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SAG-AFTRA set to strike against gaming industry

by: Jeremy -
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The world of video game voice over work has certainly changed over the years. I remember when voice over work in video games were campy, half-acted representations of our beloved characters done by those who just happened to be working at the studios during the development cycle. As the scope of games has grown, so has the production value put into things such as voice over work. It has become as big of an industry as voice work in animation, with Hollywood’s biggest stars taking on the roles in our favorite games. In a few days, that industry is about to hit a major roadblock.

The SAG-AFTRA National Board of Directors recently passed a unanimous vote to begin striking against major video game employers effective October 21, 2016. This means that all work on any games that began after February 17, 2015 will cease (from a voice over perspective). This comes after nearly 18 months of failed negotiations between SAG-AFTRA and some of gamings biggest development and publishing houses, including Activision, Electronic Arts, Insomniac Games, and WB Games, among others.

Negotiations are still on going between the involved parties and there is still time to avoid the strike should agreements be reached within the next few days. While there are numerous issues of contention between the parties involved, one of the big issues of contention is that the actors union would like the gaming industry to cease imposing secrecy on projects that actors have been fired for. The actors would like to speak freely about the various projects that they are invled with. Considering the amount of projects that are kept secret to extended periods of time, the gaming industry is extremely reluctant to give in to that demand.

This is definitely an interesting turn of events that gamers should definitely pay attention to in the coming days and weeks. If things aren’t ironed out, we could see both major delays in some of the industries biggest titles as well as drastic alterations to the acting quality that we have come to know and love in games.

Source: Deadline