Yeah people have absolutely been contesting the use of the term AI in videogames since it started being used in that context, because it's not AI.
It didn't cause the stir it does today because it was so commonly understood as a misnomer. It's like when someone says they're going to nuke a plate of food - obviously nuke in this context means something much, much, much less than an actual nuke, but we use it anyway despite being technically incorrect cuz there's a common understanding of what we actually mean.
Marketing now-a-days is pitching LLMs (microwaves) as actual AI (nukes), but the difference is people aren't just using it as intentional hyperbole - they think we have real, actual AI.
If/when we ever create real AI, it's going to be a confusing day for humanity lol "...but we've had this for years...?"