Blog Post #1 – Lauren Gallagher

Beginnings: First Project Launch!

So begins my first 13-week independent project for the MFA program Seminar course at Clark University!

Project Setup

The Structure

Over the course of the next 13 weeks I am tasked with studying and experimenting with a new concept that I will present to my cohort in the format of 5 Milestone Presentations.

Each Milestone Presentation is an opportunity to showcase my learning and results to my peers while my work prepares me for the more rigorous courses part of the second year MFA program: Praxis and Thesis.

My Project

My project is to explore both the current state of generative AI in gamespaces and how to implement it within them

This includes creating “intelligent NPCs” while also investigating other potential applications of generative AI in video games. From what I understand, generative AI in games is still a very new concept that few studios are actively pursuing, but that doesn’t mean it won’t become an important tool in the industry in years to come.

My goal is to explore the possibilities that exist now and to test them myself by implementing generative AI in a game engine, ultimately presenting a prototype of my own “intelligent NPC.”

Milestones 1-5 Proposal of Goals

Milestone 1

Foundational Work

1. Understand the current state of generative AI in games

2. Identify the difference between generative AI and traditional Game AI

3. Document the current mood on generative AI use in games

4. Research current tools of implementing generative AI into game engines.

5. What are and how to create “Intelligent” NPCs

*Milestone 2

Workspace Set Up & NPC Pre-Development

1. Set up workspace in game engine (engine TBD)

2. Implement Generative AI (plug-in/TBD) into game engine

3. Set up the game scene and NPC sprites (for immersion)

4. Define NPC-> Scope of conversation (what is the goal of the player) Personality of NPC

*Milestone 3

First Build

1. First tangible build of prototype completed

2. Acquire play-testing and feedback on Build_v1

*Milestone 4

Second Build

1. Refined version of first prototype build (with feedback incorporated)

2. Acquire play-testing and feedback on Build_v2

*Milestone 5

Final Build and Final Presentation (Project End)

1. Final polish of the functioning prototype of an intelligent NPC in game engine created with generative AI.

2. Present Build_v3

* Milestone goals may be subject to change as project progresses

Why this Project?

This semester’s work ties into one of my long-term ideas I have been developing as a potential candidate for my graduate game studio project: a farming/life sim that refreshes the genre.

The realization that generative AI was even a whisper of a thought within game development for me came while I was attending PAX East 2025. I saw huge excitement for AlterStaff Inc.’s “AI2U: With You ‘Til The End”, where intelligent NPCs were central to creating a unique, generative AI-driven player experience (marketed as the first of its kind).

That moment made me wonder;

Is generative AI going to become a common tool in game development, and if so, could generative AI also revitalize farming games?

I aim for this project to give me both an understanding of generative AI in gamespaces and the practical knowledge to implement it in a game engine.

My project-end goal is to create a demonstrable prototype of an “intelligent NPC” that others can play-test, serving as a step toward exploring broader uses of generative AI in games.

Next Step

Setting the foundational work outlined in my Milestone 1 goals is already in progress, and in my next post I will document my findings, laying the groundwork towards development of my “intelligent NPC” prototype.