Viral VTuber Cancels Sponsorship With Neverness to Everness Over ‘Lying’

She further stated, “A lot of people @ me with stuff, so I saw it, and I’m like, what the f*** bro? They told my sponsor people and said, ‘We do not have AI in anything, there’s no AI anywhere.’ And it’s like, why are you f****** lying, bro?”

Ironmouse explained her process of accepting sponsorship deals, stating, “First off, here’s the problem, whenever I get sent an offer of a sponsor or something, I always make sure to tell people, ‘Can you make sure, double triple, quadruple check that this does not have AI in it. I will not accept it if it does.”

She also said, “And then after they assured me, ‘no, you’re good, it’s fine,’ I then found out it’s not fine, I was like what the f***…What do you think that I don’t have eyes?!”

The cancellation follows specific instances of community-led detective work regarding the game’s visuals.

AI Cloud Hovers Above Neverness to Everness

According to reports, a viral post highlighted similarities between the game and the film Weathering with You, nearly mirroring a scene, while fans also pointed to AI-like distortions in an in-game TV ad, prompting Hotta Studio to respond via X.

Hotta Studio wrote via the NTE Global account, stating, “Neverness to Everness is built on human creativity.” They further admitted to having used AI.

The studio stated, “AI-assisted tools were used only on a small number of background and environmental assets, not on the characters or stories that define this game.”

While the studio claims that the main character and environment designs were spared from AI, they further stated, “We’re already reviewing and reworking the flagged assets: ‘Clear Skies in Summer’ and ‘Pink Paws Heist’.”

Similar backlash has been seen with games like The First Descendant, with suspected use of AI and unclear communications from the devs sparked trust issues and concerns about originality and transparency.

With an admission now on the record, Hotta Studio faces an uphill battle to regain the trust of creators who prioritize human artistry.