{"id":1980155,"date":"2026-06-09T11:30:16","date_gmt":"2026-06-09T08:30:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=1980155"},"modified":"2026-06-09T11:30:16","modified_gmt":"2026-06-09T08:30:16","slug":"following-generative-ai-controversy-crazy-taxi-world-tour-lead-clarifies-how-the-tech-is-being-used","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=1980155","title":{"rendered":"Following generative AI controversy, Crazy Taxi: World Tour lead clarifies how the tech is being used"},"content":{"rendered":"<article class=\"article \" data-ads=\"true\" data-article-type=\"news\" data-article-group=\"news\" data-paywalled=\"false\" data-premium=\"false\" data-sponsored=\"false\" data-type=\"article\">\n<header class=\"article_header\" data-component=\"article-header\">\n<div class=\"breadcrumbs\">\n<nav class=\"nav_breadcrumbs\" data-component=\"nav-breadcrumbs\" aria-label=\"Breadcrumb\">\n<ul class=\"nav-links\">\n<li>\n                <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/\" data-active=\"false\"><br \/>\n                      Home<br \/>\n                <\/a>\n            <\/li>\n<li>\n                <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/news\" data-active=\"false\"><br \/>\n                      News<br \/>\n                <\/a>\n            <\/li>\n<li>\n                <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/games\/crazy-taxi-world-tour\" data-active=\"false\"><br \/>\n                      Crazy Taxi: World Tour<br \/>\n                <\/a>\n            <\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/nav><\/div>\n<div class=\"headline_details\" id=\"main-content\">\n<h1 class=\"title\">Following generative AI controversy, Crazy Taxi: World Tour lead clarifies how the tech is being used<\/h1>\n<p class=\"strapline\">&#8220;Everything is made by an actual human.&#8221;<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"headline_asset\">\n<figure class=\"headline_image_wrapper\">\n<p>        <img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"headline_image\" src=\"https:\/\/assetsio.gnwcdn.com\/crazy-taxi-world-tour-reveal-screen-6.jpg?width=570&amp;quality=85&amp;format=jpg&amp;dpr=3&amp;auto=webp\" alt loading=\"eager\" data-uri=\"crazy-taxi-world-tour-reveal-screen-6.jpg\" data-lightbox width=\"570\" height=\"321\"><figcaption>\n          <span class=\"attribution\">Image credit: <cite>Sega.<\/cite><\/span><br \/>\n        <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"metadata\">\n<div class=\"avatar\">\n<p>    <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Sherif Saed avatar\" src=\"https:\/\/assetsio.gnwcdn.com\/IMG_1950_Uy1XomJ.JPG?width=2048&amp;height=2048&amp;fit=bounds&amp;quality=85&amp;format=jpg&amp;auto=webp\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"1638\" height=\"1346\"><\/p>\n<p>  <img alt=\"Sherif Saed avatar\" data-autosize=\"crop_lossy\" data-uri=\"IMG_1950_Uy1XomJ.JPG\" loading=\"lazy\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"1638\" height=\"1346\">\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"text\">\n<div class=\"byline\">\n                  <span class=\"article_type\" data-slug=\"news\"><br \/>\n                    News<br \/>\n                  <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span class=\"by\">by<\/span> <span class=\"author\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/authors\/sherif-saed\">Sherif Saed<\/a><\/span>                    <span class=\"job_title\"><br \/>\n                      Contributor<br \/>\n                    <\/span>\n            <\/div>\n<div class=\"published_at\">\nPublished on <time datetime=\"2026-06-09T11:30:16+00:00\">June 9, 2026<\/time>              <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"mypop-header-wrapper\">\n<p><button class=\"mypop-button button wide\" data-state=\"follow\" data-type=\"tag\" data-uuid=\"78824535-2e76-4581-9b30-a4114122e278\" data-name=\"Crazy Taxi: World Tour\" data-follow-text=\"Follow Crazy Taxi: World Tour\" data-unfollow-text=\"Following Crazy Taxi: World Tour\" data-aria-follow-text=\"Follow Crazy Taxi: World Tour\" data-aria-unfollow-text=\"Following Crazy Taxi: World Tour\" data-popup=\"true\" data-force-login=\"true\" aria-label=\"Follow Crazy Taxi: World Tour\" title=\"Follow Crazy Taxi: World Tour\"><br \/>\n  Follow Crazy Taxi: World Tour<br \/>\n<\/button>          <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/header>\n<div class=\"article_body\" data-component=\"article-content\">\n<div class=\"article_body_content article-styling\">\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/games\/crazy-taxi\">Crazy Taxi<\/a>: World Tour&#8217;s reveal during the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/everything-announced-microsofts-xbox-games-showcase\">Xbox Games Showcase<\/a> was a highlight, finally offering a look at the modern incarnation of the classic series. The excitement was quickly soured, however, when its Steam page revealed <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/crazy-taxi-world-tour-officially-announced-sega-immediately-upsets-everyone-by-announcing-it-used-generative-ai\">Sega has used generative AI in the game&#8217;s development<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>The disclosure was vague, only managing to clarify that AI wasn&#8217;t used to replace actors&#8217; performances. Following that news, Sega told <a href=\"https:\/\/gameinformer.com\/2026\/06\/07\/sega-confirms-and-responds-to-generative-ai-content-in-new-crazy-taxi-game\">Game Informer<\/a> that AI was used &#8220;during the development of background assets.