After Microsoft admitted that it had stuffed too much AI into Windows 11 at the start of 2026, I knew it was only a matter of time before the company’s Xbox division announced something similar.
Indeed, about six weeks after Microsoft first said it was bringing Copilot for Gaming to consoles, new Xbox CEO Asha Sharma announced that it was effectively dead. Xbox’s realignment was in full effect.
As part of this shift, you’ll see us begin to retire features that don’t align with where we’re headed. We will begin winding down Copilot on mobile and will stop development of Copilot on console.
Xbox CEO Asha Sharma
I’m not much of a console gamer myself, but I do have experience with Copilot for Gaming on my Windows 11 gaming PC. I tested both Microsoft’s gaming assistant and NVIDIA’s Project G-Assist to see how they compare.
Frequent errors, gaps in knowledge, and pure hallucinations altogether ruined the experience. It might have something to do with fewer game guides being written by actual people in the age of AI search overviews.
What do Windows Central readers think about AI in gaming?
Copilot for Gaming on PC has also seen a change, becoming a confusing mixture of “Game assist,” “Microsoft Edge Game Assist,” or both; I can’t figure out the reasoning.
I plan to revisit Microsoft’s gaming AI on PC in the near future to see how (if at all) it has improved since my last test, but in the meantime, I was more interested in what our readers think of AI in gaming.
I wasn’t just interested in the Xbox and mobile implementations of AI; I asked about opinions on literally any form of AI assistance in gaming, whether it be built-in helpers queried with voice or text, AI monitors that scratch the surface of cheating, or the development side of games.
I kicked off some relevant discussions in our Windows Central forum and subreddit. These are ongoing, so please drop in and keep the discussion going.
As it turns out, most of the answers were positive, with readers offering some great insights as to how AI could indeed be useful in gaming.
Using AI to get back into a game after time away
One popular feature I saw mentioned involves a “recap function” that would effectively catch you back up to where you were in a game last time you played.
I don’t know how many times I’ve sat down after a few months to finally finish off a game, only to find that I’d forgotten where I was, what I was doing, and why I should be doing it.
Instead of restarting the game, I could certainly get used to the idea of AI reminding me of my situation.
Using AI to expand game worlds and the characters in them
This is a feature that I’ve been interested in for a while, and I know I’m not the only one. Using AI to create “living” characters in games is already being done by modders and, in some cases, like inZOI, full retail games.
Let me state clearly that AI should never take the place of actual voice actors and writers. But you know all those NPCs who just sort of hang around and say the same thing over and over? Why not give them a bit of AI life?
Another commenter suggests using AI in gaming to handle in-game companions. Would Starfield feel better if your companions aboard your ship actually knew what was going on around them and could react accordingly in real time?
Reddit user u/unfnknblvbl states that they’d love to see an RPG with “basically infinite side quests generated by an LLM.” That could definitely work, as long as you’re finished with the main story and the handcrafted side missions created by actual people.
Another comment from u/ms-fanto suggests something similar regarding NPCs, and tags the comment with the suggestion that AI could help speed up game development or with translations to different languages.
Using AI in gaming as an accessibility function
Employing AI to help more gamers enjoy their favorite titles to their full extent is, in my opinion, the best use possible.
Windows Central forum member bbsoludi suggested this exact playbook, stating that “AI definitely has a place in gaming, but mostly in “quality of life” areas rather than replacing actual gameplay.“
I don’t see how there’s anything wrong with having AI handle accessibility gaps and help players learn a game’s mechanics, especially in singleplayer titles.
The post is wrapped up with a warning regarding competitive play from bbsoludi:
But once it starts playing for you, aiming for you, tracking enemies, auto-calling strategies, etc., it starts feeling less like assistance and more like soft cheating honestly.
How exactly a balance is achieved, I can’t say. I’ve seen first-hand how AI gaming monitors can seriously disrupt competitive gameplay, and I truly hope it’s not a trend that continues too far.
Not everyone loves the idea of AI in gaming
Among the more constructive feedback I received, there are understandably some gamers who would rather forget entirely about AI. One commenter went so far as to say they hope the gaming ecosystem “falls apart” if AI becomes the norm.
I think some of this negativity is borne from a lack of understanding of the concept. As one commenter asks, “What the hell would an AI even do for gaming?” Another user asked, “What was Copilot going to do on Xbox?“
But those with a deeper understanding of gaming in AI are also hesitant. It seems that most of our readers agree that there’s a fine line between AI helping and AI taking over.
Unfortunately, it seems that line is often overstepped. AI in general has been all-encompassing for a couple of years, and the fatigue created by layoffs, reformed systems, and general slop overload is real. I don’t blame gamers for being wary.
Like it or not, AI in gaming isn’t going anywhere
As I’ve stated in the past when covering NVIDIA’s implementation of AI for modern graphics rendering, AI in gaming isn’t going anywhere.
Xbox might have dialed back Copilot on consoles and mobile, but I wouldn’t be surprised to see it creep back in with a different name sometime in the future. Oh, yeah, and it’s still available on Windows 11 PCs.
Meanwhile, the two biggest GPU makers in the world are constantly advancing their AI features. Remember the outcry when NVIDIA showed off DLSS 5 and how it completely changes the look of a game? It’s expected to arrive later this year, and it will change gaming forever.
Now that I have a better idea of how our readers feel about AI in gaming, I’m asking some different questions: Where do you draw the line? What’s “too much” AI in gaming, and would it cause you to boycott a certain product or game? Do you think the line has already been overstepped?
Let me know in the comments section below!
Join us on Reddit at r/WindowsCentral to share your insights and discuss our latest news, reviews, and more.