Actors’ union SAG-AFTRA strike deal to allow AI voice replicas, and video game stars are understandably pissed

Stars of Starfield, Mortal Kombat, Baldur’s Gate and more call agreement with Replica - seemingly without their consultation - a “backstab” and “betrayal”

Major actors’ union SAG-AFTRA have raised hackles among a number of voice game performers after striking a deal with a company that wants to create AI replicas of actors’ voices for use in games, among other things. While the union claim that their agreement with Replica will allow for a “fair” and “ethical” approach to creating AI voices, it’s clear that a number of actors with credits in games from Baldur’s Gate 3 , Mortal Kombat and Starfield to Apex Legends , World of Warcraft and Genshin Impact don’t agree.

The SAG-AFTRA announcement claimed that the “groundbreaking” deal would allow actors to licence their voice to Replica as a digital replica, allowing video game developers and other companies to recreate the vocal performance of an actor as they like for a project. Safeguards against AI - specifically in relation to digital replicas and training models - has been a central point in SAG-AFTRA’s ongoing negotiations with video game studios .

“With this agreement, we have achieved fully informed consent and fair compensation when it comes to the use of our members’ voices and performances,” said SAG-AFTRA’s national executive director and chief negotiator Duncan Crabtree-Ireland of the recent deal, with the union saying that the agreement offers “industry-leading protections” to actors in relation to AI.

Those protections include setting a baseline for minimum terms and conditions with regards to AI voice replicas, along with requiring actors to authorise their voice for use in such projects and negotiate around how and where their digital double is used. The agreement also allows performers to opt out of letting their AI voice be used in the future if they decide against it later on.

Image credit:Rock Paper Shotgun/Bethesda Softworks

In other words, rather than opposing the replacement of actors by AI as a whole, the deal looks to try and put control of any AI recreations in the hands of actors through formal licensing - wresting back some power from AI tools that harvest thousands of creators’ work without any kind of credit or compensation. However, what isn’t currently clear - among other things - is how that compensation or crediting will work exactly, along with specifics on how data is stored and shared.

“Our voice actor agreements ensure that game developers using our platform are only accessing licensed talent who have given permission for their voice to be used as a training data set, as opposed to the wild west of AI platforms using unethical data-scraping methods to replicate and synthesise voices without permission,” said Replica’s CEO Shreyas Nivas.

While SAG-AFTRA’s announcement stated that the agreement was “approved by affected members of the union’s voiceover performer community”, it seems that they didn’t speak to a number of notable video game actors, who swiftly took to social media to criticise the deal and the apparent lack of consultation.

“Nobody in our community approved this that I know of. Games are the bulk of my livelihood and have been for years. Who are you referring to?” wrote Steve Blum, the prolific actor known for Mortal Kombat’s Sub-Zero and Baraka, Mass Effect ’s Grunt, and Wolverine in a number of Marvel games, with further credits in World of Warcraft, Final Fantasy, Diablo IV and more besides.

Excuse me? With all due respect…you state in the article “Approved by affected members of the union’s voiceover performer community.” Nobody in our community approved this that I know of. Games are the bulk of my livelihood and have been for years. Who are you referring to? — Steve Blum (@blumspew) January 9, 2024

“I would humbly consider myself one of the top voice actors working in games. No one asked me about this. No one reached out for my opinion. From what I’m seeing, no one asked any of my peers either,” echoed Elias Toufexis, who plays Deus Ex ’s Adam Jensen and Starfield’s Sam Coe, among many others.

“We don’t have to be anti-AI but we DO need: TRANSPARENCY: No one was told about Replica[,] INFORMED CONSENT: To know what this agreement entails & whether it considers the technological abilities of AI [and] CONTROL: Able to remove our voices from platform AND from the AI model itself,” said Starfield, Return to Monkey Island , Valorant and Star Wars: The Old Republic actor Melissa Medína, calling the Replica deal a “betrayal”: “SAG proved it absolutely has no understanding of AI nor any intention to protect us from it.”

Allegra Clark, the actor behind characters including Apex Legends’ Bloodhound, Genshin Impact’s Beidour and Street Fighter 6 ’s Marisa, similarly expressed that the deal was a “monumental backstab” while the union continues to negotiate.

“If I were involved in negotiations I would be absolutely LIVID right now,” she wrote. “This undermines the committee so badly.”

What a betrayal. I tried to inform @sagaftra about their utter failure to make any REAL AI protections & they instead got in bed with an AI company. Don’t give your voice to this. SAG proved it absolutely has no understanding of AI nor any intention to protect us from it. https://t.co/HxUJRHaRGk — MELISSA MEDÍNA (@melissamedinavo) January 9, 2024

Baldur’s Gate 3 and Dying Light 2 actor-director Thomas Mitchells called the agreement “disappointing” and “troubling”, suggesting that “studios will look past creativity for convenience and this will potentially have a detrimental effect on artists” as Crabtree-Ireland acknowledged that the growth of AI had led to “game studios explor[ing] more efficient ways to create their games”.

