Video Games Face Delay After Actors Go on Strike Over AI Use, but GTA 6 Reportedly Won't Be Impacted

GTA 6 is set for release sometime in 2025, but developer Rockstar Games has not yet confirmed a release date.

Written by Manas Mitul | Updated: 29 July 2024 12:56 IST

Video Games Face Delay After Actors Go on Strike Over AI Use, but GTA 6 Reportedly Won't Be Impacted

Photo Credit: Rockstar Games

Grand Theft Auto 6 will feature dual protagonists

Highlights

Video game actors went on strike on July 26 over AI use in the industry
GTA 6 was revealed with a trailer late last year
The strike won't impact games in development before September 2023

Video game workers who are members of the SAG-AFTRA union have been on strike since July 26 over the use of artificial intelligence in the industry. The actors and major video game companies failed to come to an agreement over protections around AI use in game development. Following the strike, several video games currently in development face the possibility of delay. Rockstar Games' Grand Theft Auto 6 was earlier believed to be one such game that could be affected by the video game actors' strike. A new report, however, has confirmed that the hotly anticipated game won't be impacted by the SAG-AFTRA action.

GTA 6 'exempt' from strike

According to Kotaku, GTA 6 is one of the several in-development titles exempt from the strike, which will allow actors to continue working on the project. The report received the confirmation from a spokesperson for the video game publishers involved in the negotiations with SAG-AFTRA workers. Rockstar Games parent Take-Two is one of the publishers facing the strike.

“I can confirm GTA VI is exempt,” the spokesperson told Kotaku. The spokesperson also confirmed that any game that was already in development before September 2023 would be exempt from the SAG-AFTRA strike.

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GTA 6 is set for release sometime in 2025, but developer Rockstar Games has not yet confirmed a release date.

AI use in video game development

SAG-AFTRA members who work as actors in video games went on strike against all video game companies signed to the Interactive Media Agreement on July 26. The labour action was initiated after over a year-and-a-half of negotiations between the two parties failed to lead to a deal. According to SAG-AFTRA, video game companies have refused to “plainly affirm, in clear and enforceable language, that they will protect all performers covered by this contract in their AI language.”

The video game companies involved in the negotiations and now facing the strike include Activision Productions, Blindlight, Disney Character Voices, Electronic Arts Productions, Formosa Interactive, Insomniac Games, Llama Productions, Take 2 Productions, VoiceWorks Productions, and WB Games.

Take-Two CEO 'Highly Confident' of GTA 6 Releasing in Fall 2025: Report

The video game industry has seen the growing use of AI tools in video game development. A report last week claimed that generative AI use had led to several job losses in the industry. Call of Duty maker Activision reportedly also made an AI-generated in-game cosmetic available for purchase on its online store.

Grand Theft Auto VI

KEY SPECS
NEWS

Genre Action-Adventure

Platform PlayStation 5 (PS5), Xbox Series S/X

Modes Single-player, Multiplayer

Series Grand Theft Auto

More Rockstar Games Games

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Further reading: GTA 6, Grand Theft Auto 6, SAG AFTRA, AI, AI in Video Games, Rockstar Games, Take Two, Activision

Manas Mitul

Email Manas Mitul

In his time as a journalist, Manas Mitul has written on a wide spectrum of beats including politics, culture and sports. He enjoys reading, walking around in museums and rewatching films. Talk to Manas about football and tennis, but maybe don’t bring up his video game backlog. More