SAG-AFTRA, representing actors and voice actors, announced that 80 game companies have accepted their AI usage terms while the strike against major studios goes on.
Starting on July 26, the video game actors’ strike began to demand fair AI protections. SAG-AFTRA required studios to sign one of three agreements to hire union talent, covering all games starting development after September 2023.
With 80 games now under these agreements, SAG-AFTRA believes this shows their terms are fair and reasonable for businesses. “We applaud those video game companies signing our tiered-budget and interim agreements,” said SAG-AFTRA chief negotiator Duncan Crabtree-Ireland. “Not only are they doing the right thing by their workers; they’re also helping to preserve the human art, ingenuity, and creativity that fuels interactive storytelling. These agreements signal that the video game companies in the collective-bargaining group do not represent the will of the larger video game industry.”
Studios like Lightspeed L.A., working on Last Sentinel, Ark: Survival Evolved developer Studio Wildcard, and indie studio Little Bat Games have signed agreements.
Interestingly, some games signing agreements weren’t originally affected by the strike but have agreed to protect actors’ performances from unregulated AI use.
Fans often hope for a quick resolution in such strikes.
The strike continues with major players like EA, Activision, Take-Two, and WB Games yet to agree with SAG-AFTRA. However, GTA 6 and current live-service games remain unaffected.