&#8221; At Summer Game Fest, however, series creator Kenji Kanno offered more details.<\/p>\n<figure>\n<div class=\"video_wrapper youtube\">\n<a aria-label=\"Crazy Taxi: World Tour - Official Announcement Trailer | Xbox Games Showcase 2026\" class=\"video-facade full-size\" data-platform=\"youtube\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/lc5UI-SC20U?autoplay=1\" title=\"Click to play video from YouTube\"><br \/>\n<img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Cover image for YouTube video\" class=\"video-facade__image\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/i.ytimg.com\/vi\/lc5UI-SC20U\/hqdefault.jpg\"><span class=\"video-facade__title\">Crazy Taxi: World Tour &#8211; Official Announcement Trailer | Xbox Games Showcase 2026<\/span><\/p>\n<p><\/a>\n<\/div>\n<p><a class=\"button video\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=lc5UI-SC20U\" rel=\"noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Watch on YouTube<\/a><\/figure>\n<p>According to <a href=\"https:\/\/kotaku.com\/crazy-taxi-ai-generated-assets-steam-disclosure-sega-2000703805\">Kotaku<\/a>, who attended a World Tour presentation at SGF&#8217;s Play Days follow-up event, Kanno, via translator, explained, &#8220;We used it as a reference.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;So our artists would pull up [and] generate some of their ideas and then they would look at that, you know, generated image and then they would draw the actual thing. So actual creators, everything from programming to assets, everything is made by an actual human. It\u2019s only used as a reference for them to look at and then they would actually create the actual thing that would go into the game,&#8221; he added.<\/p>\n<p>Kanno was also asked whether the team is aware of the potential backlash that has accompanied similar declarations, and whether it has weighed the value of its continued use against the negative reaction it&#8217;s likely to generate.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;For us, the extent of how we use generative AI is only what I mentioned earlier,&#8221; Kanno explained. &#8220;[It\u2019s] just for ideas and just as a reference. Moving forward in the future [generative AI] is probably going to be more of a hot topic, but I think that\u2019s all I can say right now on how we use generative AI for this game.&#8221;<\/p>\n<figure>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt height=\"1080\" src=\"https:\/\/assetsio.gnwcdn.com\/crazy-taxi-world-tour-reveal-screen-3.jpg?width=2048&amp;height=2048&amp;fit=bounds&amp;quality=85&amp;format=jpg&amp;auto=webp\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1.7777777777777777\" width=\"1920\"><\/p>\n<p><img alt data-autosize=\"crop_lossy\" data-lightbox data-uri=\"crazy-taxi-world-tour-reveal-screen-3.jpg\" height=\"1080\" loading=\"lazy\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1.7777777777777777\" width=\"1920\"><figcaption><span class=\"attribution\">Image credit: <cite>Sega.<\/cite><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>The use of generative AI in artistic mediums, including video games, remains controversial. Last week, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/tomb-raider-legacy-of-atlantis-comes-with-an-ai-disclaimer\">Tomb Raider: Legacy of Atlantis developer Crystal Dynamics responded to complaints around its AI use<\/a> by insisting, &#8220;Our goal is to empower the creativity and flexibility of our developers to deliver the highest-quality experiences for players everywhere.&#8221; That came just a few weeks after The Blood of Dawnwalker&#8217;s director said that while his studio hasn&#8217;t used AI in the game&#8217;s development, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/the-blood-of-dawnwalker-ai\">&#8220;companies should use AI&#8221;<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"preferred-source\" data-component=\"preferred-source\">\nLove Eurogamer.net? Make us a <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/preferences\/source?q=https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\">Preferred Source on Google<\/a> and catch more of our coverage in your feeds.  <\/div>\n<\/article>\n<div class=\"article_body\" data-component=\"article-content\">\n<div class=\"article_body_content article-styling\">\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/games\/crazy-taxi\">Crazy Taxi<\/a>: World Tour&#8217;s reveal during the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/everything-announced-microsofts-xbox-games-showcase\">Xbox Games Showcase<\/a> was a highlight, finally offering a look at the modern incarnation of the classic series. The excitement was quickly soured, however, when its Steam page revealed <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/crazy-taxi-world-tour-officially-announced-sega-immediately-upsets-everyone-by-announcing-it-used-generative-ai\">Sega has used generative AI in the game&#8217;s development<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>The disclosure was vague, only managing to clarify that AI wasn&#8217;t used to replace actors&#8217; performances. Following that news, Sega told <a href=\"https:\/\/gameinformer.com\/2026\/06\/07\/sega-confirms-and-responds-to-generative-ai-content-in-new-crazy-taxi-game\">Game Informer<\/a> that AI was used &#8220;during the development of background assets.