🔗 Share this article

According to newly revealed information from Embark Studios, Arc Raiders appears to employ AI tools for producing select spoken content. This revelation strongly echoes the debate that arose with the developer's previous success, The Finals.

Game Overview

Debuted on October 30 for PS5, Windows PC, and Xbox Series X, Arc Raiders is marketed as a gentler on-ramp to the extraction shooter genre. In contrast with complex games like Escape from Tarkov, it aims to offer a more approachable gameplay. The game has generally earned favorable reviews, presently achieving a "very positive" score on Steam based on over 8,000 player reviews.

Technology Statement

Within the game's official platform description, a notice regarding "AI Generated Content" draws comparisons: "During development, we might apply procedural and AI-based tools to support material generation. In every instance, the end product reflects the original ideas of our studio staff."

Past Issue

The Finals, a successful competitive FPS famous for its smooth gunplay and dynamic battlefields, faced criticism for its implementation of artificial intelligence even before its full release. Throughout its public testing phase, the title's sound specialist revealed in a podcast interview that the studio had employed artificial intelligence systems for creating voice content. This revelation generated instant negative reaction from voice actors and game developers, who stated that synthetic speech were of reduced caliber compared to professional recordings and that such practices could replace acting roles.

Company Position

Addressing concerns, the development team stated that they had hired professional performers to record original voice lines for The Finals, but supplemented these with TTS technology to generate additional lines modeled after those original recordings. The developer's reasoning highlighted the production efficiency obtained via this approach.

Latest Developments

Concerning Arc Raiders, the game's design director commented that the game does not employ generative AI in any form," though he did not provide details on the specific interpretation of the Steam disclosure. He did confirm, however, that the identical voice system employed in The Finals was also applied in Arc Raiders.

We employ a combination of live performance content and material produced using synthetic voice systems in our releases, based on the situation," stated a company spokesperson. For specific scenarios, recording real scenes where actors get together — allowing character chemistry and conflict to influence the result — is something that adds depth to our game worlds that systems cannot duplicate. Other times, notably when it relates to real-time combat communications, synthetic voice permits us to have customized dialogue where we typically could not such as due to production timelines."

Community Response

Initial response to the incorporation of automated systems in Arc Raiders has been somewhat nuanced, especially during the initial period. A portion of the community have voiced significant concerns.

• "AI voices are a blemish on an otherwise incredible game," wrote one user in a forum post.
• I dislike that they did it for The Finals and am disappointed to hear they did it again for this game," commented another.
• The effect was instantly apparent in the vocal lines for one protagonist," observed a different user.

However, some users have expressed a more tolerant position.

• I don't care, they compensated performers and used it well," stated one online participant.
• This demonstrates acceptable as it currently exists, unfortunately," continued another.

The ongoing controversy surrounding artificial intelligence use in interactive entertainment appears set to persist as developers weigh development pace with performance standards and ethical considerations.