Apex Legends’ cast has spoken out against controversial practices as voice actors continue to rally against the gaming industry’s use of AI.
Apex Legends’ cast has spoken out against controversial practices as voice actors continue to rally against the gaming industry’s use of AI. Read More Gaming
The gaming industry has been fighting against the use of AI for a while now and the latest clash came when French Apex Legends voice actors refused to sign a contract over EA’s decision to use AI in the battle royale.
The voice behind Wraith, Pascale Chemin, wrote a statement on behalf of all of the French voice actors that stated they were refusing to work with EA over the use of “generative AI,” an artificial intelligence program that studies a large amount of data to create content, including videos, images and even voice-overs. It has now threatened the livelihood of many in the gaming industry, including voice actors who could ultimately end up being replaced by AI using their own voice.
The Continued Fight Against AI In Video Games
The Gaming Community and Industry Workers Are Worried About AI
Chemin and the 30 other French voice actors working on Apex Legends refused to sign a contract EA put forth that allowed the company to use their voices to train generative AI, which she called “unacceptable.”In a statement that the actors signed collectively, they wrote that they’d even be willing to walk away from the game if EA couldn’t come back with a solution. This would leave Apex Legends without any French voice actors.
“It’s here, it’s now. Video game publishers want to force their way through. But to accept would be to give up, in the short term, our profession. It would be to accept being replaced by a machine that will never be an interpreter,” said Chemin.
Related
Marvel Rivals Needs to Learn a Long Term Secret-To-Success From Games Like OW2 and Apex Legends
Marvel Rivals may be on top for now, but will it last?
“We wrote a collective letter of refusal that we sent to the publisher and are waiting for an answer. If we aren’t united now so that a clause that protects our voices can be officially added in our contracts — and not just for us here, but for every video game dubbing studios.”
At the end of the statement shared by Chemin, the voice actor explained that there is currently a lack of work in the voice acting industry. By agreeing to the use of generative AI, voice actors would possibly have even fewer opportunities as EA and other publishers start using AI to generate voice lines without needing the actors behind it anymore.
Players Have Also Voiced Concern Over AI
The Topic Continues to Be Controversial as Technology Advances
For the last few years, AI has become more than a useful essay writer and equations solver. Now, AI can make believable drawings, photographs, videos and songs. Some people have even started making movies entirely from AI. While not worth watching in most cases, this shows just how capable AI is and how much better it will become. One of the industries impacted by AI is gaming, with studios implementing AI to cut costs in programming, acting and more.
Related
One of the Oldest JRPG Studios Wants to Use AI to Translate Future Games
AI might be often frowned upon, but one JRPG studio wants to use it for future projects.
On July 26, 2024, actors went on strike against the gaming industry, specifically targeting EA, Activision and Epic for a lack of protection against AI. The SAG-AFTRA-represented workers went on strike after negotiations with the large studios failed.
The union’s Executive Director, Duncan Crabtree-Ireland, expressed that the video game industry earns billions annually, thanks in part to actors bringing the characters to life. He said: “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 AI use of their faces, voices, and bodies.”
The video game industry stated it was “disappointed” that the union chose to walk away instead of signing the deal. It claimed to be open to “negotiations,” with 24 out of 25 proposals already agreed upon by SAG-AFTRA and the industry. The 25th was, of course, related to the use of AI. But AI is a big issue in the gaming industry that is make-or-break for actors. Spider-Man actor Yuri Lowenthal previously called AI “performance theft” to The Gamer.
“If companies get permission to do this, they could take any of my roles, feed them into AI, and [get a] brand-new performance,” added Jean Grey, the voice of Commander Shephard in Mass Effect. “We can’t sustain this, and we actors are just the canary in the coal mine. It’s coming for all of us.”
The strikes led to some game delays but it seems the video game industry won’t budge on its desire to use AI. The strike is still ongoing as of Feb. 2025. Destiny 2‘s DLC, The Final Shape, has characters that don’t even speak, which the dev team admitted was from the strike against a lack of AI protections. Currently, more than 2,500 voice actors and motion capture artists are awaiting new contracts with protections.
Currently, about 50 video game companies have signed a new agreement that includes protection against AI programs taking actors’ likenesses and voices. Throughout the gaming industry, AI has seeped into more than just character voices. Ubisoft claimed that AI could be used to make Assassin’s Creed feel “more alive,” hinting at a possible use for AI in creating open worlds.
Recently, Wizards of the Coast came under fire for using generative AI to create artwork for some of its Dungeons & Dragons books. WoTC claimed the shared art was not created by AI but the skepticism continued, forcing them to then claim the AI was included by mistake. The company then supposedly swore off AI, but sharp-eyed gamers noticed a job listing for a “principal AI engineer” soon after.
After seeing this latest update, Indie Art Director and Illustrator Nala Wu wrote: “This is so damn frustrating. I’ve defended WotC HOW MANY TIMES [because] I was made promises to my face by the art directors at this company that this would never happen … MAN does this feel like a slap in the face.”
Related
Why It’s So Important For D&D To Steer Clear Of AI Art
Wizards of the Coast has taken a stance against using AI art in D&D books, which is crucial for maintaining the game’s community and reputation.
Wizards of the Coast claimed that it was not using AI for Dungeons & Dragons, but the gaming community is skeptical now. As layoffs continue to plague the gaming industry, it seems that studios, developers and publishers are hoping to keep slashing costs wherever possible. This can very well include cutting voice actors and artists with the use of generative AI programs.
So far, EA has not responded to the French voice actors’ decision to leave Apex Legends behind. Unfortunately, EA and other game companies have shown they are willing to continue negotiations and stand-offs for years.
