John Carmack defends AI version of Quake II that players called ‘absolutely disgusting’

The demo version of the cult shooter Quake II, which was presented recently, based on the AI ​​model Muse from Microsoft, caused rejection among players, while the co-founder of id Software and co-author of Quake John Carmack saw great potential in the technology.

Image source: id Software

The demonstration of the AI ​​version of Quake II was met with mostly negative reactions. X user Quake Dad, for example, called the project “absolutely disgusting” and equated it with “a spit on the work of every developer in the world.”

In response to Quake Dad, Carmack disagreed with the user’s position and stated that “creating powerful tools is a key driver of progress in computing.”

Carmack recalled how, when developing his first projects, he did by hand what game engines are now responsible for: “Advances in software have made this work as unnecessary as servicing the wheels of a war chariot.”

Image source: ArsTechnica (Benj Edwards)

Carmack believes that AI tools will “empower the best to achieve even greater heights, empower smaller teams to achieve more, and attract a whole new demographic of creators.”

«Yes, progress will reach the point where you can get an interactive game (novel or movie) from a text query, but much more outstanding works will still be created by teams of passionate developers,” Carmack assured.

The developer was supported by Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney, who calls for not being afraid of automation and believes that competition will force companies to use AI tools to create the best products.