New ‘Postal’ game canceled one day after unveiling amid accusations of generative AI

Running With Scissors, publisher of the controversial shooting game franchise Postal, said this week that it had canceled a newly revealed series entry a day after its announcement, in response to backlash after fans said the reveal trailer appeared to use AI-generated artwork.

The game, Portal: Bullet Paradise, was a fast-paced first-person shooter spin-off developed externally by Goonswarm Games. The response came just days after Running With Scissors spoke out against generative AI use in gaming and took a stand against AI in creative work.

The publisher said it ended the project because trust in the development team had been damaged, adding that it wanted to remain transparent with the community and that several upcoming projects were still in the pipeline.

“We have been overwhelmed by negative responses from our concerned postal community,” the company wrote on

Backlash against Postal: Bullet Paradise increased after fans dissected the December 3 trailer and flagged details they claimed were produced by AI tools. Late last month, Running With Scissors on X said customers should know if a game was created using AI.

“Customers deserve to know if a game is made with creativity, soul and real talent, rather than a machine that makes the most of a prompt,” they wrote.

Gamers’ frustration escalated as company representatives defended the trailer on X and in Discord while insulting critics. Screenshots show company representatives using expletives and slurs when responding to allegations.

As the images spread, Running With Scissors published a separate X-post addressing the behavior.

“We would of course like to apologize to anyone who felt offended in the heat of the moment, and we thank you for raising your concerns at the time,” they said in an added message. “As for those who specifically sent us death threats, the apology does not apply.”

Running with Scissors did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Declutter.

The Postal franchise started in 1997 and quickly became known for its dark humor, confrontational satire and graphic violence. The franchise takes its name from the term “going postal,” which originally referred to a series of workplace shootings by U.S. postal workers in the 1990s, and later became slang for sudden, violent outbursts or shootings in general.

Several countries, including Australia, Germany, Malaysia, New Zealand, Sweden and France, have banned entries in the series due to its intense violence, graphic content, animal cruelty and offensive themes. The property later inspired a widely distributed 2007 live-action film directed by Uwe Boll.

The company said it would shift its focus to projects scheduled for 2026, and reiterated that threats against staff would be reported. The studio hasn’t said whether Postal: Bullet Paradise might return in another form, and the experience has led to renewed scrutiny into how developers and publishers reveal the use of AI in game production.

“Since Running With Scissors was founded in 1996, we have always said that our fans are part of the team. Our priority is to always do what is right for the millions of people who support the Postal franchise,” they wrote. “We are grateful for the opportunity to create the games we want to play, and will continue to focus on our new projects and updates coming in 2026 and beyond.”

Next Due to the backlash, Goonswarm Games announced on Friday that the studio would close and cease operations.

“Our project, and everything we have built over the past six years, was canceled in a matter of days,” it said in a statement.

“Our studio was wrongly accused of using AI-generated art in our games, and any attempt to clarify our work only escalated the situation,” they said, adding that the company has received a “large number of threats, insults and ridicule.”

Major game publishers, including Ubisoft, CD project redSquare Enix and Activisionhave expanded their use of generative AI in recent years, adopting the technology for in-game asset creation, internal testing, moderation, and efforts to accelerate development pipelines.

Developers are facing increasing resistance from players who claim that AI-generated art can look inconsistent, rely on copyrighted training data, or replace work typically done by human artists. These concerns have emerged in studios experimenting with automated tools, regardless of project size.

The broader sector is also struggling with labor pressure. More than 3,500 jobs have been cut at game studios so far in 2025, according to tracking site Gaming Layoffs, fueling concerns that automation will further reduce opportunities for artists and other aspiring developers. Nearly 15,000 games industry jobs will be cut by 2024.

“We are truly sorry to the artists who put their souls into this and supported our studio, only to face false AI accusations,” Goonswarm wrote. “It’s hard to put so much energy into a game and accidentally end up in the middle of an AI war.”