The news and resulting backlash comes on the back of ongoing discussion and debate around the growing use of AI in video games and further afield. Just this week, Steam opened their doors to games made using AI , while recent multiplayer shooter The Finals divided players and frustrated actors over its own use of AI-generated commentary .

Last month, ZeniMax’s worker union came to their own agreement with parent company Microsoft about the use of AI tools in development which - in contrast to the apparent handling of the SAG-AFTRA deal - appeared to be met with a fairly positive reaction from devs who felt it limited AI to aiding rather than replacing human staff.

That point is worth stressing against the ongoing decimation of the video game industry over the last 12-plus months, with the widespread layoffs, major studio closures and thousands of job losses during 2023 rolling straight into more than 2,000 job losses within the first week of this year at streaming giant Twitch and engine maker Unity .

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All 75 Arc Raiders Blueprints and where to get them

These areas have the highest chance of giving you Blueprints

Image credit:Rock Paper Shotgun/Embark Studios

Looking for more Arc Raiders Blueprints? It’s a special day when you find a Blueprint, as they’re among the most valuable items in Arc Raiders. If you find a Blueprint that you haven’t already found, then you must make sure you hold onto it at all costs, because Blueprints are the key to one of the most important and powerful systems of meta-progression in the game.

This guide aims to be the very best guide on Blueprints you can find, starting with a primer on what exactly they are and how they work in Arc Raiders, before delving into exactly where to get Blueprints and the very best farming spots for you to take in your search.

We’ll also go over how to get Blueprints from other unlikely activities, such as destroying Surveyors and completing specific quests. And you’ll also find the full list of all 75 Blueprints in Arc Raiders on this page (including the newest Blueprints added with the Cold Snap update , such as the Deadline Blueprint and Firework Box Blueprint), giving you all the information you need to expand your own crafting repertoire.

In this guide:

• What are Blueprints in Arc Raiders?
• Full Blueprint list: All crafting recipes
• Where to find Blueprints in Arc Raiders Blueprints obtained from quests Blueprints obtained from Trials Best Blueprint farming locations

What are Blueprints in Arc Raiders?

Blueprints in Arc Raiders are special items which, if you manage to extract with them, you can expend to permanently unlock a new crafting recipe in your Workshop. If you manage to extract from a raid with an Anvil Blueprint, for example, you can unlock the ability to craft your very own Anvil Pistol, as many times as you like (as long as you have the crafting materials).

To use a Blueprint, simply open your Inventory while in the lobby, then right-click on the Blueprint and click “Learn And Consume” . This will permanently unlock the recipe for that item in your Workshop. As of the Stella Montis update, there are allegedly 75 different Blueprints to unlock - although only 68 are confirmed to be in the game so far. You can see all the Blueprints you’ve found and unlocked by going to the Workshop menu, and hitting “R” to bring up the Blueprint screen.

It’s possible to find duplicates of past Blueprints you’ve already unlocked. If you find these, then you can either sell them, or - if you like to play with friends - you can take it into a match and gift it to your friend so they can unlock that recipe for themselves. Another option is to keep hold of them until the time comes to donate them to the Expedition.

Full Blueprint list: All crafting recipes

Below is the full list of all the Blueprints that are currently available to find in Arc Raiders, and the crafting recipe required for each item:

Note: The missing Blueprints in this list likely have not actually been added to the game at the time of writing, because none of the playerbase has managed to find any of them. As they are added to the game, I will update this page with the most relevant information so you know exactly how to get all 75 Arc Raiders Blueprints.

Where to find Blueprints in Arc Raiders

Below is a list of all containers, modifiers, and events which maximise your chances of finding Blueprints:

• Certain quests reward you with specific Blueprints .
• Completing Trials has a high chance of offering Blueprints as rewards.
• Surveyors have a decent chance of dropping Blueprints on death.
• High loot value areas tend to have a greater chance of spawning Blueprints.
• Night Raids and Storms may increase rare Blueprint spawn chances in containers.
• Containers with higher numbers of items may have a higher tendency to spawn Blueprints. As a result, Blue Gate (which has many “large” containers containing multiple items) may give you a higher chance of spawning Blueprints.
• Raider containers (Raider Caches, Weapon Boxes, Medical Bags, Grenade Tubes) have increased Blueprint drop rates. As a result, the Uncovered Caches event gives you a high chance of finding Blueprints.
• Security Lockers have a higher than average chance of containing Blueprints.
• Certain Blueprints only seem to spawn under specific circumstances: Tempest Blueprint only spawns during Night Raid events. Vulcano Blueprint only spawns during Hidden Bunker events. Jupiter and Equaliser Blueprints only spawn during Harvester events.

