The media artists union SAG-AFTRA has voted to expand its ongoing Hollywood strike to encompass the games industry. In …

Key issues up for negotiation include pay and conditions, but also “protections against unrestrained use of artificial intelligence”, specifically the impact upon performance capture artists.

The companies involved in the negotiations include Activision, Disney, EA, Epic Games, Insomniac, Take 2, and Warner Bros.

“It has been nearly a year since SAG-AFTRA’s video game contract, the Interactive Media Agreement, was extended beyond the original expiration date as we negotiated with the companies for critical terms SAG-AFTRA members need,” the statement explains.

“Unfortunately, throughout the negotiations, the companies have failed to address those needs. For this reason, the negotiating committee and National Board unanimously agreed that the union should have a member-approved strike authorisation in hand when bargaining resumes on 26th September.”

  • Flying Squid@lemmy.worldEnglish
    81·
    1 year ago

    Don’t underestimate the power of celebrity actors in games in terms of sales. There are people who buy games specifically because certain actors are in them.

    • tinkeringidiot@lemmy.worldEnglish
      3·
      1 year ago

      That’s true, and there are people who go see movies specifically because of whom appears in them. But I’d hesitate to call that the majority, especially in gaming. The set of people that play games and the set of people who follow the industry are certainly overlapping, but are far from identical.