The role of video game artists, who in today’s world of performance capture do much more than just ‘voice acting’, is often an unsung one, with only prolific actors like Troy Baker managing to break into the mainstream. Perhaps this is why executives seem so desperate to replace them with AI.
Video game artists strike over AI concerns #SAGAFTRA
SAG-AFTRA, the union that oversees eligible video game actors, has been negotiating with major industry figures for more than a year and a half, union president Fran Drescher said. Those negotiations began with the goal of implementing robust protections for actors to prevent studios from abusing AI, including training models based on their voices without compensation or even replacing them with AI altogether. With the discussions clearly deadlocked, SAG-AFTRA resorted to the nuclear option: a strike with the potential to bring the entire industry to a standstill.
The strike was approved by a 98.32 percent vote of members and will go into effect tomorrow, July 26. The affected companies include some of the biggest names in the industry, such as heavyweights Activision-Blizzard, EA, Take-Two Interactive, WB Games and even Disney. The message seems clear: if these companies don’t value their human actors, they can’t have them.
It’s no surprise that companies are unwilling to come to the table on this particular issue, given the way generative AI has steadily permeated other aspects of the gaming industry. According to Wired, AI is already in widespread use at studios like Activision, which are using it for everything from concept art to writing those user surveys you occasionally get in your email. Activision even sells AI-generated in-game assets for real money. Why shouldn’t expensive treats like voice acting be next on the list, in the eyes of the profit-obsessed executives pursuing this kind of automation?
