Promotional social media marketing for Wizards of the Coast’s (WotC) new line contained AI art, sparking frustration amongst the fanbase.

In a post on X, the gaming giant apologized to fans, saying, “We made a mistake earlier when we said that a marketing image we posted was not created using AI.”

Well, we made a mistake earlier when we said that a marketing image we posted was not created using AI. Read on for more. (1/5)
— Magic: The Gathering () January 7, 2024
Rethinking the creative

The now-deleted advertising for the new set boasts it is “shocking how good these lands look in a retro frame.”

The Ravnica Remastered set considers art spanning 13 Magic sets across 16 years and hundreds of artists. So, the timing of this faux pas couldn’t have come at a worse time for the gaming industry leader.

In December 2023, Wizards posted an article in the wake of a turbulent month for the Hasbro-owned company. Reiterating to fans that:

“Our internal guidelines remain the same about artificial intelligence tools: We require artists, writers, and creatives contributing to the Magic TCG to refrain from using AI generative tools to create final Magic products.”

Hasbro has recently announced record profits for the last year and massive job cuts totaling 2,000 staff across 2023.

This included members of the Wizards of the Coast art team, so mentions of a need for art and artists in the wake of such a blunder has left an already frustrated community more in doubt about the future of the card game.

Artist takes a stand

Dave Rapoza, whose work with MTG spans multiple sets across recent years, announced he was cutting ties with the company over the furor on X.

And just like that, poof, I’m done working for wizards of the coast – you can’t say you stand against this then blatantly use AI to promote your products, emails sent, good bye you all! https://t.co/RAfJi5NhxR
— Dave Rapoza () January 6, 2024

He would then say, “If you’re gonna stand for something, you better make sure you’re actually paying attention, don’t be lazy, don’t lie.”

Rapoza reiterated that he had the means to retire from MTG art making, but “also, to be clear, I’m quitting because they took a moral stand against AI art like a week ago and then did this, if they said they were going to use AI that’s a different story, but they want to grandstand like heroes and also pull this, that’s goofball shit I won’t support.”

Wizards would then publish an article to their announcements section, stating, “We are rethinking our process of how we work with vendors for our marketing creative.”

Another gaming studio, Square Enix, is facing a community backlash for the upcoming Apex Legends and Final Fantasy collaboration. Fans have been alleging that AI art generation tools were used to craft the new promotional trailer.

In another AI news, an automaton artist gave a journalist pause when interviewing the robot about the application of sources she uses in painting.

Image credit: Wizards of the Coast.