RGG: No AI used to recreate Tupac in Stranger Than Heaven

RGG Studios says it did not use artificial intelligence to recreate Tupac Shakur in its upcoming game Stranger Than Heaven and that it obtained permission from families and talent agencies before depicting deceased public figures.

At Gamescom, director Mikinobu Abe and Yakuza series producer Hiroyuki Sakamoto spoke to reporters via a translator. They told reporters they explained the game’s story and intentions to relatives and agencies and received positive responses that allowed RGG to include those figures in the project.

Sakamoto added that conversations continued after initial agreements, including detailed discussions about “what models to take.” He stated “no AI whatsoever was involved in this process” and that voice actors “always kept in mind the style of their acting when they were doing it.”

RGG confirmed the game also includes the late Japanese actor Bunta Sugawara, who died in 2014, and said it followed the same process of approaching families and agencies for his likeness. The developer described the creative choices as intended to raise the game’s dramatic and storytelling quality.

Tupac Shakur was shot in Las Vegas in 1996 at age 25. The case remained open for three decades and was reported closed on September 1, 2026, after a conviction in that case. Separately, members of Tupac’s family have pursued legal action over the management of the rapper’s estate, including a lawsuit by his sister Sekyiwa Shakur against estate executor Tom Whalley alleging embezzlement and disputes over rights to Tupac’s likeness.

RGG reiterated that it did not use synthetic recreation and said it continued discussions with families and rights holders after initial agreements to ensure the portrayals matched the terms they approved.