Jake Solomon’s determination to maneuver from making a few of the finest technique video games ever to an bold life sim was a perplexing however thrilling one. Spinning up a brand new studio, Midsummer, he pitched it as “a life sim that basically tries to raise the alternatives the participant makes of their life” when he spoke to us again in 2024. Impressed by The Sims, this might open up an excellent wider narrative sandbox than Maxis’ iconic collection. Nevertheless, the previous XCOM and Civilization developer has confirmed that Midsummer is closing its doorways, and that the brand new recreation (titled Burbank) won’t ever see the sunshine of day. As a parting reward, he is shared a primary have a look at what the sport may’ve been, and the most important shock is that its narrative and dialog is AI-powered.
Burbank at all times appeared like an intriguing prospect. A life sim set in a small city, with interconnected characters and a player-driven strategy to how the narrative pans out and the way relationships develop. In that aforementioned interview with Solomon, he advised us the purpose was to create “emergent drama” – it undoubtedly sounded extra zoomed in and narrative-focused than one thing like The Sims or Inzoi. I actually thought on the time that, if Midsummer may truly create that degree of narrative depth and freedom, it could have the potential to be probably the greatest life video games of latest instances. Nevertheless, we’ll sadly by no means get to play it.
“We constructed a studio, we made a recreation, and I am actually pleased with each,” the previous XCOM artistic director says in a submit on X. “Earlier than we shut the doorways at Midsummer Studios I would wish to share a glimpse of Burbank, the sport we poured our hearts into. It is like ‘life sims + The Truman Present,’ however it’s greater than that. I consider persons are storytellers, and I need them to share no matter tales and characters they’ll dream up. Burbank helps you to do this. We’ve moments enjoying this recreation the place characters come alive in a method we have by no means skilled. And for an outdated recreation developer like me that is particular.”
Solomon additionally shares “pre-alpha” footage of the sport, which exhibits how one can create sitcom-like eventualities with a customizable forged. You may drive completely different types of interactions between the characters – you possibly can, for instance, command one individual to interact with one other in a humorous or confrontational method, and an acceptable interplay will then observe. As your forged ranges up, they acquire new skills like audience-pleasing catchphrases. Over time, you may unlock new settings and characters in Burbank’s city you can direct.
We constructed a studio, we made a recreation, and I am actually pleased with each. Earlier than we shut the doorways at Midsummer Studios I would wish to share a glimpse of Burbank, the sport we poured our hearts into.
It is like “Life Sims + The Truman Present,” however it’s greater than that. I consider persons are… pic.twitter.com/RuYvDhdEZO
– Jake Solomon (@SolomonJake) February 19, 2026
Nevertheless, it shortly turns into clear that the conversations and dialog are being partly or wholly AI-generated. For instance, a function helps you to dig deeper into a personality’s backstory by typing in no matter immediate you need, they usually’ll reply with an applicable reply.
Replying to his preliminary assertion about Midsummer’s closure, Solomon confirms this, however assures that Burbank’s artwork is not AI-generated.
“Our characters use AI for reminiscence, reasoning and speech. That is what helps you to create anybody you need and drop them in any story you write. However all of our artwork is created by our gifted artists. We had little interest in changing any builders with AI.”
That is shocking for a few causes. Firstly, the usage of AI was by no means beforehand disclosed by Solomon – in a Bloomberg interview in 2024, he stated: “We’ve checked out it. I feel each developer has checked out AI. It is attention-grabbing – you have a look at it with some pleasure and a few horror. I am certain it would grow to be part of video games, however I feel it stays to be seen if it turns into as ubiquitous as multiplayer. I do not suppose all video games could have it. Anyone afraid of AI taking on the world has not labored with it a lot every day.”
Whereas different video games have used AI in comparable methods to energy dialog, with a latest and notable instance being the free-to-play The place Winds Meet, I feel it is a bit disappointing to realize it was being utilized in Burbank given the main target was on high quality storytelling. I sympathize to an extent, as AI is the one inexpensive method to get the breadth of narrative potentialities Midsummer needed. However, as video games utilizing comparable AI-voiced or written characters have discovered, the standard of these interactions usually suffers.
The second shock is that Midsummer is shutting down in any respect. In fact, studios are slicing again and shutting left, proper, and heart in the intervening time, and discovering monetary backing is extraordinarily onerous proper now. But when something goes to catch the attention of traders, certainly it is AI integration? The studio was solely fashioned two years in the past, and managed to safe an preliminary $6 million in enterprise capital to assist construct Burbank, in line with that Bloomberg report.
