The First Descendant is facing fan backlash over a marketing campaign featuring AI influencers. Critics have called the ads uncanny and pointless, arguing that they'll do more harm than good to The First Descendant.
The First Descendant is currently in the midst of its third season, which kicked off on August 7. Called "Breakthrough," the latest seasonal content drop introduces a NieR: Automata crossover, new dungeons, another playable character, and the Hover Bike vehicle, among other novelties. Nexon has been advertising Season 3 for weeks now, even before its official start.
As part of these efforts, the South Korean publisher has recently launched a bizarre TikTok marketing campaign featuring AI-generated videos of uncanny influencers clumsily discussing The First Descendant's NieR: Automata content, the Wall Crasher boss, and other Season 3 novelties, using robotic head bobs and awkward pronunciations. The AI-generated personas are largely based on real people, including horror-themed variety streamer DanieltheDemon, PC Gamer reports. Judging by social media reactions to the campaign, fans have not taken kindly to the experiment.
The First Descendant players have decried the ads as "cringe" and unnerving, criticizing Nexon for using AI-generated clones of streamers instead of supporting actual creators. "It’s...
