Anthropic clamps down on Claude’s AI video game clones

<figure> <img alt="Anthropic logo on an orange and gray background." data-caption="" data-portal-copyright="Image: Cath Virginia / The Verge" data-has-syndication-rights="1" src="https://platform.theverge.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/01/STK269_ANTHROPIC_2_B.jpg?quality=90&#038;strip=all&#038;crop=0,0,100,100" /> <figcaption> </figcaption> </figure> <p class="wp-block-paragraph">Anthropic has updated Claude Code's system prompt to prevent the AI tool from being used to recreate existing video games, <a href="https://www.tomshardware.com/tech-industry/artificial-intelligence/anthropic-confirms-new-claude-code-limits-to-prevent-game-cloning-users-report-opus-5-5-is-also-actively-blocking-reverse-engineering-tasks">as reported by <em>Tom's Hardware</em></a>. Retro gaming is currently being overrun <a href="https://www.theverge.com/ai-artificial-intelligence/1015430/ai-retro-games-decomp-recomp-port">with AI-made decompilations, recompilations, and ports</a>, but while Anthropic will still let people use Claude Code to make games, it doesn't want people to use it for direct clones.</p> <p class="wp-block-paragraph">Last week, a user on X <a href="https://x.com/chasmmmmmmmmmmm/status/2116062991686721968">posted a screenshot</a> allegedly showing two new sentences added to Claude Code's system prompt: "Do build original games, games in a genre, and games from the user's own designs and assets. Don't build a recreation of a specific existing game, even if …</p> <p><a href="https://www.theverge.com/ai-artificial-intelligence/1024632/anthropic-claude-ai-video-game-clones">Read the full story at The Verge.</a></p>