Why human-written video game text logs beat AI-generated slop every time
By
Stephen Marsh
Summary
A reflective piece on the beauty of human-written video game text logs, using Bungie's upcoming game Marathon as a case study. The author contrasts the sterile, AI-generated "perfect" writing found in many modern games with the messy, characterful, and emotionally resonant text logs written by human developers in classic games. The article argues that imperfections in writing — bad grammar, misspelled words, awkward phrasing — are what make fictional worlds feel real and lived-in, and that the trend toward sanitized, AI-generated content strips games of their soul.
Source
bskyWhy human-written video game text logs beat AI-generated slop every timethebackblog.substack.comKey quotes
· 4 pulledFor all of Marathon's tense PVP action and soul-crushing failed runs, I absolutely love this stuff. Unpicking the story that sits beneath the world I'm running through.
The AI said no. It wouldn't let her in. Worse than that. It told her to stay out.
Your bad sentence structures and misspelled words are beautiful.
Something profoundly terrifying is happening to Dr. Clarissa Song.
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