A Japanese studio beloved for its hand-crafted puzzle worlds has stepped into a widening fault line in the creative industries: Level 5 CEO Akihiro Hino confirmed that generative AI shaped the promotional materials for Professor Layton and Yo-Kai Watch, franchises whose identities were built on the feeling of human intentionality. The admission drew criticism from those who see algorithmic aesthetics as a betrayal of earned trust, yet the studio neither retreated nor fully apologized — it doubled down, framing AI as a pillar of its future. What lingers is a question older than any technology: