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Papers, Please Creator Lucas Pope Stops Sharing Early Ideas Over AI and Copycat Fears

The move highlights rising concern over generative AI's grip on indie creators.

Overview

  • Pope, speaking on the Mike & Rami Are Still Here podcast on Monday, said he no longer shares work-in-progress ideas because they could be “slurped up by AI” or copied.
  • He stressed this is a feeling rather than a rule and said he hopes he will feel comfortable discussing projects again.
  • He added that the acclaim for Papers, Please and Return of the Obra Dinn makes him wary of a big follow-up that might disappoint fans.
  • He described his process as solo and production-focused and has favored smaller releases like a Playdate exclusive and browser games instead of a new Steam title.
  • Coverage of his comments places them in a wider shift as developers share less during development to protect ideas from AI training and fast imitators.