Google AI turned two ideas into playable games

TechRadar’s Eric Hal Schwartz used Google Playground to turn two written game concepts into playable browser games without writing code. The experiment showed how quickly generative AI can build something that resembles a game, and how much design work remains between that result and a compelling experience.

For his first test, Schwartz described a dragon platformer. Playground created Mystic Dragon Glide, where players move and glide between floating islands, breathe fire, and collect eggs. The game also included enemies, environmental hazards, objectives, and background music. Schwartz found it attractive and playable, but said its movement and level design lacked the fine-tuning that makes a platformer compelling.

His second project, Red Tape Hero, came from a more detailed prompt for a satirical fantasy puzzle RPG. It generated a colorful low-poly 3D world and conversations built around bureaucratic quests. One character described the player as the Chosen One because of an administrative error and asked about Form GT-902 for a goat rescue. The game also included a talking sword named Ex Cali-Bot. Its dialogue referenced “100%” of dragons left unslain and called synergy “the true holy grail.”

Schwartz said the results demonstrated Playground’s potential as a creative tool and prototyping system. But his two experiments did not convince him that AI-generated games were ready to hold players’ attention for dozens of hours.