Hot Shots Golf Fans Fume at Use of Generative AI in PS5 Revival – Push Square

Team ZYT Web3 / 1 week
June 26, 2025
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13 min read

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Par for the course
Sony’s licensing out Everybody’s Golf: Hot Shots to Bandai Namco, as part of a remarkable new business strategy which has already seen the Japanese publisher bring back PS Vita favourite Freedom Wars.
But while it seems like a win-win for these dormant franchises, fans are fuming about the potential use of generative AI in the upcoming arcade golf revival.
As is part of Steam’s new platform policy, the product page for the upcoming outing states that “tree and leaf textures were created using AI generated images”. It does add that these textures were produced with “supervision and revision by the developers”.
It’s important to note that this is different to a technology like, say, SpeedTree, which is a popular vegetation tool you may be familiar with.
SpeedTree is more of a tool used to procedurally generate foliage and greenery on the fly, based on the work of real artists. Here it sounds like Bandai Namco has used generative AI to create the textures on said vegetation.
It’s certainly not as egregious as some of the absolute rubbish we’ve been seeing on the PS Store lately, but we’re teetering on the edge of a slippery slope here.
Of course, some people would argue that using AI in this way, for minor tasks like creating foliage textures, is a smart use of the technology and will help save costs and improve efficiency. But most are stating they believe it’ll end up stripping the release of its hand-crafted quality.
The reality is that we’re likely to see a lot more of this moving forward, because all publishers are looking at ways generative AI can improve their workflows.
How do you feel about this admission from Bandai Namco? Has it completely turned you off the upcoming golf game? Tee off in the comments section below.

Overview trailer released
[source store.steampowered.com, via resetera.com]
About Sammy Barker

As the Editor of Push Square, Sammy has over 15 years of experience analysing the world of PlayStation, from PS3 through PS5 and everything in between. He’s an expert on PS Studios and industry matters, as well as sports games and simulators. He also enjoys RPGs when he has the time to dedicate to them, and is a bit of a gacha whale.
Comments 32

“ SpeedTree is more of a tool used to procedurally generate foliage and greenery on the fly, based on the work of real artists.”
Sounds like what AI does.
Seriously, anything that speeds up the creation of games the better. As long as quality isn’t compromised, which it sounds like it hasn’t been with the review and revisions.

I honestly couldn't care less what the trees are like as long as my ball can whizz through them, shortcut style 😃👍

I can't say I'm excited to see it but at the same time, like the article said, this task does at least make sense for using the technology.
However, while trees don't really do much for most games outside of just being window dressing, trees are much more important in a Golf game for obvious reasons. If the trees lose their hit detection or something like that because of this, then we have a big problem.

Some fans fume about ai leaf textures while other fans give no sh*ts or think it’s an appropriate use of a stupid technology

Don't care personally. I'm more concerned about the fact it looks worse graphically than the Everybodys Golf game released 8 years ago. It looks like a PS3 game. What are they doing?

If it can allow the artists to work in better animations or character models, instead of doing busywork like adding foliage then i dont see the problem. I work in a software company and use AI to speed up loads of menial tasks so dont see the difference

Good bringing it to attention! Luckily, its not taking creativity away like character or map design. That is an odd thing, but maybe they used images generated themselves. Like they made 5 or 6 leaf textures and then used that to populate the many trees to save time. Not stealing from others, which is the most egregious use of AI. I hate AI used in art, but I'll give this a benefit of the doubt and hope that, since we dont know how they went about it and didn't take anything creative away.

AI usage is causing data centers to rapidly increase water consumption. It may save time to use AI, but is it worth reservoirs going drier and drier to accommodate the speed of technology, all while humans are losing jobs because it’s implied that AI must be used to keep up with demand? We’ve been told AI will reduce the time it takes to make games in one ear and told that it just takes longer to develop games now than before because of greater technology in the other.
Are the developers really profiting from this? As @Andy22385 said, this game looks like a PS3 game. Something feels off.

I didn't see any examples of 'fans fuming' just says that it's happening…..no proof at all.
Did AI write this headline?

Im genuinely sttuggling to see what's wrong with the graphics ? Its a cartoony golf game it's not PGA Tour ⛳️

