Chronicles: Medieval is a stunning sandbox RPG coming in 2026—despite a past commitment to using generative AI, the studio now says the game is '100% handcrafted'

Chronicles: Medieval - Announcement Trailer - YouTube

I noticed earlier this week that there was a studio I hadn't heard of among the Summer Game Fest partners, Raw Power Games, which said it was building a "vast medieval sandbox." Sure enough, we got a glimpse of that game, called Chronicles: Medieval, at Geoff Keighley's showcase today.

With the caveat that trailers don't always reflect the final product, it sure looks pretty. I especially like the colorful scene of what is apparently gameplay at the end—some contrast to the standard dark ages gloom and muck that comes before it.

When I looked into Raw Power earlier this week, I discovered a 2022 interview with two studio heads in which they showed off AI-generated concept art and discussed how excited they were about using the technology to make games. Apparently, that attitude has since changed.

Every asset in the game is built by our extremely talented team of passionate developers. It is not generated by AI.
Raw Power

In a statement shared with PC Gamer this morning, Raw Power CTO Caspar Strandbygaard said that Chronicles: Medieval is "100% handcrafted with no use of generative AI."

"To elaborate: We are curious about new technology and keeping up with the latest tools," said the Strandbygaard. "That said, our upcoming medieval debut title is all about handcrafted experiences. Every asset in the game is built by our extremely talented team of passionate developers. It is not generated by AI."

Raw Power's AI tools division is working on AI tools (naturally), but not on AI tools for Chronicles: Medieval, according to Strandbygaard, though he did say that the development team employs AI in less controversial ways.

"As a techsavvy workplace, we too embrace AI-tools where it helps make our work smoother," said Strandbygaard. "Like testing or optimizing performance. But when it comes to creating the world you'll dive into as a gamer, that's 100% human creativity."

That's very different from what Strandbygaard said in 2022, when he stated that the studio's 10-year-goal was to become so reliant on AI that its job would become "almost to make tools that will generate the game—rather than to make the game ourselves."

Perhaps the plan changed; the gaming public's perception of generative AI has certainly soured since 2022, although it was already controversial at the time.

Chronicles: Medieval is due to release in early access on Steam in 2026.

Tyler grew up in Silicon Valley during the '80s and '90s, playing games like Zork and Arkanoid on early PCs. He was later captivated by Myst, SimCity, Civilization, Command & Conquer, all the shooters they call "boomer shooters" now, and PS1 classic Bushido Blade (that's right: he had Bleem!). Tyler joined PC Gamer in 2011, and today he's focused on the site's news coverage. His hobbies include amateur boxing and adding to his 1,200-plus hours in Rocket League.

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