The 2025 Indie Game Awards, held on December 18, initially crowned Chiaroscuro: Expedition 33 of the title of Game of the Year and Best First Game. However, two days later, the organizers announced an unexpected turnaround: the withdrawal of these awards, after discovering that the Sandfall Interactive studio had used generative artificial intelligence during development.
A disqualification after the fact, an immediate controversy
The press release published by Six One Indie, organizer of the event, leaves no room for doubt: “The Indie Game Awards takes a strong stance on the use of generative AI in the creative process. During the submission, Sandfall Interactive stated that it did not use it. However, they confirmed its use on the day of the ceremony. »
This statement resulted in the invalidation of both awards. From now on, the Game of the year returns to Blue Princewhile the price of Best first game is awarded to Sorry We’re Closed.
A community divided over the use of AI
The decision immediately sparked a wave of reactions online. Some support the organizers for their ethical rigor, others denounce hypocrisy or relentlessness towards a tool that is now omnipresent in the industry. “It’s an embarrassing decision that comes from an already outdated state of mind,” comments one user. Another quips: “All developers use AI. To say otherwise is an illusion. »
Sandfall Interactive, for its part, has not yet released an official statement. According to several sources, AI was used upstream of development, notably in the concept phase or for marketing materials, but not in the final assets of the game.
Towards an inevitable debate in creative circles
This affair rekindles a debate that is agitating all cultural sectors: where should we place the acceptable boundary of artificial intelligence in creative works? Some defend a strict ban in competitions, to guarantee the human integrity of the works. Others believe that AI is today a tool like any other, comparable to a game engine or editing software. “If you disqualify a game for using an AI tool in pre-production, will you also disqualify those using Photoshop or Excel? “, asks a developer in the comments to Insider Gaming.
A precedent that will mark the history of the Game Awards?
The case of Chiaroscuro: Expedition 33 risks becoming a reference in future debates on the ethics of AI-assisted creation. Especially since several commentators claim that other games awarded this year would also have used, to varying degrees, generative AI tools.
This case above all highlights the need for clarity, transparency and unified criteria. With the 2026 edition already looming, the organizers will probably have to redefine their rules. In the meantime, the Sandfall Interactive studio sees its success tarnished by a controversy which goes far beyond the framework of its own game.