Video game actors part of SAG-AFTRA are now on strike over pay and AI disagreements with several major corporations. The strike, beginning today at midnight PDT, means that actors cannot perform work for many major video games projects and interactive media, including promotional events, with some exceptions.
Games "struck" are those covered under the Interactive Media Agreement, an agreement of conditions agreed upon between video game production studios and guild actors.
Negotiations stalled between SAG-AFTRA and the IMA's bargaining group of major development corporations due to a lack of compromise on fair pay and AI protections for actors; regarding the latter, the official statement states that “the employers refuse to plainly affirm, in clear and enforceable language, that they will protect all performers covered by this contract in their A.I. language.”
These specific negotiations in the gaming sector have been going on since October 2022, and strike authorization was approved in September 2023 with a resounding 98.32% vote for yes by SAG-AFTRA members. It seems that nearly two years later, the negotiation process came to a proper impasse or standstill, triggering the final decision by SAG-AFTRA’s National Board during a scheduled meeting for a final authorization for a strike.
Duncan Crabtree-Ireland, SAG-AFTRA National Executive Director & Chief Negotiator, said in the statement:
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. 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. Frankly, it’s stunning that these video game studios haven’t learned anything from the lessons of last year - that our members can and will stand up and demand fair and equitable treatment with respect to A.I., and the public supports us in that.
According to the statement, the production companies the guild negotiated with include 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.
While there is this list of negotiators explicitly stated, actors are instructed to not work on almost any video game or interactive project, including direct promotion (with the exception of San Diego Comic Con, due to its proximity). However, there is a small list of non-struck games, projects and studios that SAG-AFTRA has “un-struck,” as the union has negotiated Interim or “Tier-Budget” deals with them, or their contracts still fall under prior negotiated conditions. Any unsure actor is encouraged to use the official strike page to ensure whether their project is struck or not.
Non-union members supporting the strike are also heavily encouraged to not work on these games, lest they risk potential SAG-AFTRA membership, per an FAQ on the SAG-AFTRA site.
On a broader basis, eyes are on this specific strike given the context of AI in gaming. After last year’s SAG-AFTRA strikes, many members felt there weren’t enough protections for those negotiating against major corporations’ inclusion of AI in contracts. The negotiations essentially required consent along every step of AI production techniques, including “synthetic performance” (like a ‘Frankenstein’s monster’ of actors’ parts), but there’s nothing protecting actors from contracts that essentially pressure them into the AI work lest they lose the contract altogether.
AI is also a big topic at the intersection of technology and gaming at the moment. An article by Wire this week describes executives’ decision to adopt AI in artistic development of video games. While 2D artists are often not explicitly shown how it affects them, in the wake of layoffs, many describe reading between the lines, understanding AI is being utilized to cut corners at best, and often altogether replace artists’ roles in concepts, marketing, and design.
Plus, this comes in a wave of general unionization efforts in the games industry—including this week. In a hit-by-hit move, first Bethesda, under Microsoft, announced a “wall-to-wall” union, meaning it includes all developers within the studio; then Microsoft’s World of Warcraft development unit (which is such an odd, dystopian phrase) announced it had unionized as well. These come at a time when AAA studios expect nothing but exponential growth while trying to continue to cut corners, laying off swathes of workers: now over 30,000, according to the counts of one independent tracker.
Much like the past SAG-AFTRA and Writer’s Guild protests, while non-members who support the strike are not being asked to stop playing the game, support can be shown through social media channels with hashtags like #VideoGameStrong and #SagAftraStrong.
