Non-Player  seems to be exploring this.

http://www.nonplayercomic.com

Imagine a huge, popular, stunningly realistic, highly complex,
immersive virtual headspace MMO game where (at least some of) the more
complex NPCs are (secretly) driven by (illegal) AI in the meatspace
world.

"They're not AI.  Just really complex programming."

One of the employees has apparently  highjacked one of the AI NPCs
into a meatspace body.

This is causing complications in the game, as the NPC was an important
in-game figure, and is possibly triggering police intervention in
meatspace.    (And it looks like someone in-game may be explaining
things to at least one other (illegally AI supported) NPC, which may
have real world consequences.

(It's only two issues out, so far...)

--

"Any sufficiently advanced parody is indistinguishable from a genuine
kook." -Alan Morgan