On AI Art

TL;DR: Getting real art for the published version of the game is vital to me. If you are an artist or you know any artists who you think would like to work on this project, let me know!

You've probably noticed that, while the working layout and design of the game components is original, most of the art on the components and website is AI-generated. I could go on at length about what, if carelessly used, AI art might take away from us, but plenty of people have written interestingly on that, and it's not why I'm writing here. What AI art is undoubtedly good for is prototyping on a budget. With image-generating AI, I can better hone my vision of the world of Brockton and share it with you (and with the artists I plan to hire) as I work toward funding and publishing, and I don't have to spend thousands of dollars on art to do it.

But I would consider the game to have lost something essential (at all of our spiritual expense, and at artists' material expense) if I didn't hire artists for it. The images in use here are a rough idea of what I'd like the game to look like, but one of the things that really excites me about funding the game is that it'll enable me to collaborate with artists to revise and develop that vision. Funding is down the road, but get in touch if you are an artist or if you know any artists who work on or adjacent to fantasy horror, folk horror, mythological creatures, forest and rural environments--or who don't, but might just be an unexpected fit for this game. You can reach me at emptyearthbrockton@gmail.com.