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Per newly revealed information from the game's developer, Arc Raiders reportedly employ generative systems for creating certain voice lines. This revelation strongly echoes the issue that arose with the studio's 2023 hit, The Finals.

Release Details

Released on October 30th for PlayStation 5, PC, and Microsoft's console, Arc Raiders is marketed as a gentler on-ramp to the loot-and-extract style. Compared to more hardcore titles like Escape from Tarkov, it strives to offer a more approachable adventure. This release has largely been favorable reviews, currently holding a "very positive" rating on the popular platform based on thousands of gamer feedback.

AI Disclosure

On the game's official platform description, a clear disclosure regarding "AI Generated Content" draws comparisons: In the production phase, we may employ automated and generative tools to facilitate material generation. In all cases, the final output reflects the creativity and vision of our studio staff."

Past Issue

The Finals, a successful online combat game famous for its fluid combat and dynamic battlefields, encountered backlash for its use of AI prior to its official launch. During its October 2023 open beta, the project's audio lead mentioned in a online discussion that the company had employed artificial intelligence systems for producing dialogue lines. This announcement prompted immediate backlash from voice actors and industry professionals, who argued that AI-generated voices were of inferior standard compared to professional recordings and that such approaches could eliminate voice-acting jobs.

Studio Explanation

In response, the company stated that they had contracted experienced performers to record original dialogue for The Finals, but supplemented these with TTS technology to generate additional material inspired by those original recordings. The developer's reasoning centered on the development speed obtained via this technique.

Latest Developments

Regarding Arc Raiders, the game's design director clarified that the title avoids utilizing AI generation in any form," though he declined to elaborate on the specific interpretation of the store notice. He did confirm, however, that the equivalent speech tools used for The Finals was also utilized in Arc Raiders.

Our approach involves blend of live performance content and audio generated via synthetic voice systems in our games, depending on the requirements," explained a company spokesperson. For specific scenarios, filming actual interactions where actors get together — enabling character chemistry and drama to shape the outcome — is something that provides substance to our digital universes that AI cannot replicate. In other instances, especially when it concerns real-time combat communications, synthetic voice permits us to have tailored VO where we could not for example due to speed of implementation."

Player Reactions

Initial response to the implementation of AI technology in Arc Raiders has been fairly varied, especially during the initial period. Some players have expressed strong opposition.

• Synthetic speech represents a flaw in an mostly outstanding title," wrote one gamer in a community thread.
• I dislike that they used it in The Finals and am disappointed to hear they employed it once more for this title," added another.
• The result was quickly detectable in the speech content for one protagonist," mentioned a third player.

Nevertheless, other players have expressed a more tolerant stance.

• "Don't give a fuck, they paid voice actors and implemented it effectively," commented one online participant.
• This demonstrates acceptable as it is possible nowadays, I'm afraid," concluded another.

The persistent debate surrounding technology adoption in video game production looks prepared to persist as studios weigh development pace with creative quality and responsible practices.