If you've ever enjoyed a role-playing game (RPG), you know the appeal lies in crafting a unique character and setting off on grand journeys. Imagine a text-based RPG powered by artificial intelligence where every conversation with a non-player character (NPC) unfolds without a predetermined script. Latitude, a startup recognized for its open-ended, AI-generated text adventures with "infinite storylines," has introduced a new platform that lets users become game creators. This AI-driven RPG system, named Voyage, empowers players to build their own gaming worlds using AI. They can outline their settings with specifics like regions, cities, landmarks, central missions, and antagonists. They can also define game mechanics, including character abilities, progression systems, and combat encounters. For instance, describing a seaside village plagued by a mythical creature prompts the AI to generate the code to realize that vision. Users can then refine their world before publishing it for others to explore.

For gamers, Voyage provides a variety of adventures spanning multiple genres, from lighthearted tales to intense challenges. As a text-based experience, players follow the narrative through reading—with optional audio narration—and type their character's actions. Diverging from conventional RPGs, if a character encounters a goblin assault, instead of standard choices like flee or fight, players might opt for unconventional approaches, such as acting as a goblin therapist to address the creatures' personal problems. After players input their decisions, the AI describes the results, including NPC reactions. With no fixed storyline, interactions can take unexpected turns, often leading to bizarre and amusing dialogues. During testing, for example, a troll that had captured a character began confiding about its marital difficulties. Character advancement relies on the character's abilities and an element of chance, similar to dice rolls in tabletop games. Characters can also unlock special powers by defeating bosses or completing quests, like employing a "Counterspell" to block an enemy's magic. (Many abilities in Voyage are playfully inspired by classic Dungeons & Dragons spells.)

Additionally, if players hit a dead end, a chatbot can propose actions or even jump to new story segments. At the heart of Voyage is Latitude's World Engine, a framework developed over five years. This engine utilizes multiple AI systems to narrate events, oversee gameplay, monitor characters and items, and recall backstories and relationships, maintaining consistency across the game. Consequently, instead of generic NPCs with repetitive dialogue, players meet characters who remember past encounters. Betraying a character's trust, for example, might cause them to shun you or become an adversary later.

Latitude initially gained attention in AI-native gaming with AI Dungeon in 2019, which drew millions of users. "It became an internet sensation as one of the first widespread interactions with generative AI," Walton noted. "It essentially demonstrated the early potential of games and worlds that aren't entirely pre-scripted... Voyage expands that core idea exponentially, evolving from a single AI model into a comprehensive world with deterministic systems, challenges, progression, and persistence, addressing limitations that AI Dungeon couldn't fully overcome."

Voyage is currently in an expanded beta phase, with an open beta planned for later this year. Early testers have already interacted with more than 160,000 distinct AI-generated characters, each possessing unique traits. The average player has made close to 3,000 in-game decisions.

Coinciding with the launch, Latitude revealed a collaboration with Google's AI Futures Fund. The platform integrates its own proprietary models with third-party systems like Google's Gemini Flash for image creation and Gemma for text, audio, and video. Furthermore, former Roblox Chief Business Officer Craig Donato has joined as an investor and board member. Other prominent investors include Album VC, Griffin Gaming Partners, Midjourney, and NFX. Voyage is free to play but will soon introduce subscription tiers priced at $15, $30, and $50. These plans will grant access to enhanced AI capabilities and lift restrictions on the number of actions players can perform. It's worth noting that while the platform is designed for all ages, some content includes mature themes, which Walton compares to what might be found on Steam. He emphasizes that Voyage incorporates safety protocols and parental controls to help users filter out unsuitable material.