthstone collab artwork

Blizzard has once again been accused by fans of using generative AI to create a recent piece of promotional artwork for a collaboration between the Diablo franchise and popular card battler Hearthstone.

The details:

• In a new Reddit thread spotted by PC Gamer, fans have claimed that there are several signs of generative AI use in a piece of artwork posted to the official Diablo Immortal X account last week. The areas of the image highlighted include a strange-looking human ear, a candle with what appears to be an uncolored flame, several cases of different objects blending together, and a number of odd issues with its card designs.
• While unconfirmed, this is not the first case of suspected generative AI use in Hearthstone. Last year, it was believed that some pixel art hero designs for the game’s The Great Dark Beyond expansion had been AI-generated, with fans tracking down the artist’s Instagram and finding several AI-like images. Blizzard quickly removed the artwork and stated that it was investigating the claims, though no conclusion was publicly revealed.
• Blizzard’s sister company, Activision, has publicly admitted to using AI in Call of Duty, even being forced to feature the generative AI label on its Steam page. Several cases of its use have been discovered over the past two years in new content featured in its updates, including loading screen artwork depicting zombies with six fingers on a single hand.

More gaming news:

• Dying Light: The Beast has been delayed just weeks prior to its original launch date and will now arrive in September.
• Details of an unannounced battle royale mode for Battlefield 6 have leaked online.