AI is dramatically changing online gaming, according to an update from the World Network.
According to a new survey shared by the World Network, more than 7 in 10 gamers “agree unauthorized third-party bots are both ruining multiplayer competition (71%) and making it less fun to play certain games (74%).”
In a fast-evolving world where AI-driven gaming is quickly becoming the new normal, “safeguarding the human experience in digital play is more crucial than ever.”
That’s why World and Razer, the global firm focused on gaming lifestyle products, are announcing a partnership designed to “reduce the negative impact of bots on gaming and improve the in-game experience for verified humans.”
The partnership is centered around the new ‘Razer ID verified by World ID’—a secure, “single sign-on, proof of human technology that will verify real human gamers for Razer ID.”
With ‘Razer ID verified by World ID’, gamers can “optionally add World’s anonymous proof of human verification to Razer’s unified single sign-on (SSO) account for services and software.”
It’s designed to help create “a safer, more authentic and more immersive environment for gamers,” with benefits including:
Help for game developers to introduce “anti-bot measures and strengthen in-game harassment prevention through human verification.”
There’s also more streamlined player authentication for “seamless logins.”
World ID is anonymous and self custodial, which means players will be able to focus on the “enhanced gaming experience enabled by ‘Razer ID verified by World ID’ knowing their information is private and secure.”
The first game to integrate this solution will be TOKYO BEAST, which is set to launch in Q2 2025.
The partnership between World and Razer comes as a new third party survey, commissioned by Tools for Humanity, reveals just “how much AI and bots are changing the gaming experience for players—and how proof of human solutions can help smooth the transition.”
According to the survey, nearly “6 in 10 gamers (59%) said they regularly encounter unauthorized, third-party bots while playing.”
That number jumps to “70% for serious gamers who play 10+ hours per week.”
Their top concerns?
- Bots make it hard for casual gamers to enjoy playing
- Bots put real human players at a disadvantage
- Bots can be used to gain unfair gameplay advantages
- Bots can be used to artificially inflate player counts in lobbies
- Bots can manipulate an in-game economy
- Bots can unfairly obtain loot or rare drops
Overall, the majority or 52% of gamers reportedly said they feel bots in multiplayer gaming “make the gaming experience worse, compared to only 20% who said they make it better.”
It’s no surprise, then, that almost “1 in 5 gamers (18%) have said they’ve stopped playing a game entirely in response to bots, and 87% of gamers said they think it’s important to know whether or not they’re competing against a human in a game.”
This is what Razer ID verified by World ID is “setting out to do.”
By giving gamers a more secure as well as private way to verify that they’re human, gamers can “look forward to fair play with real players in a trusted environment that improves the gaming experience for everyone.”