The Struggle Over AI in Gaming
The battle between SAG-AFTRA and the big video game publishers has become a saga of its own, with the strike carrying over into 2025 and showing no signs of resolve. It all started back in July 2024, when the negotiations reached a boiling point after 18 exasperating months of futile talks. The union, representing voice actors and motion capture artists, is at loggerheads with giants like Activision, Electronic Arts (EA), Take-Two Interactive, and Warner Bros. Games over the use of AI in game development.
This strike isn't just a typical labor dispute; it's centered on a very modern controversy—AI. The union wants it crystal clear that performers must have a say, a consent if you will, over AI-generated replicas of their voices and actions. They’re also asking for fair compensation and job protections, fearing that AI will elbow out human talent.
Resistance from Game Giants Despite Legislative Moves
Even with Governor Gavin Newsom throwing his hat into the ring by signing crucial bills in September 2024 that guard against misuse of performers’ voices and likenesses, major publishers are still playing hardball. These laws align smoothly with what SAG-AFTRA is fighting for, providing a shield against AI's encroachment by regulating how voices and movements can be replicated in games. But big companies have their feet firmly planted against such definitive terms.
Meanwhile, smaller, independent studios are showing that they can play by these new rules without all the drama. By striking interim agreements with these smaller players, SAG-AFTRA has kept the wheels turning on some projects, thanks to places like Lightspeed LA and Ethovox, who are willing to work under union protection.
This push-and-pull hasn't stopped SAG-AFTRA from getting creative. Come March 2025, they rolled out contracts that cater to the budding game developers—students and indie creators. Through reduced fees and royalties tied to game revenue, these new contracts have seen over 160 games sign up, proving that the union’s vision of fair AI terms is attainable.
However, major studios seem fixated on walking the AI tightrope with no safety net for performers—clamoring for flexibility in using AI while shrugging off accountability.
Despite the union's progress on other fronts like pay and benefits, Fran Drescher, the union's President, and Duncan Crabtree-Ireland, Chief Negotiator, are stubbornly holding the line. According to them, the strike's end hinge entirely on securing those elusive "clear and enforceable" AI protections. SAG-AFTRA has even rolled out a handy strike tool to help performers avoid getting snared in non-protected projects.
The longer the strike stretches, the clearer the division grows. Independent studios find a way to comply, while major video game publishers dig their heels in. It's a divide that paints a clear picture of the differing interests between industrious creators and corporate behemoths in the AI-powered future of gaming.
