In between my normal worry about getting all of my classes in on time, this weeks readings perfectly line up with real life experiences. With a heavy emphasis on the ethics of AI, how it’s used, abused, implemented etc, I have seen first hand the effects of AI being poorly and unethically implemented first hand. That also coincidentally is leading me to write my State of the Field paper during this week. In regards to the AI problem, I always had a ‘oh yeah stop replacing people’s work with AI’, but that was it, I didn’t feel extremely strongly about it, however, now I can feel the effects personally, and while of course it wasn’t a life altering effect, it was something that certainly annoyed me quite a bit last week. And it all started with a video game I play religiously, have sunk money into, and can say with certainty has brought me a lot of joy, a game called Genshin Impact.
In a very short explanation, Genshin Impact is a fantasy roleplaying action ‘Gatcha Game’, that can be played on your phone, PlayStation and PC. It exploded in popularity during its release in 2020 due to the fact that with lockdowns many people were stuck inside and turning to video games to entertain themselves. Genshin Impact filled a void for a lot of people, me included. It’s fun, beautifully designed, and full of historical inspirations that I have sank my teeth into for the last four years. It’s a ‘Gatcha Game’ which means it’s a live service game. Unlike other games that take years to release sequels, for the last four years Genshin has gotten a new big update with new stories, areas to explore, quests, and characters to obtain each month. I enjoy the game, because now, instead of paying 60-80$ for a new game to play every other week, I can simply wait and play each new Genshin Impact update every month to get my gaming fix. However, one of the true best parts about this game, is the voice acting talent present in the game that voice the dozens of amazing characters in the game.
I’ve had a chance to meet and get autographs from many of the talented people who voice act in Genshin over the years. The community around them is massive and the actors truly are what make the game shine. Now, at the beginning of October, Genshin Impact was getting ready to release it’s version 5.0 update, which was set to be one of its biggest updates yet. A brand new area to explore, and a continuation of the games main story. In the middle of a stressful semester, I eagerly waited until midnight to download and play this update for a game I’ve loved for years! However, I was hit by a massive wave of disappointment, when I started the game and all the characters I was eagerly awaiting to see in the new update… were completely silent. The characters voice lines could be read on screen, but the voice actors voices I loved for so many years were completely gone from this update, and my disappointment was immeasurable. And after I dig some digging and realized why there we no voice actors in this update, my disappointment was only amplified. I learned that SAG-AFTRA, the union representing hundreds of thousands of voice actors, were on strike, and as a result Genshin Impact and dozens of other games until further notice will have no voice acting. My favorite part of my favorite game is now gone.
SAG-AFTRA and the dozens of voice actors decided to strike due to one major reason, multiple video game companies, including the one that directs voice acting for Genshin Impact (Famosa), have refused to add protections for voice actors involving AI. Many voice actors game forward, including many from Genshin Impact I am huge fans of, saying that there were times in the game, that their voice was put through an AI voice generator to create new voice lines without their consent, and without them being compensated for it. These extremely talented actors voices voices-what they use for their livelihoods-are being taken by these companies, put into AI voice generation software and used in games so these companies do not have to pay them. Learning this frustrated me, not just because my favorite part of my favorite game is now gone, but because the people who made me love it so much are effectively being robbed of their own voices.
This as well, is only a year after SAG-AFTRA already had to negotiate for AI protections. The companies have come forward and said they of course would stop using actors voices without their consent, however they have refused to sign contracts put forward by SAG promising it. It was only a week ago as of my writing this blog post that the strikers and companies have begun negotiations again. The next update for my beloved Genshin Impact is only a few weeks away, so I can only hope my favorite game will return to the way it was, and that the talented people acting in it finally become properly compensated for the amazing work they do.
This is all happening at the perfect time, as the readings this week were to me at least focused greatly on the implementation of AI means. Do we really want to keep improving on technology that has the potential to truly take away the livelihoods of so many people? There is a huge list of positives that come out of AI, however, where is the line drawn? Will the ‘Humanities’ of Digital Humanities be lost if people can simply ask Chatgpt or run a voice through a machine to make a video game? Creatives I believe are the ones who are most affected by this AI crisis. The world will inherently lose something if art, music, voice acting etc are taken over by nothing but machines.
And of course, I’d be absolutely devastated every day I don’t get to hear the amazing voices from the actors of Genshin Impact.