🔗 Share this article

Based on developer statements from Embark Studios, Arc Raiders appears to employ artificial intelligence technology for generating certain voice lines. This news is strikingly similar to the issue that surrounded the developer's earlier release, The Finals.

Release Details

Debuted on the last day of October for PS5, PC, and Xbox, Arc Raiders is marketed as a gentler on-ramp to the competitive survival category. Compared to complex games like Escape from Tarkov, it strives to offer a welcoming adventure. This release has generally earned positive feedback, currently holding a excellent rating on digital distribution based on thousands of gamer feedback.

Development Approach

On the title's dedicated platform description, a notice regarding computer-assisted production raises similarities: "During development, we could utilize procedural and AI-based technologies to support asset production. In every instance, the end product showcases the original ideas of our studio staff."

Past Issue

The Finals, a successful multiplayer first-person shooter famous for its responsive controls and destructive environments, encountered backlash for its use of AI even before its official launch. During its pre-release trial, the project's audio lead mentioned in a audio program that the company had employed generative technology for creating voice content. This announcement triggered swift backlash from professional performers and creative personnel, who claimed that computer-created dialogue were of reduced caliber compared to professional recordings and that such approaches could replace voice-acting jobs.

Developer Response

In response, the company clarified that they had hired professional performers to record original spoken content for The Finals, but enhanced these with synthetic voice systems to create extra content inspired by those initial performances. The company's explanation focused on the production efficiency gained from this approach.

Latest Developments

Concerning Arc Raiders, the game's design director clarified that the title does not employ generative AI whatsoever," though he declined to elaborate on the specific interpretation of the store notice. He did admit, however, that the same vocal technology implemented in The Finals was also incorporated in Arc Raiders.

Our approach involves combination of recorded voice audio and content created through synthetic voice systems in our games, based on the situation," explained a development team member. In certain cases, capturing live performances where talent interacts — enabling character chemistry and conflict to define the final product — is something that adds depth to our virtual environments that technology can't emulate. For different situations, particularly if it involves contextual in-game action call-outs, text-to-speech enables us to have personalized speech where we otherwise wouldn't e.g. due to production timelines."

Community Response

Early feedback to the incorporation of automated systems in Arc Raiders has been fairly varied, especially during the launch window. Certain gamers have voiced significant concerns.

• Synthetic speech represents a flaw in an otherwise incredible experience," wrote one user in a community thread.
• I oppose that they used it in The Finals and feel regret to hear they repeated it for this title," responded another.
• The result was instantly apparent in the vocal lines for one protagonist," mentioned a third player.

However, other players have expressed a more open-minded stance.

• It doesn't bother me, they compensated performers and applied it appropriately," wrote one online participant.
• This represents the most responsible as it gets these days, unfortunately," concluded another.

The continuing debate surrounding artificial intelligence use in video game production appears set to endure as developers weigh creative efficiency with performance standards and ethical considerations.