Embark Studios’ acclaimed extraction shooter, ARC Raiders, has faced a wave of criticism after its CCO claimed the game uses generative AI.
Now, more people have rallied to boycott the game for this reason alone.
Days after ARC Raiders’ CCO Stefan Strandberg admitted to using generative AI in an interview with GamesRadar+ before the game’s launch. Part of the reason for this integration was to “maximize what they can,” and help the small studio build content a hundred times faster.
The ARC Raiders AI discourse has expanded further after Eurogamer published its controversial 2 out of 5 review, calling ARC Raiders “contemptuous” with its use of generative AI for a game that thrives on its sociability. Rick Lane, who reviewed the game, added further that ARC Raiders’ use of AI is problematic not just from an ethical standpoint, but also on its artistic side as well.
The Eurogamer review spawned two subsets of gamers: Those who enjoyed ARC Raiders, ignoring its use of gen AI, and those who want to boycott it. Notably, the two don’t meet eye to eye, creating a series of heated back-and-forths between both communities.
ARC Raiders fans argued that it doesn’t matter whether or not the game uses generative AI or not because the gameplay loop is addictive, and that’s what matters to them. Some were even holding out on hope, claiming that Embark might swap them with real human voices in later updates.
Embark Studios has always been transparent with its use of generative AI in ARC Raiders. While the CCO has agreed that it won’t come to a point where it could replace any actors, many individuals still expressed their concern that hiring voice actors could alleviate these issues. Besides, Nexon is a trillion-dollar company, and refusing to invest in its voice cast seems to draw a larger issue at hand to the game’s creative integrity.
The boycotts are rampant all around BlueSky, where game developers and artists call out Embark Studios for this cheap cost-cutting measure. Some are even claiming that Embark tries to ‘downplay’ the gen AI situation by providing the most vague description possible on their Steam page.
This is not the first time Embark Studios has used generative AI. The Finals, its competitive first-person arena shooter, is also using the same formula. Apparently, the team has doubled down on its use of generative AI voiceover despite immense backlash.
ARC Raiders has continued to gain new players despite this feedback, now beating their own record by achieving over 460,000 all-time players on Steam.
Overall, ARC Raiders’ generative AI situation has created an interesting dilemma for modern gamers: When does generative AI become too much? And when does it become acceptable?
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