Updated
Updated · Kotaku · Jun 29
Amazon Lists $20 AI Guidebooks for Unreleased Games, Reposting Them After Takedowns
Updated
Updated · Kotaku · Jun 29

Amazon Lists $20 AI Guidebooks for Unreleased Games, Reposting Them After Takedowns

2 articles · Updated · Kotaku · Jun 29

Summary

  • $20-plus AI-written guidebooks for unreleased games including Alien: Isolation 2, Control: Resonant and Gears of War: E-Day are being sold on Amazon despite the games not being finished or, in some cases, dated.
  • Rick’s Game Backlog found the books use AI-generated covers and blurbs, and ordered copies that contained hyperlink-style tables of contents, novel-like filler and fabricated sections such as unrevealed system requirements and nonexistent gameplay mechanics.
  • Amazon customer support flagged and removed some listings after a complaint, but the books reappeared, underscoring how easily low-cost AI content can cycle back onto the marketplace.
  • The scam can look credible because legitimate strategy guides sometimes launch before games do, and Amazon’s recommendation system may surface the fake books to people who preordered related titles.
  • Similar AI-slop guides are also listed for released games, suggesting the problem extends beyond unreleased titles and may be growing across Amazon’s book marketplace.

Insights

With a $200B AI investment, why can’t Amazon stop fake AI-written books from flooding its own store?
As AI-generated scams flood online stores, are our consumer protection laws becoming obsolete?