Yes, Ethernalis uses generated images and assets. We want to be open about that choice and why we made it.
Why we use them
Ethernalis has been in development for over ten years. We started building it long before generative AI became part of our asset workflow.
Ethernalis needs thousands of visual assets to give its cards, places, characters, and items their own identities. We are a small studio without an art budget at that scale. Even paying one euro per image would add up to thousands of euros before the game was finished. Generated imagery lets us give this world a visual presence while we build it.
What “curated” means to us
Many assets are variations of artwork we made ourselves or purchased. Some of that artwork has been retextured with generative AI to fit the game's visual style. We choose images for the thing they need to represent and for how they sit alongside the rest of the game. Many candidates do not make the cut. Each selected image has a place in Ethernalis.
We hear the criticism
“Slop” is a blunt word, but we understand why people use it. Generated images can look repetitive, contain obvious mistakes, and raise serious questions about the work used to train image tools and the effect on artists. Those concerns deserve a straight answer, even if our budget does not give us an easy solution.
Where we stand
The game is built from our ideas, writing, systems, and decisions. Generated assets are one part of how we present it. We want visitors to know how its visual world was made. Judge the result for yourself, and if an image feels wrong for the world, tell us. We are still shaping Ethernalis.