“Feels like we’ve gone back in time”: Japanese game company asked job candidates to draw on the spot to prevent AI use

“Feels like we’ve gone back in time”: Japanese game company asked job candidates to draw on the spot to prevent AI use

Anna Good

Tue, December 23, 2025 at 7:00 PM UTC

person drawing anime characters — Tutatamafilm/Shutterstock

A Japanese video game studio reportedly changed its hiring process and is sparking discussion about the move online. They needed to do this to fight generative AI misuse by asking candidates to draw in front of interviewers. This step aimed to confirm real skills after the studio hired "artists" whose skills had been inflated by AI-generated submissions.

AI continues to spread into creative work, blurring the distinct visual line between human art and machine output. While some studios have embraced AI tools, others continue to resist and work with real artists. The unnamed Japanese studio landed in the second group.

According to Japanese media, the company learned the hard way. After a few hires, managers noticed problems. New artists failed to contribute at expected levels. Eventually, the studio realized those employees had relied heavily on generative AI during hiring.

Japanese game studio turned to live drawing tests

A chief graphic designer spoke anonymously with Daily Shincho about the change. The designer described a new interview rule where applicants now had to draw something on the spot.

"Many people claim that the images generated by the generative AI are their own creations, and we have had several cases where such people have been hired and ended up not being able to contribute to the company," the man, known anonymously as Mr. B, said. "As a result, we have changed our recruitment test style to have candidates actually draw pictures in front of us to assess their abilities."

"It is a lot of work for us as recruiters, and it feels like we've gone back in time, but it seems that there are several other companies that are doing the same thing."

Tweet that reads, "'Draw in front of us.' This is giving final boss aura. And I’m here for it." with a GIF of an anime girl laughing. — @starIightoccult/X

Internal debate over AI’s role in artistic media

Despite the stricter process, some managers pushed for a different approach. Instead, they suggested hiring AI specialists and leaning into generative tools directly.

Mr. B opposed that shift, although he admitted to using AI in the creative process as a "supplementary tool on the job."

"However, I strongly believe that it is human creators who can create compelling characters and graphics from scratch," he told Daily Shincho.

He went on to explain the importance of hiring skilled artists who know what they are doing, even if they do use AI as a supplementary tool. "That's why I've been telling my superiors that we should hire talented people, but the company is steering towards generative AI. I'm worried about how much my advice is being understood."

Tweet that reads, "They should do this in most businesses! Write a story in a few hours without any electronics. Write a program by hand or explain a process to interviewers to show your knowledge and skill. If you can’t do it without a silly crap-g-peepee ai, you shouldn’t have a job doing it." — @realshawnalee/X

The internet is chaotic—but we’ll break it down for you in one daily email. Sign up for the Daily Dot’s newsletter here.

This story was originally featured on The Daily Dot.

About our ads

Source