The PlayStation Store is home to thousands of games, and not everything on the platform is of equal quality. Where PlayStation sells titles like Spider-Man and God of War on the platform, it also has a fair number of games that would be best described as shovelware.
With AI now more prevalent than ever, this style of game is only expected to become more prevalent. In fact, as developer Lazy Flock points out, a blatant AI slop copy of the game Haunted Paws is up for sale on the PlayStation Store.
As Lazy Flock points out, Ghostly Whiskers on the PlayStation Store completely copies the team’s concept, visuals, and story from Haunted Paws.
Where Haunted Paws features players taking on the role of puppies attempting to save humans, Ghostly Whiskers features kittens performing the same task. According to developer Lazy Flock, there is no denying the fact that the concept has been completely copied from Haunted Paws.
Even the Haunted Paws artwork bears a resemblance to AI-generated imagery, raising further suspicions. What’s more interesting is the fact that Nostra Games has yet to add any other screenshots to the PlayStation Store page.
Looking at the studio’s past, many of its games highlight a similar philosophy. For instance, a title like Shelter 78 sounds immediately reminiscent of Fallout 76, while another game like Ultra Bonk Survivors should sound familiar after Megabonk’s popularity last year. Trailers for these games are available on Nostra Games’ official YouTube channel.
This is not the first time the PlayStation Store has been criticized in relation to AI-generated content or ‘ AI slop,’ but the significant distinction this time is developer Nostra Games’ clear copying of Lazy Flock’s work.
Unlike Valve, Sony does not ask developers to disclose the use of AI on their store page. Nostra Games notes that its Trading Card Shop Simulator uses AI-generated textures on Steam, but no such disclosure is displayed on the studio’s games on PlayStation.
Anyhow, the situation highlights growing concerns regarding AI slop on gaming platforms. Perhaps it’s time for PlayStation to add a similar disclosure requirement as Valve to ensure audiences are informed of any AI usage in future games.
