Once again, the gaming company EA has opened up a topic on social media that can’t be considered good for the company by any means at all. One gamer, who was not afraid to speak his mind about the matter, revealed that the multi-billion dollar video game company, European Arts, commonly referred to as ‘the slop’ by gamers, is, via its official store for Battlefield 6, selling AI-made content. The accusations? That the skins or assets are to some extent done by Artificial Intelligence leading to a big outcry from the players and quite a few sarcastic, if not mean, reactions from the community. And the root of the case isn’t just that the skins are bad; it is the perception of a new low being reached for corporate corner-cutting.
In a very straightforward way the author of the original post says: ‘Multi billion dollar company EA selling AI generated slop in their store (Battlefield 6).’ Immediately the reactions started pouring in and the overarching sentiment was bad. One player, for example, had no other choice than to convey it through a resigned, ‘Some things never change with EA.’ Another commentator declared the whole situation ‘Based as fuck,’ which in the language of the internet means a mixture of sympathy for calling it out and despair about the situation. What was the primary grievance? If such a massive entity as EA resorts to AI for making the store items, it is nothing but a pointer to the worst kind of laziness, a move totally lacking in respect for both the artists and the paying customers.
The discussion soon reached to more general criticisms. ‘The company that served horrible games for over two decades is still releasing horrible games… But now with “AI”,’ one user remarked while making a reference to a longstanding player annoyance with EA’s quality control—or the lack thereof. Moreover, the skeptics of the situation pointed the finger at the potential breach of the platform’s regulations, with Steam’s requirement to disclose use of AI being the one most often mentioned, and one reply even going as far as to state that EA ‘didn’t properly label AI being used on their Steam page.’ To which another user responded ‘Steam stopped enforcing that so quickly,’ thus indicating at the bigger problem of accountability in the entire industry.
Did I lose the plot? Oh yes, the slop. But alongside the anger there was also another reaction: a few voices in the crowd that expressed a more cynical, almost expectant tone. ‘Nothing unexpected from EA,’ said one user, while another humorously begged the company to ‘please understand they are a small indie dev struggling to survive.’ The sarcasm in this appeal is vast, for it depicts EA’s conduct as absurd, considering the size of the company. Another frequently raised issue was the question of whether AI was treated as a tool or a crutch. ‘AI is a tool, not a crutch,’ one user claimed, thus indicating that using it for final sellable products without any human touch is where EA crossed its line. Another mocked the process by joking that the creators of slop ‘cannot even be bothered to tell their employees to do a simple inpainting for fixing generation artifacts and hands.’
Unexpectely, the players’ participation in the matter was also called into question. ‘People need to understand that their financial decisions can be their votes,’ one comment said, equating EA’s conduct to that of its ownership, which is often regarded as suspect. The concept of consumer power was combined with jokes about the game’s quality and one person rather bluntly pointed out, ‘bf6 sucks so that makes perfect sense,’ associating the AI issue with the main discontent around the title. And among the critics there were also those who claimed to be sick of it. ‘Human slop post about AI again. How boring and un-original,’ one user expressed his dissatisfaction, portraying a kind of fatigue with the never-ending cycle of rage.
So what is the verdict? The Battlefield 6 store affair is a manifestation of the bigger, messier debate in the gaming industry today. Ethical issues in business, quality of artwork, and acceptance—even payment—by players are the unspoken topics of the debate. Is it too much to ask of a giant like EA to offer AI-generated assets in a premium store? A good number of people in the community think so, regarding it as a sign of the preference for profit over quality. But it also brings out the oddity that everyone is using AI in some way, as the person commenting on the meme replied, from indie devs asking ChatGPT for help with code to main studios. The difference is in the use and in the honesty or the lack thereof.
The aftermath is pure internet chaos. Some people are swearing not to play the game anymore, others for some reason are making Polack jokes in the replies, and a few are simply not bothered about the whole issue because it is EA in the end. One thing that is clear is the ongoing rivalry between platforms like PlayStation and Xbox. This debate even brings to mind the passionate fan demands seen in other series, such as those calling for a Metal Gear Solid remaster.
