AI transparency

Tracking of AI-generated images in Pokémon Otherside

Summary

Since update 1.4.9, released on 28 December 2025 at 12:42, the game has not contained any AI-generated image. Before that, these images amounted to only about ten visuals, all used for VS trainer screens: eleven are visible in the trailer, compared with the 41,246 images the game contains today. I wrote this page for the sake of transparency.

Version 1.6.0

Since version 1.6.0, trainer battles open with new transitions built with the trainer sprites. The VS faces shown below are therefore no longer used in the game; this page stays online as a record.

The ANIME-style mugshots have been set aside to be reworked. They may come back in a future version, but nothing is decided yet.

This tracker covers only the graphics of the game. The artworks on the website are a separate matter: why the artwork view is suspended.

In this document, “AI image” means the full-HD, Ghibli-style artworks generated by AI that appeared in the early versions of the game and in the V1 trailer, where I count eleven. I no longer have the 2025 release version, so the exact number present in the game at the time cannot be verified. These images were used as VS trainer visuals.

Current status: I declare that as of 2 October 2026, version 1.5.9, no AI-generated image is present in the game. None has been added since the 1.4.9 fix, and none will be.

If you have a question about a visual, the best thing to do is to message me privately: I will explain where it comes from.

Timeline

DateEvent
14 May 2025V1 trailer goes online; it contains a few seconds of these AI images scrolling by.
21 May 2025Game release, with AI images (eleven visible in the trailer; exact number in the game cannot be verified).
21 May 2025 → 28 December 2025The AI images remain in the game while I replace them with pixel art.
28 December 2025Update 1.4.9: all AI images are removed and replaced with pixel art that I made in Aseprite; some are inspired by those images. The announcement was posted the same day in the updates channel of the game's Discord: announcement message (link for server members only; screenshot below).
2 October 2026The V1 trailer is switched to an unlisted link because it contains these AI images. It remains available at this link so anyone can check: V1 trailer.
11 October 2026Version 1.6.0: VS faces are replaced by new battle transitions using the trainer sprites. The ANIME-style mugshots are set aside to be reworked.

Origin of the current graphics (version 1.5.9)

Whenever I borrowed a resource, I credited its author in the credits. I deliberately kept borrowing to a minimum, which is why I made things on my own. If an element looks to you like it belongs to another resource, let me know: I will check, and if it turns out to be the case, I will act accordingly.

1.4.9 announcement

Announcement of 28 December 2025, 12:42, in the updates channel ({d:full message}, link for server members only)
Announcement of 28 December 2025, 12:42, in the updates channel (full message, link for server members only).

The 1.4.9 mugshots are all pixel art that I made. Some are inspired by the AI images from the trailer, as in the Lamron example below; some have since been replaced by new designs.

Changes to character designs

Between the game's release and today, several characters changed character design: Omar, Léonard, Lamron, Calyptus, Dryan, Atmos and Mikayl (non-exhaustive list). Differences between older and newer visuals of the same character therefore correspond, in part, to these changes.

Not all GAME-style mugshots have been updated to follow the new designs: small differences in detail (a lock of hair on the wrong side, for example) remain. Some of these differences may simply be mistakes.

The ANIME style is deliberately distant from the game's graphic register. That did not seem like a problem to me: on the contrary, I think it adds value. A manga, an anime and a game based on the same work also differ from one another.

GAME and ANIME styles compared

A few VS faces in both styles. The difference in style is intentional; for some characters, it comes on top of a change of character design.

Lamron, GAME style
Lamron, GAME style
Lamron, ANIME style
Lamron, ANIME style
Mikayl, GAME style
Mikayl, GAME style
Mikayl, ANIME style
Mikayl, ANIME style
Atmos, GAME style (old character design)
Atmos, GAME style (old character design)
Atmos, ANIME style (current character design)
Atmos, ANIME style (current character design)

Mikayl: the style differs, the character design is the same. Atmos: both the character design and the style differ. His GAME VS face dates from 1.5.0; I have since changed his character design, so the ANIME style is more faithful to the current design.

More generally, GAME VS faces are less faithful to the current designs today: some still reflect old character designs. Lamron and Léonard are among the few characters whose visuals were fully updated after their design changed. All these VS faces are drawn by me: the differences come from a lack of consistency in updating.

Example: Lamron

Lamron's trainer sprite (old design), pixel art drawn by me. Present in the release version (see the screenshots below)
1. Lamron's trainer sprite (old design), pixel art drawn by me. Present in the release version (see the screenshots below).
Lamron's character sprite (old design), pixel art drawn by me. Present in the release version (see the screenshots below)
2. Lamron's character sprite (old design), pixel art drawn by me. Present in the release version (see the screenshots below).
V1 trailer, at 0:37. One of the eleven images visible in the trailer, generated by AI from the description of a character whose design I had created, and who has a trainer sprite and a character sprite that I drew in pixel art
3. V1 trailer, at 0:37. One of the eleven images visible in the trailer, generated by AI from the description of a character whose design I had created, and who has a trainer sprite and a character sprite that I drew in pixel art.
1.4.9 mugshot: from full HD to pixel art. Redrawn from image 3 and the actual character design, without changing that design. It was replaced in 1.5.2 and is no longer in the game
4. 1.4.9 mugshot: from full HD to pixel art. Redrawn from image 3 and the actual character design, without changing that design. It was replaced in 1.5.2 and is no longer in the game.
New character design and new pixel art mugshot, GAME style, added in 1.5.2
5. New character design and new pixel art mugshot, GAME style, added in 1.5.2.
Same design, ANIME style, added in 1.5.3 or 1.5.4 (from memory). Both styles are then available. I did not rework the GAME mugshots for details such as whether the eyes are visible through the glasses: I gave priority to the new designs
6. Same design, ANIME style, added in 1.5.3 or 1.5.4 (from memory). Both styles are then available. I did not rework the GAME mugshots for details such as whether the eyes are visible through the glasses: I gave priority to the new designs.

In the release version: screenshots from a livestream of the time

Screenshots from a livestream broadcast live on 2 June 2025 by a third party (identity hidden). They show Lamron's sprites in the game, as well as the AI image used as the VS trainer visual. The in-game text is in French.

Lamron's character sprite in the game
Lamron's character sprite in the game.
Lamron's VS face: this is the AI image from the trailer, then used as the VS trainer visual
Lamron's VS face: this is the AI image from the trailer, then used as the VS trainer visual.
Lamron's trainer sprite in battle
Lamron's trainer sprite in battle.

Another example: Léonard

Léonard's design has changed between 1.4.9 and today.

Version 1.4.9

Character sprite
Character sprite.
VS face
VS face.
Trainer sprite
Trainer sprite.

Today (1.5.9)

Trainer sprite
Trainer sprite.
Character sprite
Character sprite.
VS face
VS face.

Last updated: 11 October 2026.