Sohei Niikawa, best known as the creator of Disgaea and former president of Nippon Ichi Software, has shared his perspective on the growing use of generative AI in video game development. In an interview with Dengeki Online, Niikawa explained that he does not view AI as a threat, instead considering it a potential tool for improving productivity.
However, Niikawa emphasized that there should be clear boundaries regarding how the technology is used. In particular, he does not consider using AI to violate copyright or facilitate illegal activities to be acceptable.
Despite being open to AI for certain practical tasks, Niikawa currently has no plans to incorporate generative AI into his own creative process. This is especially true when it comes to story writing, an area where he believes there is little reason to hand over creative control to an AI system.
Niikawa acknowledged that developers could create a basic plot and then ask AI to expand it into a complete story. However, he questioned whether the resulting work would necessarily be interesting or satisfying to experience. For him, creating stories and characters that he personally wants to see is an important part of the creative process.
Because of that philosophy, Niikawa prefers to remain directly involved in the details of his projects. This includes deciding how the story develops and even carefully choosing the words used throughout the narrative.
He does recognize that AI could still be useful for simpler tasks. For example, the technology could help with information gathering or generating lists of potential character names. However, Niikawa has little interest in asking AI to actually write his stories.
The creator also does not intend to use AI to identify supposedly reliable formulas for producing commercially successful stories. Instead, he believes there is value in choosing themes that genuinely interest him and developing those ideas through his own creative direction.
That philosophy continues to influence his upcoming projects. Niikawa is currently involved with Demons’ Night Fever, scheduled to launch on October 22, 2026, for PC, PlayStation 5, and Nintendo Switch. He is also working on Noroi Ayashi: The ∞th Oddity, which is planned for PC, Nintendo Switch, and Nintendo Switch 2 in 2027.
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