AI Emerges as Growth Driver in Gaming Industry, Cutting Development Time | Be Korea-savvy

AI Emerges as Growth Driver in Gaming Industry, Cutting Development Time


Generative AI illustrations for creating games (Image courtesy of Yonhap)

Generative AI illustrations for creating games (Image courtesy of Yonhap)

SEOUL, Jan. 30 (Korea Bizwire)  Generative AI is becoming a crucial growth engine in the gaming industry, significantly reducing development time for major game companies, according to a new industry analysis.

The KDB Future Strategy Research Institute’s Industrial Technology Research Center reported on January 29 that gaming companies are actively implementing AI-based development tools and leveraging AI technology for voice and graphic production.

Game development currently requires an average of 19 months and 25 days to launch new titles, making it the second-longest production cycle in the content industry after publishing. The complex development structure, involving multiple specialists including planners, programmers, and graphic designers, often leads to escalating costs and timeframes.

In response, gaming companies are turning to generative AI, which can create human-like images, videos, and voice content, as a solution to improve their financial performance by shortening development cycles.

Major companies are already seeing results. Nexon and NC Soft have significantly streamlined their character voice recording processes using voice generation AI. In China, companies have reduced outsourcing costs by approximately 75% by delegating graphic design tasks to AI, according to the report.

Large language models (LLMs) are also being employed to generate initial concept ideas, create real-time character dialogue, and power AI assistants that offer gameplay advice.

“While there are concerns about generative AI potentially creating content similar to existing game properties, potentially leading to intellectual property disputes,” the report notes, “gaming companies are addressing these risks by expanding their copyright management teams and training AI exclusively on their own IP.” 

The global market for generative AI-based gaming was estimated at $1.14 billion in 2024 and is projected to nearly triple to $3.08 billion by 2028. The sector is expected to grow at an annual rate of 28.24% between 2024 and 2028, significantly outpacing the overall global gaming market’s growth rate of 11.8%.

Kevin Lee (kevinlee@koreabizwire.com) 

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