Indie distribution platform Itch.io now requires asset creators to disclose the use of generative AI in their work

Itch.io assets page tagged with "no AI"
(Image credit: Itch.io)

Indie-focused digital storefront Itch.io has announced a new policy requiring asset creators on the platform to disclose whether their work makes use of generative AI, and to specify what sort of content is AI-generated when it's present.

"We are now requiring asset page creators to tag their use of generative AI in their work," Itch.io wrote on Bluesky. "This tagging tool is available for all pages, but it is a required field for asset creator pages to ensure that buyers are aware of the origins of the material they are obtaining."

Itch.io said it's currently focusing on asset creators, "since their disclosure can impact a larger number of creators that may use their assets." Assets made using generative AI that aren't properly tagged as such "will no longer be eligible for indexing in our browse pages," the platform warned.

The obvious question is how assets made using generative AI will be found if they're not properly reported by their creators, and at this point it sounds like Itch.io is still getting the details sorted. "For now we're letting creators tag their work at their own pace to ensure that we have the classifications in place to provide better filtering," Itch.io wrote on Bluesky. The Itch.io website says that after a grace period to allow creators to update their tags, "we'll likely use user reports to handle pages that have not been addressed."

The use of AI-generated game assets is a growing concern for the game industry. Some companies have forsworn the use of generative AI in their games, but actually keeping it out is proving something of a headache: Just a month after committing to not using generative AI to create Magic: The Gathering products, Wizards of the Coast acknowledged (after initially denying) that a January 2024 promo image was in fact created with generative AI. More recently, Blizzard ran into a similar problem with datamined pixel art images in Hearthstone after players raised concerns about the possible use of AI: The company hasn't yet confirmed the results of its investigation, but the artwork in question was subsequently removed.

Several people responding to the announcement have asked why Itch.io doesn't simply ban the use of generative AI outright: One described the use of AI for asset creation as "a shitty grift that actively harms the indies that your platform specifically caters towards." Itch.io hasn't yet addressed that inquiry directly, but one possibility is simply that generative AI is already in widespread use: 31% of respondent to a GDC study published earlier this year said they're personally using generative AI in their work, and 18% said they're not using it themselves but have colleagues who are—though not necessarily to create anything players actually see. Given those numbers, and the fact that they're inevitably going to grow, a straight up ban on generative AI may not be workable.

Itch.io's new policy follows a similar move by Valve, which announced an AI disclosure policy for games on Steam in January.

Andy Chalk
US News Lead

Andy has been gaming on PCs from the very beginning, starting as a youngster with text adventures and primitive action games on a cassette-based TRS80. From there he graduated to the glory days of Sierra Online adventures and Microprose sims, ran a local BBS, learned how to build PCs, and developed a longstanding love of RPGs, immersive sims, and shooters. He began writing videogame news in 2007 for The Escapist and somehow managed to avoid getting fired until 2014, when he joined the storied ranks of PC Gamer. He covers all aspects of the industry, from new game announcements and patch notes to legal disputes, Twitch beefs, esports, and Henry Cavill. Lots of Henry Cavill.

Read more
A zombie santa with six fingers leaps at the screen.
Call of Duty admits it's using generative AI to 'help develop some in-game assets', and suddenly all those poorly made calling cards make sense
NEW YORK, NEW YORK - NOVEMBER 08: CEO of Take-Two Interactive Software Strauss Zelnick attends Paley International Council Summit at Paley Museum on November 08, 2022 in New York City. (Photo by Steven Ferdman/Getty Images)
Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick takes a moment to remind us once again that 'there's no such thing' as artificial intelligence
An Ai face looks down on a human.
Xbox announces 'a generative AI model for gameplay ideation' called Muse, but don't get too excited: Machines aren't about to make games for you just yet
Microsoft Muse-generated gaming in action
'A massive, massive moment of wow.' Microsoft CEO predicts AI-generated games are a 'CGI moment' for the industry
TF2 Heavy giving the Bret Rambo thumbs up
Steam makes its ban on games that rely on in-game ads even more explicit, so no 'watch this to continue playing' stuff will be making its way to our PCs
TF2 Heavy giving the Bret Rambo thumbs up
Steam now warns you if that early access game you're eyeing up has been abandoned by its devs
Latest in Platforms
Screenshot of Children of Clay showing a mysterious clay model
Five new Steam games you probably missed (March 10, 2025)
discord
Brace yourself for Discord to get worse: Reports swirl that the company is in talks with bankers about opening itself up to shareholders
The Spy from Team Fortress 2 holds up a folder with an accusatory expression.
Steam users react ecstatically to update that lets them access their heaving game notes via the web, also it fixes Monster Hunter Wilds video recording
HasanAbi
Twitch streamer Hasan Piker suspended after saying Republicans would 'kill Rick Scott' if they really cared about Medicare fraud
Screenshot from Faceminer showing a PC desktop with several windows open
Five new Steam games you probably missed (March 3, 2025)
PORTSMOUTH, UNITED KINGDOM - OCTOBER 20: A man smokes a cigarette while he looks at a smart phone screen on October 20, 2024 in Portsmouth, England. (Photo by Matt Cardy/Getty Images)
Meta says sorry for turning Instagram into a horror show of violence, gore, dead bodies, and other graphic content that 'should not have been recommended'
Latest in News
A catgirl with long white hair and ears
At least it's not NFTs this time: The new Wizardry RPG is a gacha game
Staring eyes in a face covered in oil
Death Stranding 2's PS5 release date is in June, let's hope it doesn't take 8 months to hit PC this time
An evil-looking demon with red eyes and horns
You can theoretically beat Doom: The Dark Ages without using a gun, but 'You'd have a hard time, that's for sure,' says the game's director
Official Doom Guy art superimposed over Vault 666 Fallout-themed background.
Fallout-themed Doom mod Vault 666 has multiple endings, an OP Dogmeat companion, and a Ron Perlman-impersonating narrator so good, I was worried it was AI-generated at first
The Doomslayer in armor
Doom: The Dark Ages won't end with the Slayer in a coffin waiting for the start of Doom 2016: 'That would mean that we couldn't tell any more medieval stories'
Path of Exile 2 showing the Warbringer ascendancy class bludgeoning his way through a pack of hyenas
Path of Exile 2 speedrunner dominates official race with the game's 'worst' class