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Based on developer statements from the game's developer, Arc Raiders appears to make use of AI tools for creating certain voice lines. This development strongly echoes the issue that surrounded the developer's earlier release, The Finals.

Release Details

Released on October 30 for PS5, PC, and Xbox, Arc Raiders is positioned as a more accessible introduction to the competitive survival style. Compared to complex games like Escape from Tarkov, it strives to offer a user-friendly gameplay. The game has generally earned strong ratings, maintaining a "very positive" score on Steam based on thousands of user evaluations.

Development Approach

Within the title's dedicated platform description, a clear disclosure regarding artificially created material raises similarities: Throughout creation, we could utilize algorithmic and intelligent tools to facilitate material generation. In all cases, the final output showcases the original ideas of our development team."

Previous Controversy

The Finals, a well-received online combat game recognized for its smooth gunplay and dynamic battlefields, received negative feedback for its use of AI even before its public debut. In its public testing phase, the title's sound specialist mentioned in a audio program that the studio had used artificial intelligence systems for developing voice content. This statement prompted immediate backlash from industry talent and industry professionals, who argued that AI-generated voices were of reduced caliber compared to human performances and that such methods could replace performance opportunities.

Company Position

Reacting to feedback, the company explained that they had hired professional voice actors to create initial dialogue for The Finals, but expanded these with TTS technology to produce supplementary material modeled after those original recordings. The company's explanation highlighted the development speed gained from this approach.

Latest Developments

Concerning Arc Raiders, the title's creative lead commented that the release "in no way uses generative AI whatsoever," though he avoided specifics on the exact nature of the Steam disclosure. He did confirm, however, that the identical voice system implemented in The Finals was also utilized in Arc Raiders.

We employ a mix of live performance content and content created through text-to-speech technology in our releases, depending on the situation," explained a development team member. For specific scenarios, capturing live performances where actors get together — allowing actor relationships and tension to shape the outcome — is something that adds depth to our virtual environments that technology can't emulate. For different situations, especially when it relates to real-time combat communications, TTS allows us to have tailored VO where we typically could not for example due to production timelines."

Gamer Feedback

Early feedback to the use of automated systems in Arc Raiders has been relatively mixed, particularly in the early days. A portion of the community have expressed strong opposition.

• "AI voices are a flaw in an otherwise incredible title," commented one user in a forum post.
• I oppose that they did it for The Finals and am sad to hear they repeated it for this title," commented another.
• The effect was instantly apparent in the speech content for a specific character," mentioned a third player.

That said, some users have expressed a more tolerant attitude.

• I don't care, they compensated performers and implemented it effectively," stated one community member.
• This represents the most responsible as it currently exists, I'm afraid," continued another.

The continuing debate about AI implementation in game development appears set to endure as developers balance production speed with performance standards and ethical considerations.