Jan 22, 2026
3 min read
People don't have nice things to say about Fallen, but they're at least talking about it
"Hell is empty and all demons are present."This quote from Shakespeare's The Tempest is the beginning of the debut trailer for the hack-and-slash adventure game Fallen.It was accurate, if you consider among those demons the scourge of artificial intelligence.The trailer, exclusive to IGN, made the rounds on social media when the Work Gen AI showcase appeared, and the game developer confirmed it later.
The trailer for Fallen hit X on Monday, and it quickly became a hot topic, going beyond what you'd expect from the usual demon-slaying game."Introducing Fallen, a new character action game inspired by the Xbox 360 era. Play as Astra, a fallen angel who must fight Hell and its demonic powers. In development for consoles and PC," the marketing copy reads.
However, people immediately pointed out that the art created by the AI of the sleek but dead tribe was prominent throughout the trailer."Looks bad, genAI isn't just walking around behind gaming hardware, it's trying to make the game itself look terrible," wrote cosplayer Kitty Bit."This is the dumbest AI video game I've ever seen," Twitch streamer Ms5000watts wrote."Seems like a weird combination of AI and shit," reads a YouTube comment.number one.
They don't even try to hide it brah😭😭ai slop content is off the charts now https://t.co/uwfqdopcy8 pic.twitter.com/b0b9jnm8aq
- Oshbard (@Ludvicus) Janairu 19, 2026
Is this another example of people pretending about GM AI and jumping to accusations of sloppiness?No!Superboo Studios founder, director, producer and writer Brooke Burgess confirmed as much after the attack, but confirmed that the game is real and built in the UE5.4 engine.Burgess blamed the conflict on "content" damage.
"What ended up being shared as the 'official vehicle' was actually our first development 'pitch', that is, a working UE5 prototype designed to fund discussions," he told TheGamer."There are [AI-builders] built in, specifically some 2D asset tests that were used to study emotions and visions (for example, how the 'lost spirit' and fallen angels respond when spoken and classified, along with WIP HUD elements).
Returning to the Shakespeare reference for a moment, Burgess seems to suggest: "Dear Brute, the fault lies not in our 'AI pitch placeholders' but in ourselves."Sounds like IGN posted the wrong trailer or jumped the gun.Indeed, Burgess has no qualms about using AI slap to pitch the game to potential investors.
In fact, he recently complained about how difficult it is to get funding for games right now.Burgess said every publisher he spoke to asked how they could use AI to improve development.He's open to using QA and space, but says he's "not waving the flag for AI in any way.""Shaking."
"I'm not going to sell my soul and say, 'Yeah, I'll do it myself, let me bring the whole game to life,'" he recently told GamesIndustry.biz."No, I really want to work with talented people and make something good. But if I integrate it in a way that doesn't stifle creativity, but helps save a little bit of money and introduce people to the game, and gives us a chance to make something good and memorable, and then make something else after that, that's something I have to keep in mind."
