Push play forward
Remember when games surprised you?
When the Wii remote arrived, nobody wanted a prettier tennis game. They wanted to swing. People who had never held a controller were playing in their living rooms. A new way to play brought in new players.
AI is the next one.
Right now, most AI in games makes old games faster to build. Same games, new tools. Most people making games with AI for the first time remake what they already know.
We think AI should change what you play, not only how it gets made.
That's why Background World exists. We're an AI game lab, and we make games that only AI makes possible. The models are ready. Making them fun still takes people who make games.
What that means for you
Games made while you play. We call them live-gen games: generated live, as you play. No two runs are the same, and they don't run out.
Games that listen. Characters hear what you say and answer back. Enemies adapt. Voters argue.
Games for fans nobody builds for. 42 million Americans watched election night in 2024 (Nielsen via Variety). Most Americans consume true crime (Edison and SSRS, 2024). Markets and world politics have fans of their own. They want people who react and stories that don't run out. Now that's possible.
Genres brought back. Some genres faded because nobody could make enough for them. Now the game makes its own.
Play you can share. What happens in your game is new, so share the best of it. Later, take someone's version and make it yours.
Nothing new to learn about paying. You pay the way you already pay for AI tools and games. No tricks.
Better the more you play. Every game leaves tools and lessons for the next. What one player makes, everyone can play. The more people play, the bigger the world gets.
How the lab works
A new game every 2 weeks, right here. We call each one a Game Drop, numbered in order. Each is small, a little strange, and plays in your browser with nothing to install.
You decide what grows. The games you love get more: more updates, more modes, more of our time.
Every week we post here, about the new game or what's changed in the ones you're playing. We build in public, so you'll see what we learn as we go.
Mob Machine came first. It's a game where players fund and vote on what a crew of AI agents builds. Its first playable game took one person two days.
Game Drop 001: The Big Board
Command an army with your voice. The enemy AI is listening.
Play it now at bgworldlab.com. Hit Notify me and we'll tell you when GD002 drops.
Push play forward.
Kyle Smith, founder