Nearly 8,000 Steam Games Now Disclose Generative AI Use, With 20% of 2025 Releases Incorporating the Technology

Ichiro Lambe, a prominent figure in the gaming industry and former Valve consultant for Steam Labs, has released a new analysis revealing a significant surge in the use of generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) within games available on the Steam platform. His findings, recently highlighted by PC Gamer, indicate that nearly one in five games released in 2025 have incorporated GenAI, marking a dramatic increase from previous years. Lambe stated in a social media post, "I'm now either a boffin or a brainbox. Either way, PC Gamer picked up my analysis of GenAI disclosures on Steam."

The analysis shows that approximately 7,818 titles on Steam currently disclose the use of GenAI, representing about 7% of the platform's total library of over 114,000 games. This figure marks an eightfold increase from just over a year ago, when only around 1,000 games openly reported GenAI integration. The rapid adoption underscores a growing trend among developers to leverage AI tools in game creation.

Developers are employing GenAI across various stages of game development. The most common application, accounting for roughly 60% of disclosures, involves the generation of visual assets such as characters, backgrounds, models, and textures. Other significant uses include audio generation for music, voice-overs, and narration, as well as text and narrative generation for lore, item descriptions, and even story arcs. GenAI also assists in creating marketing materials and generating code or game logic.

Beyond development, GenAI is increasingly being used for real-time applications within gameplay. Titles like AI Roguelite utilize AI to "live-generate in-game content such as text, images, and sound effects" and make dynamic game mechanics decisions. Even commercially successful games like Krafton's inZOI allow players to generate outfit textures and 3D items from text input, showcasing the diverse ways AI is integrated.

Despite its growing prevalence, the use of GenAI remains a sensitive topic within the gaming community, with notable anti-AI sentiment among some artists and players. This has led developers to adopt "careful, curated language" in their disclosures, emphasizing human oversight and artistic integrity to reassure consumers. Ichiro Lambe noted that developers are on a "tightrope walk," balancing disclosure requirements with efforts to mitigate potential backlash.

Lambe's analysis, conducted through Steam's API, provides a crucial insight into the evolving landscape of game development. As Valve requires developers to disclose AI usage, the reported 7,818 titles represent a confirmed lower bound, suggesting the actual number of games utilizing GenAI could be even higher. This ongoing trend highlights the transformative, yet often debated, role of artificial intelligence in the video game industry.