The Alters is a fun narrative-survival game that combines unique, risky mechanics to create a genuinely unique experience. That’s not hyperbole; there’s nothing like it currently on the market. It combines 11 bit’s penchant for resource management and base-building mechanics, Alex Jordan’s excellent ability to deliver 11 different Jans, and a fun narrative asking “what if I chose a different road?” The Alters reviews reflect a strong game and its initial fan reception was strong; however, that has come into question in recent days as the use of AI has been potentially discovered.

To be clear, genAI usage is something platforms like Steam require to be disclosed. AI videos are rampant on social media like TikTok, but there is disclosure there. The biggest issue, beyond the ethics of AI use in general, is the potential non-disclosure with The Alters. As of this writing, 11 bit studios has not issued any statement regarding AI use in the game or those questioning its usage.

Does The Alters Use AI?

The first clear, strong indicator of AI use came from BlueSky user @vysetron who shared an image of the Captain’s Logs. The text, which most players wouldn’t pay attention to in most Alters playthroughs, clearly states: “Sure, here’s a revised version focusing purely on scientific and astronomical data.” The word choice is identical to ChatGPT’s responses to requests. Some fans pointed out that this isn’t necessarily indicative of AI use; for example, it could have been a cheeky jab by 11 bit at AI. It could imply the original captain wasn’t original or was too lazy to do the reports themselves, and that may have been the case if it was the only possible indicator.

there’s more damning evidence in-game, even, but it’s all background stuff that you have to go out of your way for there’s text crawls where you can still see the AI prompt responses before it produces a bunch of science jargon wild that they’ve dodged disclosures all things considered — D (@vysetron.pixeldie.com) 2025-06-23T17:18:23.720Z

However, more and more possible AI usage has surfaced. Stronger than even that comes from serious issues in The Alters’ localization in regions like Brazil. Not only is the grammar and word choice completely wrong in some parts, indicating that it was not professionally translated, but there is a screenshot of Portuguese text with AI text left in. That text, even to the unknowing eye, seems to indicate that the AI translation response was accidentally left in the game.

Impressão minha ou a tradução pra português de The Alters usou chatgpt e esqueceu de apagar o prompt? (e sim, tá ruim o texto em português do jogo, várias traduções erradas ou imprecisas, frases confusas que não soam natural etc) — Heitor De Paola (@zitosilva.bsky.social) 2025-06-27T16:44:24.259Z

Some defenders of its usage point out how most possible AI use discovered so far is background, easily ignored material. That’s obviously not the case for The Alters players in other regions, however. The biggest issue, expressed on social media, is the lack of disclosure. Not only is it required, but if 11 bit used AI on these materials, it begs the question where else AI was used. It makes it hard to trust any of the material in the game if even small uses of AI are not disclosed. Right now, nothing is confirmed, but the possible usage of AI seems highly likely.

It’s possible that 11 bit, as a whole, allowed for the use of AI. It’s also possible, however, that this was the efforts of one or two individuals in or outside 11 bit. Right now, many fans who weren’t previously troubled with playing the game are now facing a hard choice with The Alters. Hopefully, 11 bit issues a statement soon and addresses the mounting backlash.