Future Game Releases Unaffected by SAG-AFTRA Strikes, Including GTA VI

Games currently in development before September 2023 will remain unaffected by the SAG-AFTRA strikes. Late yesterday, news emerged about SAG-AFTRA planning another strike, this time targeting the video game sector to address the industry's use of artificial intelligence and other concerns.

As the production timeline for games significantly exceeds that of movies or TV shows, there was an initial belief that a prolonged strike would not impact the gaming industry immediately. This assessment suggested that the effects would only become apparent in a few years, particularly for games that are in the voice and capture stages of their development at present. Naturally, this raised questions about the status of highly anticipated titles like Grand Theft Auto VI.

In a statement to Kotaku, Take-Two, Rockstar's parent company, confirmed that GTA VI is not impacted by the strikes and is exempt from any disruption. This exemption is not because all work involving SAG-AFTRA personnel has been completed but rather due to its classification in the SAG-AFTRA database as a game that people can still work on. It’s clarified that any game already under development before September 2023 is also exempt from the strike implications.

This information implies that many games expected to be released in 2025 and 2026, and possibly even in 2027 and later, such as The Witcher 4 and Cyberpunk 2.0—which have been in development in various capacities at CD Projekt Red for a while—will not face disruption from these strikes. Hence, the industry might only see the full impact of these strikes much further along the line.