Wasn’t this based on the Vita one? This isn’t a new one. Also what would they need AI for in this anyway? Why use it here, it’s just stupid. In other cases sure (even if I would like devs to do their job, but so much is upscaled these days why not have more excuses for bad development, management and other nonsense) but why for a game like this, it doesn’t need it.
Why prodecurally generate trees? This isn’t a sandbox game with an Indie team needing that or a dungeon crawler with randomised dungeons, it’s a golf game with small course layouts. This is hilariously stupid. Is it a course maker? Is it player made courses? How much time is going into the AI and ‘saving time’ when they should be spending time working on the game.
Otherwise it isn’t needed whether to scale the textures, tree assets or more. It’s just dumb use of technology. What are level designers too lazy to place objects or use a tree painting tool. Like why is it here? Devs are lazy looking at their emails or something?
Procedural generation doesn’t need AI to do things, especially not a tree or object pasting tool.
It’s up to the computer algorithms, like random generated is with a random number generator (1 is Cherry blossom, 2 is oak, 3 is a fictional tree, or whatever to match a biome or something) only different.
AI gets thrown around too much, it’s just stupid teams use it and it gets over used like ‘tech is magic’ logic it’s just sad.
Minecraft is procedurally generated and puts correct Oak/Birch trees in forests or other ones with mods or whatever, for seasons or something maybe sure I can see some reason due to how the colour would be but people would still use say a rainbow animation if a rainbow tree or something you don’t need AI for that whether directional or not.
No Man’s Sky had a smart algorithm (even if it’s ways of being altered can be messing or bugs from prior builds creep in again due to bad checking of things) is with it’s coloured or strange design tree models.
Even Daggerfall had procedural dungeons back then. Why use AI to ‘improve’ or people think it’s AI even. I don’t get it.
What is there to use AI to cut costs for? Or publisher demands for things they have no understanding of. Or devs too intrigued by technologies.
This just sounds like a lot of nonsense of either what is reported and sources or the staff being useless. More so higher ups.

Ummm, so some people are getting pitch forks and torches because of leaf and grass AI generated graphics? my god… Next they will want to ban all games due to AI being part of every single title. Think about it, even the simplest game is running in code that is emulating the real thing… AI via a search is… "Artificial intelligence (AI) refers to the development of computer systems capable of performing tasks that typically require human intelligence. These tasks can include learning, problem-solving, decision-making, perception, and language understanding". Is that not the very essence of what standard game code is (to varying degrees based on type of game)?

Yeah not playing this then. This is not procedural AI or anything similar, this is fundamentally the developers saying they cannot be arsed making tree and leaf textures. It’s a shortcut that doesn’t exactly save much time if they’d have to sift through the generated textures anyway to make sure they aren’t borked like they usually are. Artistry being sucked out of games for no reason other than laziness. My high school teacher’s mate did the shadows for FIFA, year in year out and it was his own thing, improving year on year with applications of new technologies and fresh takes on exactly how shadows are implemented. That’s a beautiful thing and part of why diverse dev teams with a wide range of skill sets create games. If we start accepting that devs will be laid off and replaced with generative AI then the corpos will have free rein. Ask yourself, if they don’t have to pay those devs’ wages anymore, where does the extra money go? Their bosses’ pockets. Games will still cost the same, but the profit margin will increase.

Too lazy to author unique assets? Gee, I’d love to buy your game on PSN, but having to punch in my cc info—boy, that’s a big ask. I’m afraid I’m just too lazy to bother.

@Jrs1 like said its a downgrade from the last game in 2017. Sure its cartoony, but it could at least look like a PS3 couldn't run it and look like they put at least a tiny bit of effort into the actual look of it, because that's the first thing you see. Astrobot is cartoony and look at that game

game looks fine to me , and hot shots was more about having fun playing then being a graphically moved game

Dont care. Cant wait.

AI textures… so basically what DLSS does?

@ButterySmooth30FPS DLSS is an upscaler.

From my memories at university of everyone on the Games Arts track complaining if they got stuck on Tree Modelling/Texturing Duty for a group project… yeah, no, I get it. It's long been the realm of 'oh please god not this' shortcuts and plugins, so of all the uses of AI in game development, this is one that is a very logical fit. Especially if your trees are simple background fillers rather than a core part of a scene.

They actually have programmers do each leaf individually? No wonder games are expensive to make. I am all for AI for something like this.

People need to get used to AI being used in game development it's only going to increase

Isn’t this is like no man sky planets? I think all of nms planets are generated by the game ai. As long as the game looks and sounds good I have no problem with ai.

The real question is would anyone have noticed the difference if Steam hadn't pointed it out?

As someone who used work on textures in video games and now in branding/graphic design, this doesn’t bother me at all. Preordered and looking forward to playing.

I’m fuming! Fuming, I say!

@get2sammyb Right, but doesn't it use AI?

@ButterySmooth30FPS yes but those are two different things

I would argue that using AI in this way, for minor tasks like creating foliage textures, is a smart use of the technology and will help save costs and improve efficiency.

No buy from me as the one thing I love to do is look at leaves in game

As scandals go this is so low tier I’m more outraged by the outrage than the reason for it.
I’m far from pro-AI but there is definitely some exaggeration going on here. Would anyone really notice or care that much if they hadn’t been told? I doubt it. This is pretty trivial.

They better go speak to the people at Ubisoft then – in ac shadows – I swear most of the map was generated by AI as if you go off the paths at all and try to cut across, you get attacked by weird foliage and almost game breaking stutters and blocks that mean you either get stuck or you have to turn round. Doesn’t seem very human made to me!
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Game Profile
Title:
Everybody’s Golf: Hot Shots
System:
PlayStation 5
Also Available For:
Switch eShop
Publisher:
Bandai Namco
Developer:
Hyde
Genre:
Sports
Release Date:
PlayStation 5
Series:
Everybody’s Golf
Where to buy: