two & a half gamers

🤖 Ignore AI Ads now, regret it in 2026: AI creative trends


Listen Later

We go two and a half steps ahead into the new era of AI-generated creatives - dissecting what’s trending, which studios are using them, and what it means for the future of game marketing.


Key insights:


Adoption is rising


In 2024 only a handful of studios used AI for hooks.


By late 2025, top performers such as Lands of Jail, King Shot, and Rise of Castles will be fully embracing AI-assisted pipelines.


Jakub predicts 50% of all mobile ads will be AI-driven by end of 2026.


AI Creative Formats Taking Over


Hooks: 60–70% of AI output focuses on hyper-realistic or surreal opening shots.


Full Creatives: Only ~30–40%, limited by coherence and model smoothness.


Transitions are now indistinguishable from live action - especially in POV-style TikTok ads.


Contrast Art Styles: Realistic → cartoon → pixel mashups catch the eye.


POV Narratives: First-person sequences with “AI girlfriend” narration dominate TikTok.


Localization via AI: Same creative, instantly re-rendered for JP, KR, EN markets.


Freeze/Prison Metas: Prison Life-style “frozen prisoner” AI scenes trending hard.


“No Ads” UGC Spoofs: King Shot’s “no ads” meme now a running trend.


Brain Rot & Chaos: nonsensical motion = attention-grabbing hook.


AI Interviews: VEO3 and Kling 2.5 are redefining talking-head realism.


Kling 2.5 = new industry benchmark (4x cheaper, faster scene rendering).


2025: AI is mainly used for hooks.


2026: Half of all creatives will be AI-produced end-to-end.


Takeaway: AI creatives are here, fast, and chaotic. The best teams use them not to replace creativity, but to scale it.


Get our MERCH NOW: 25gamers.com/shop

--------------------------------------

PVX Partners offers non-dilutive funding for game developers.

Go to: https://pvxpartners.com/

They can help you access the most effective form of growth capital once you have the metrics to back it.

- Scale fast

- Keep your shares

- Drawdown only as needed

- Have PvX take downside risk alongside you

+ Work with a team entirely made up of ex-gaming operators and investors

---------------------------------------

For an ever-growing number of game developers, this means that now is the perfect time to invest in monetizing direct-to-consumer at scale.

Our sponsor FastSpring:

Has delivered D2C at scale for over 20 years

They power top mobile publishers around the world

Launch a new webstore, replace an existing D2C vendor, or add a redundant D2C vendor at fastspring.gg.

---------------------------------------

This is no BS gaming podcast 2.5 gamers session. Sharing actionable insights, dropping knowledge from our day-to-day User Acquisition, Game Design, and Ad monetization jobs. We are definitely not discussing the latest industry news, but having so much fun! Let’s not forget this is a 4 a.m. conference discussion vibe, so let's not take it too seriously.

Panelists: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Jakub Remia⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠r,⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Felix Braberg, Matej Lancaric⁠


Join our slack channel here: https://join.slack.com/t/two-and-half-gamers/shared_invite/zt-2um8eguhf-c~H9idcxM271mnPzdWbipg


Chapters


00:00 Introduction to AI Creatives

03:52 Current Trends in AI Creatives

06:24 The Evolution of Art Styles in AI

12:01 AI Creatives and Marketing Strategies

14:46 Localization and Cultural Adaptation in AI

22:52 The Rise of AI in Creative Content

28:01 The Evolution of Game Graphics and AI

31:21 The Future of AI in Advertising

37:38 Predictions for AI in the Creative Industry

---------------------------------------

Matej Lancaric

User Acquisition & Creatives Consultant

⁠https://lancaric.me

Felix Braberg

Ad monetization consultant

⁠https://www.felixbraberg.com

Jakub Remiar

Game design consultant

⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/jakubremiar


Please share the podcast with your industry friends, dogs & cats. Especially cats! They love it!

Hit the Subscribe button on YouTube, Spotify, and Apple!

Please share feedback and comments - [email protected]

...more
View all episodesView all episodes
Download on the App Store

two & a half gamersBy Lancaric.me

  • 5
  • 5
  • 5
  • 5
  • 5

5

3 ratings


More shows like two & a half gamers

View all
a16z Podcast by Andreessen Horowitz

a16z Podcast

1,101 Listeners

Nintendo Voice Chat by IGN & Geek Media

Nintendo Voice Chat

3,395 Listeners

Kinda Funny Gamescast: Video Game Podcast by Kinda Funny

Kinda Funny Gamescast: Video Game Podcast

2,834 Listeners

Deconstructor of Fun by Deconstructor of Fun

Deconstructor of Fun

100 Listeners

Mobile Dev Memo Podcast by MobileDevMemo

Mobile Dev Memo Podcast

20 Listeners

All-In with Chamath, Jason, Sacks & Friedberg by All-In Podcast, LLC

All-In with Chamath, Jason, Sacks & Friedberg

9,957 Listeners

Triple Click by Maximum Fun

Triple Click

1,157 Listeners

Parenting Hell with Rob Beckett and Josh Widdicombe by Keep It Light Media / Spotify Studios

Parenting Hell with Rob Beckett and Josh Widdicombe

985 Listeners

Dwarkesh Podcast by Dwarkesh Patel

Dwarkesh Podcast

502 Listeners

The Rest Is History by Goalhanger

The Rest Is History

14,679 Listeners

PocketGamer.biz Podcast by PGbiz Podcast

PocketGamer.biz Podcast

0 Listeners

Gamecraft by Mitch Lasky / Blake Robbins

Gamecraft

128 Listeners

Building Better Games by Benjamin Carcich

Building Better Games

10 Listeners

Game Economist Cast by Phillip Black

Game Economist Cast

7 Listeners