Video game artists last went on strike in 2016
Hollywood Actors Strike Again… (2024 SAG-Aftra Video Game Strike Explained)
The Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists announced Thursday that video game artists will go on strike on July 26 at 12:01. More than 2,500 video game artists — a group that includes voice actors, motion capture artists and others — are walking the picket line after nearly two years of negotiations with major video game companies.
The biggest problem in the negotiations is the unlimited use of artificial intelligence, according to a press release. Gamers want protection from the use of their likenesses and voices.
Any video games in production before Aug. 25 are not subject to the strike, according to strike rules and clarified by Audrey Cooling, a spokeswoman for the video game company's side of the Interactive Media Agreement. This means that Grand Theft Auto 6 and other under-development projects will not be affected — unless union members "voluntarily choose not to work on those titles," SAG-AFTRA contract director Ray Rodriguez told Inverse.
