House House has updated its FAQ to disclose generative AI use during the final stretch of Big Walk's development. The studio estimates that well under 0.1% of the game's code was connected to that use.
The developer says large language models (LLMs) helped it work through difficult technical problems and bugs. In some cases, the team copied response snippets as starting points, then modified them into game code. House House says generative AI was not used in any other context when making the game.
How chatbot suggestions helped fix a rendering bug
House House's detailed example concerns a shadow-rendering problem in Unity's URP rendering system. Shadow casters behind the player were being rendered at an unlimited distance, making Big Walk run 50% slower for around 20 seconds at sunrise and sunset.
The team researched the issue and examined URP's code before speaking directly to a Unity engineer. That engineer consulted colleagues and ultimately concluded that the change House House wanted was not possible.
House House then asked an LLM chatbot. After a few dead ends, it suggested a possible fix that the developers extensively modified before using. The resulting fix amounted to about 10 lines of code inside URP.
Why House House published the disclosure
The studio says it originally wrote a version of the disclosure as a suggested part of its Independent Games Festival submission. It published the explanation because the issue had become a matter of public interest.
House House also addressed the absence of a Steam disclosure. The studio says Steam does not request disclosure of code or chatbot usage, which is why it had not made one on the storefront.
The public statement follows a pledge from 19 IGF jurors not to vote for games that used generative AI in any capacity, including programming. Their position does not represent the entire festival or all its jurors, and it is not a festival-wide ban.
House House described its disclosure as “not an endorsement” of AI tools. It expressed concern that voluntary disclosures could help normalize the technology and apologized to people whose standards Big Walk's LLM use did not meet.
The studio also acknowledged that Big Walk was developed without an internal AI usage policy. House House called that absence a “failure” and said it would work toward a more comprehensive policy.
