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According to newly revealed information from the game's developer, Arc Raiders seems to employ artificial intelligence technology for generating certain spoken content. This news closely resembles the issue that surrounded the studio's previous success, The Finals.

Release Details

Launched on the last day of October for Sony's console, computer platforms, and Xbox, Arc Raiders is positioned as a easier entry point to the competitive survival genre. In contrast with complex games like Escape from Tarkov, it aims to offer a more approachable gameplay. The game has largely been positive feedback, presently achieving a excellent rating on Steam based on over 8,000 gamer feedback.

Development Approach

On the product's platform description, a notice regarding "AI Generated Content" raises similarities: Throughout creation, we could utilize procedural and AI-based technologies to facilitate material generation. In every instance, the final output showcases the original ideas of our development team."

Previous Controversy

The Finals, a popular multiplayer first-person shooter famous for its smooth gunplay and destructive environments, faced criticism for its use of AI ahead of its full release. During its October 2023 open beta, the project's audio lead disclosed in a podcast interview that the studio had employed artificial intelligence systems for creating dialogue lines. This statement generated instant backlash from industry talent and creative personnel, who stated that computer-created dialogue were of notably lower quality compared to human performances and that such approaches could displace voice-acting jobs.

Studio Explanation

Reacting to feedback, the company clarified that they had contracted experienced voice actors to produce primary voice lines for The Finals, but enhanced these with synthetic voice systems to produce supplementary lines modeled after those original recordings. The studio's rationale focused on the development speed obtained via this approach.

Present Circumstances

Regarding Arc Raiders, the project's design head commented that the game avoids utilizing generative AI in any form," though he avoided specifics on the exact nature of the store notice. He did admit, however, that the same vocal technology employed in The Finals was also incorporated in Arc Raiders.

Our approach involves mix of recorded voice audio and audio generated via text-to-speech technology in our games, depending on the requirements," stated a development team member. "Sometimes, capturing live performances where performers collaborate — enabling performance dynamics and drama to influence the result — is something that provides substance to our game worlds that technology can't emulate. Other times, notably when it involves contextual in-game action call-outs, synthetic voice permits us to have personalized speech where we typically could not e.g. due to production timelines."

Gamer Feedback

Early feedback to the implementation of generative tools in Arc Raiders has been fairly varied, especially during the early days. Some players have voiced significant concerns.

• "AI voices are a flaw in an mostly outstanding experience," wrote one player in a forum post.
• I dislike that they did it for The Finals and am sad to hear they did it again for this game," added another.
• The effect was quickly detectable in the dialogue delivery for a specific character," noted a third player.

Nevertheless, some users have taken a more tolerant stance.

• "Don't give a fuck, they paid voice actors and implemented it effectively," stated one community member.
• This represents the most responsible as it currently exists, sadly," concluded another.

The continuing controversy surrounding technology adoption in video game production appears set to continue as developers juggle production speed with artistic integrity and responsible practices.