The idle game, or incremental game, genre on Steam has experienced a significant boom, with 54 such titles releasing in the past week alone. These games, characterized by their "numbers go up" gameplay loop originating from early successes like Cookie Clicker, now number over 4,300 on the platform. Last year saw 1,033 idle games released, a stark increase from 647 in 2023 and just 100 in 2020.
While some recent releases like Next Reign: Kingdom and We Need More Humans! offer distinct art styles and premises, a notable trend has emerged: many of these new idle games are visually similar. Browse lists of recent releases, and a common aesthetic becomes apparent, often featuring a dark blue color palette and a similar user interface layout.
This visual homogeneity appears to be linked to the widespread adoption of generative AI in development. AI disclosures for games such as Vespera, Nexus: Quantum Industries, Brainrot Clicker, and Path of the Idle Cultivator explicitly mention the use of AI for generating images, assets, written content, and even UI elements. For instance, Nexus states, "Some assets were created using AI. I'm not as [sic] artist lol," while Brainrot Clicker notes "some pre-generated visual assets, written content, and development-related creative work."
The sheer volume of idle games being released has been steadily climbing. This year has already seen 1,811 new idle games, with an additional 1,119 marked as "coming soon" and 380 "TBA." This influx of titles, many seemingly developed with significant AI assistance, has led some to describe the situation as "brainrot," a term fitting for games that offer a transparently simple, albeit addictive, gameplay experience.
While the idle genre has seen respectable entries and established heavyweights like Bongo Cat and Task Bar Hero continue to draw large player bases, the overwhelming presence of AI-generated, visually similar titles raises questions about the future direction and originality within this segment of Steam's market. The genre's trajectory, from its satirical beginnings to its current AI-driven expansion, presents a peculiar evolution in game development.