&#8221; At Summer Game Fest, however, series creator Kenji Kanno offered more details.<\/p>\n<figure>\n<div class=\"video_wrapper youtube\">\n<a aria-label=\"Crazy Taxi: World Tour - Official Announcement Trailer | Xbox Games Showcase 2026\" class=\"video-facade full-size\" data-platform=\"youtube\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/lc5UI-SC20U?autoplay=1\" title=\"Click to play video from YouTube\"><br \/>\n<img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Cover image for YouTube video\" class=\"video-facade__image\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/i.ytimg.com\/vi\/lc5UI-SC20U\/hqdefault.jpg\"><span class=\"video-facade__title\">Crazy Taxi: World Tour &#8211; Official Announcement Trailer | Xbox Games Showcase 2026<\/span><\/p>\n<p><\/a>\n<\/div>\n<p><a class=\"button video\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=lc5UI-SC20U\" rel=\"noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Watch on YouTube<\/a><\/figure>\n<p>According to <a href=\"https:\/\/kotaku.com\/crazy-taxi-ai-generated-assets-steam-disclosure-sega-2000703805\">Kotaku<\/a>, who attended a World Tour presentation at SGF&#8217;s Play Days follow-up event, Kanno, via translator, explained, &#8220;We used it as a reference.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;So our artists would pull up [and] generate some of their ideas and then they would look at that, you know, generated image and then they would draw the actual thing. So actual creators, everything from programming to assets, everything is made by an actual human. It\u2019s only used as a reference for them to look at and then they would actually create the actual thing that would go into the game,&#8221; he added.<\/p>\n<p>Kanno was also asked whether the team is aware of the potential backlash that has accompanied similar declarations, and whether it has weighed the value of its continued use against the negative reaction it&#8217;s likely to generate.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;For us, the extent of how we use generative AI is only what I mentioned earlier,&#8221; Kanno explained. &#8220;[It\u2019s] just for ideas and just as a reference. Moving forward in the future [generative AI] is probably going to be more of a hot topic, but I think that\u2019s all I can say right now on how we use generative AI for this game.&#8221;<\/p>\n<figure>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt height=\"1080\" src=\"https:\/\/assetsio.gnwcdn.com\/crazy-taxi-world-tour-reveal-screen-3.jpg?width=2048&amp;height=2048&amp;fit=bounds&amp;quality=85&amp;format=jpg&amp;auto=webp\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1.7777777777777777\" width=\"1920\"><\/p>\n<p><img alt data-autosize=\"crop_lossy\" data-lightbox data-uri=\"crazy-taxi-world-tour-reveal-screen-3.jpg\" height=\"1080\" loading=\"lazy\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1.7777777777777777\" width=\"1920\"><figcaption><span class=\"attribution\">Image credit: <cite>Sega.<\/cite><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>The use of generative AI in artistic mediums, including video games, remains controversial. Last week, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/tomb-raider-legacy-of-atlantis-comes-with-an-ai-disclaimer\">Tomb Raider: Legacy of Atlantis developer Crystal Dynamics responded to complaints around its AI use<\/a> by insisting, &#8220;Our goal is to empower the creativity and flexibility of our developers to deliver the highest-quality experiences for players everywhere.&#8221; That came just a few weeks after The Blood of Dawnwalker&#8217;s director said that while his studio hasn&#8217;t used AI in the game&#8217;s development, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/the-blood-of-dawnwalker-ai\">&#8220;companies should use AI&#8221;<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Home News Crazy Taxi: World Tour Following generative AI controversy, Crazy Taxi: World Tour lead clarifies how the tech is being used &#8220;Everything is made by an actual human.&#8221; Image credit: Sega. News by Sherif Saed Contributor Published on June 9, 2026 Follow Crazy Taxi: World Tour Crazy Taxi: World Tour&#8217;s reveal during the Xbox [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[226,253],"class_list":["post-1980155","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-crawlmanager","tag-eurogamer-net"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1980155","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1980155"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1980155\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1980155"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1980155"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1980155"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}