The developers have “not the slightest respect” for the series, according to Chris Sorrell.
You’d be forgiven if you didn’t recognize James Pond, the star fish spy from a platform game series from the early 1990s. But it’s possible you’ve heard of the controversy surrounding the series’ next installment. The legacy of James Pond: the pond is not enoughwhich collects versions of four James Pond games released for the Amiga, Genesis, Commodore 64 and SNES, and which fans have widely accused of being filled with AI-generated art. According to Extension of deadlinethe collection so enraged series creator Chris Sorrell that he went on record saying he hoped its developers would “choke on an AI-generated fishbone.”
“I am sure it will not shock you to learn that I was in no way consulted or involved in this ‘legacy’ collection,” Sorrell explained to Extension of deadline. “For this to happen, someone with at least a modicum of respect for James Pond would have had to be involved, when clearly, as his every action demonstrates, that is very far from being the case.”
System 3
Announcing Developer System 3 software The legacy of James Pond last week with a trailer that immediately sparked skepticism online, Kotaku writing. It didn’t help that the developer’s blog post defending the “careful human-led process” that produced the game’s art also appeared to use AI generative imagery.
As Extension of deadline Note, Sorrell does not own the rights to James Pond and has no say in how the series is presented. James Pond is now split between System 3 and Gameware Europe, which has announced its own, apparently AI-generated James Pond sequel in 2025. Although the collection’s new art is apparently only used in its menus and box art, it looks garish compared to the game’s original 2D characters and backgrounds. Rather than a respectful repackaging of the series, the Legacy Collection is, in Sorrell’s words, “a giant reminder of how men “soulless business people have been exploiting a brand for decades.”
