"Neverness to Everness" Plunges into Third AI Controversy, Developers Forget to Remove Watermark from Free AI Software
Shanghai, China – August 17, 2026 – Hotta Games’ highly anticipated 2026 gacha title, Neverness to Everness, has once again found itself embroiled in a fresh controversy surrounding the use of generative AI (genAI) assets. This marks the third such incident this year for a game that was already “mercilessly dragged online” in April for its initial reliance on AI-generated visuals. The latest gaffe? Developers reportedly failed to remove a watermark from an AI-generated image created using the free version of ByteDance’s Doubao AI chatbot assistant.
The incident comes less than four months after Hotta Games publicly asserted that Neverness to Everness "is built on human creativity" and pledged "to delivering the quality [players] deserve." This latest revelation, however, casts a shadow over those commitments, particularly as it follows two previous controversies regarding AI asset use.
The offending image, an AI-generated seahorse, was reportedly featured in the game’s latest 1.3 update, which rolled out in China on August 12. Astute users on China’s prominent live-streaming and social media platform Bilibili quickly identified the image’s origin. Their detective work wasn’t complex: the seahorse asset brazenly displayed a watermark for Doubao AI, a glaring oversight that has since ignited a fresh wave of criticism across the gaming community.
"BREAKING 🔴: NTE has been caught using generative AI for art assets again—and this time, they forgot to remove the watermark," tweeted user John Семён, accompanied by a screenshot of the watermarked image. "Despite their past public apologies, Hotta Studio shows zero remorse and continues to push hidden gen-AI assets behind the scenes."
The 1.3 update is slated for a global release tomorrow, August 19, but Chinese players typically receive updates a week in advance, explaining the early discovery of the watermark.
While Hotta Games never explicitly promised to cease using AI-generated assets, even after the initial two controversies, their previous statements attempted to downplay the extent of AI involvement. Following the initial backlash, the developers admitted that "AI-assisted tools were used only on a small number of background and environmental assets," and emphatically stated they were not utilized for "the characters or stories that define this game."
Critics are quick to point out the irony of a seemingly successful game, which reportedly earned over $200 million in its first two months, resorting to free-tier AI tools. "I mean come on, you couldn’t even shell out for the premium version of Doubao AI for your game that earned over $200 million in its first two months?" one commentator quipped, highlighting the perceived lack of effort and investment.
The incident raises renewed questions about the ethical implications of using generative AI in game development, especially when developers have previously made statements emphasizing human creativity. While a seahorse may not be considered a "game-defining" character, the repeated reliance on readily identifiable AI-generated assets, particularly with such an amateur oversight, risks further eroding player trust and the reputation of Neverness to Everness. The gaming community now awaits Hotta Games’ response to this latest and arguably most embarrassing AI blunder.
