What is the power of generative AI? It might take years (or even decades) to find a definitive answer to that as we are only starting to scratch the surface. However, it is definitely more than capable of just writing essays or creating images. Luckily, we have got the first of many such proofs with a new video game that was entirely created using generative AI tools like ChatGPT and Midjourney.
Although the internet is referring to it as the ChatGPT AI game, Javi Lopez, its creator, calls it Angry Pumpkins. Even though the concept is largely inspired by the smash hit Angry Birds, this ChatGPT game shows that we are only beginning to understand this behemoth that is ‘Gen AI’. Now, before you start smashing your keyboard to express your displeasure at things like copyright infringement and plagiarism, Angry Pumpkins is more of a ‘proof of concept,’ rather than a competition to Angry Birds, to show what you can do with widely accepted AI tools like ChatGPT, Midjourney and DALL-E 3.
While you can try out this ‘ChatGPT game’ for free, it’s more than just a fun game. Let’s take a quick look into everything that went behind in creating Angry Pumpkins.
Can ChatGPT now make video games?
Back in 2022, ChatGPT shot to fame for being an advanced chatbot that could carry on human-like conversations instead of giving robotic answers. Even in its early days, it was established that ChatGPT can be used to write code, thereby establishing itself as a helpful tool to do mundane tasks while coders can look after the bigger picture.
Javi Lopez has now given us a great example with Angry Pumpkins that he created using ChatGPT. Using GPT 4, Lopez sat down and made the AI bot write 600 lines of code for the game. For the graphic design of the game, he relies on AI imaging tools like OpenAI’s DALL-E 3 and Midjourney to create the background images as well as the object designs. It took Lopez and ChatGPT some time to iron out the bugs, but the end result was rather impressive — a fully functional game that anyone can play, and its developer didn’t write a single line of code!
ChatGPT 5: What We Know About The Next Generation Of The AI Chatbot
OpenAI Could Go Bankrupt By 2024 Due To ChatGPT
“I have to admit, I’m genuinely blown away. Honestly, I never thought this would be possible. I truly believe we’re living in a historic moment that we’ve only seen in sci-fi movies up until now,” said Lopez on X, formerly Twitter.
How does this ChatGPT game work?
However, it wouldn’t be wise to assume that ChatGPT simply created a readymade game to play after just a single prompt. Lopez gave the AI bot a set of commands, and the culmination of all those outcomes resulted in the game as we see it today. He gave specific instructions to GPT 4 for writing the code in distinct computer languages and then patiently kept it improving. As Lopez says, the idea was to iteratively give commands to the AI chatbot, just like a human being.
🤖 Programming (GPT-4)
🔗 Full source code here: https://t.co/Rl4wilWpKS
Although the game is just 600 lines of which I haven’t written ANY, this was the most challenging part. As you can see, I got into adding many details like different particle effects, different types of… pic.twitter.com/Ze9uthJq3T
— Javi Lopez ⛩️ (@javilopen) October 31, 2023
“Although the game is just 600 lines of which I haven’t written ANY, this was the most challenging part. As you can see, I got into adding many details like different particle effects, different types of objects, etc. And to this day, we’re still not at a point where GPT-4 can generate an entire game with just a prompt,” he said.
However, for skilled game developers who have greater command over coding, these AI tools can be effective in making game development a lot easier. “… I have no doubt that in the future we’ll be able to create triple AAA video games just by asking for it,” adds Lopez.
(Hero and Featured Image Credits: Courtesy Javi Lopez)
