Videogame performers in the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA) have announced that they will go on strike from today over a variety of issues, including the use of AI. This strike could potentially result in the delay of numerous games.

SAG-AFTRA voted in favour of striking in September of last year as they were unable to reach an accord for a new Interactive Media Agreement with various companies such as Disney, Activison and EA in regards to increased wages and the use of AI.

AI is one of the biggest issues SAG-AFTRA is battling against because various companies use the real performances of actors to train AI models which will then be used to replace those actors and actresses. In many cases though, the performers are unaware of this happening.

“The video game industry generates billions of dollars in profit annually. The driving force behind that success is the creative people who design and create those games,” said Crabtree-Ireland in an official statement from SAG-AFTRA. “That includes the SAG-AFTRA members who bring memorable and beloved game characters to life, and they deserve and demand the same fundamental protections as performers in film, television, streaming, and music: fair compensation and the right of informed consent for the A.I. use of their faces, voices, and bodies.”

It’s important to note that SAG-AFTRA isn’t seeking for AI usage to be stopped entirely, rather they want their performers to be able to consent to their performances being used to train AI and for them to be compensated for it. This is part of a much larger, ongoing debate about how companies can and do use material created by artists, musicians, film makers and more to train their AI models without permission from the original creators.

“Eighteen months of negotiations have shown us that our employers are not interested in fair, reasonable A.I. protections, but rather flagrant exploitation. We refuse this paradigm – we will not leave any of our members behind, nor will we wait for sufficient protection any longer. We look forward to collaborating with teams on our Interim and Independent contracts, which provide A.I. transparency, consent and compensation to all performers, and to continuing to negotiate in good faith with this bargaining group when they are ready to join us in the world we all deserve.” said Interactive Media Agreement Negotiating Committee Chair Sarah Elmaleh. 

The companies currently known to be effected by this strike are; Activision Productions Inc., Blindlight LLC, Disney Character Voices Inc., Electronic Arts Productions Inc., Formosa Interactive LLC, Insomniac Games Inc., Llama Productions LLC, Take 2 Productions Inc., VoiceWorks Productions Inc., and WB Games Inc.

Given the size of these companies, the strike could massively impact numerous upcoming releases. However, in cases like this, existing contracts will be honoured, meaning if a game already has contracts in place for voice work it will go ahead. Only new contracts will be effected.

There are some claims that Grand Theft Auto 6 will be impacted by the strike, but this seems to be a misunderstanding stemming from a single report in which it was claimed the game “could” be impacted. Of course, it is possible GTA 6 might have issues if there is still more voice work to be done that isn’t already contractually agreed to, but that’s purely speculation.

It is, of course, possible for these companies to simply hire performers who are not members of SAG-AFTRA.

There may not be a shortage of those as quite a few voice actors and performers do not support SAG-AFTRA, especially after a controversial decision by SAG-AFTRA earlier this year to enter into a deal Replica, an AI voice company. At the time SAG-AFTRA said the deal was “approved by affected members of the union’s voiceover performer community” but multiple members of the union claimed they were not told nor asked about the deal.

“Nobody in our community approved this that I know of. Games are the bulk of my livelihood and have been for years. Who are you referring to?” said voice actor Steve Blum at the time.

A spokesperson for the Interactive Media Agreement has responded to the strike.

“We are disappointed the union has chosen to walk away when we are so close to a deal, and we remain prepared to resume negotiations,” reads a statement from Audrey Cooling, shared with Eurogamer.

“We have already found common ground on 24 out of 25 proposals, including historic wage increases and additional safety provisions. Our offer is directly responsive to SAG-AFTRA’s concerns and extends meaningful AI protections that include requiring consent and fair compensation to all performers working under the IMA. These terms are among the strongest in the entertainment industry.”