Gamers Are Using A.I. to Completely Remake Old-School Graphics
Generative adversarial networks redefine classics for a new era
It’s a golden era of video game remakes. Earlier this year, Final Fantasy VII was updated for 2020 with a complete overhaul of its graphics and core gameplay systems, and fans of 900-degree skateboard turns will soon ollie into complete remasters of the first two Tony Hawk Pro Skater games.
These overhauls typically take years for professional game studios, which rebuild the game from the ground up. But fans have also been hard at work remaking classic games themselves, using artificial intelligence algorithms to upscale the pixelated, blotchy renderings of older games with crisp, modern graphics.
This community of thousands of game upscalers has sprung up thanks to the ability to instantly access and use A.I. research, which is often posted for free online by researchers from academia to big tech companies. Hobbyist game upscalers typically use an algorithm called ESRGAN, which won top prize at an international image upscaling competition in 2018.
The development of GANs was a “eureka” moment, like the fabled image of Archimedes running from his bath after realizing how water…
