An X user, known as Desimulate, recently shared a brief, five-second burst of AI-created pixelated artwork. This captivating snippet, reminiscent of a highly detailed and animated reimagining of the classic game Daggerfall by a skilled pixel artist, quickly went viral. So popular was this clip on X that Desimulate is now attempting to develop the game hinted at by the AI-generated video. Interestingly, he’s choosing not to rely on AI for the actual game development. The reason? “The current AI tools simply aren’t up to the task,” he explains.
This revelation came during an interview with Ryan K. Rigney in his Push to Talk newsletter. Desimulate elaborated that the viral piece was the result of extensive experimentation with Midjourney. He used numerous, specific reference images to guide the AI’s output, aiming to push the boundaries of its creative capabilities. “I became fixated on crafting something truly unique, and that post embodied that pursuit. It was quite unexpected,” he told Rigney.
omw pic.twitter.com/eCiTOrjtzC
— Desimulate (@de5imulate) July 20, 2025
While AI might excel at producing a brief, visually appealing clip, creating a full-fledged game, especially one as ambitious as a detailed, open-world pixel art fantasy RPG, remains beyond its current capabilities. “The generated 3D models are adequate for a rudimentary game,” he admits. “Perhaps something small-scale. However, this project demands high performance. It’s intended to be a serious fantasy role-playing game. Therefore, optimization is crucial. The current state of 3D generation produces models that are overly complex, with an excessive number of polygons, and often riddled with errors. Cleaning these models takes more time than simply building them from scratch. Therefore, we are only using the AI output as a visual reference.”
Desimulate is not a seasoned game developer. Neither am I. Therefore, assessing the feasibility of his project is beyond my expertise. However, he is actively recruiting experienced game developers to transform his viral AI-generated creation into a playable game. Having seen many crowdfunded game projects from experienced teams falter, even with impressive initial demos, I remain skeptical. This project seems risky.
Nonetheless, this situation provides valuable insights into the allure of AI tools like Midjourney and how individuals perceive their collaborative role in the creative process. Desimulate clearly feels a sense of ownership over the AI’s output, even though his input is minimal compared to the vast amount of data used to train the AI. Rigney inquired why Desimulate feels compelled to develop the game inspired by the positive response to his post. Here’s his explanation:
“I possess the vision, and vision is the foundation for everything. I have the passion to bring it to life. In the past two weeks, I’ve interviewed over 40 candidates, assembled a talented team of game developers, and initiated the design and construction of the game. We’ve made significant progress, though everything remains in the research and development phase. But I am fully committed to seeing this through.”