Raider Caches, Weapon Boxes, and other raider-oriented container types have a good chance of offering Blueprints. |Image credit:Rock Paper Shotgun/Embark Studios

Blueprints have a very low chance of spawning in any container in Arc Raiders, around 1-2% on average. However, there is a higher chance of finding Blueprints in particular container types. Specifically, you can find more Blueprints in Raider containers and security lockers.

Beyond this, if you’re looking for Blueprints you should focus on regions of the map which are marked as having particularly high-value loot. Areas such as the Control Tower in Dam Battlegrounds, the Arrival and Departure Buildings in Spaceport, and Pilgrim’s Peak in Blue Gate all have a better-than-average chance of spawning Blueprints somewhere amongst all their containers. Night Raids and Electromagnetic Storm events also increase the drop chances of certain Blueprints .

In addition to these containers, you can often loot Blueprints from destroyed Surveyors - the largest of the rolling ball ARC. Surveyors are more commonly found on the later maps - Spaceport and Blue Gate - and if one spawns in your match, you’ll likely see it by the blue laser beam that it casts into the sky while “surveying”.

Surveyors are quite well-armoured and will very speedily run away from you once it notices you, but if you can take one down then make sure you loot all its parts for a chance of obtaining certain unusual Blueprints.

Blueprints obtained from quests

One way in which you can get Blueprints is by completing certain quests for the vendors in Speranza. Some quests will reward you with a specific item Blueprint upon completion, so as long as you work through all the quests in Arc Raiders, you are guaranteed those Blueprints.

Here is the full list of all Blueprints you can get from quest rewards:

• Trigger Nade Blueprint: Rewarded after completing “Sparks Fly”.
• Lure Grenade Blueprint: Rewarded after completing “Greasing Her Palms”.
• Burletta Blueprint: Rewarded after completing “Industrial Espionage”.
• Hullcracker Blueprint (and Launcher Ammo Blueprint): Rewarded after completing “The Major’s Footlocker”.

Alas, that’s only 4 Blueprints out of a total of 75 to unlock, so for the vast majority you will need to find them yourself during a raid. If you’re intent on farming Blueprints, then it’s best to equip yourself with cheap gear in case you lose it, but don’t use a free loadout because then you won’t get a safe pocket to stash any new Blueprint you find. No pain in Arc Raiders is sharper than failing to extract with a new Blueprint you’ve been after for a dozen hours already.

One of the best ways to get Blueprints is by hitting three stars on all five Trials every week. |Image credit:Rock Paper Shotgun/Embark Studios

Blueprints obtained from Trials

One of the very best ways to get Blueprints is as rewards for completing Trials in Arc Raiders. Trials are unlocked from Level 15 onwards, and allow you to earn rewards by focusing on certain tasks over the course of several raids. For example, one Trial might task you with dealing damage to Hornets, while another might challenge you to loot Supply Drops.

Trials refresh on a weekly basis, with a new week bringing five new Trials. Each Trial can offer up to three rewards after passing certain score milestones, and it’s possible to receive very high level loot from these reward crates - including Blueprints. So if you want to unlock as many Blueprints as possible, you should make a point of completing as many Trials as possible each week.

Best Blueprint farming locations

The very best way to get Blueprints is to frequent specific areas of the maps which combine high-tier loot pools with the right types of containers to search. Here are my recommendations for where to find Blueprints on every map, so you can always keep the search going for new crafting recipes to unlock.

Image credit:Rock Paper Shotgun/Embark Studios

Dam Battlegrounds

The best places to farm Blueprints on Dam Battlegrounds are the Control Tower, Power Generation Complex, Ruby Residence, and Pale Apartments . The first two regions, despite only being marked on the map as mid-tier loot, contain a phenomenal number of containers to loot. The Control Tower can also contain a couple of high-tier Security Lockers - though of course, you’ll need to have unlocked the Security Breach skill at the end of the Survival tree.

There’s also a lot of reporting amongst the playerbase that the Residential areas in the top-left of the map - Pale Apartments and Ruby Residence - give you a comparatively strong chance of finding Blueprints. Considering their size, there’s a high density of containers to loot in both locations, and they also have the benefit of being fairly out of the way. So you’re more likely to have all the containers to yourself.

Buried City

The best Blueprint farming locations on Buried City are the Santa Maria Houses, Grandioso Apartments, Town Hall, and the various buildings of the New District . Grandioso Apartments has a lower number of containers than the rest, but a high chance of spawning weapon cases - which have good Blueprint drop rates. The others are high-tier loot areas, with plenty of lootable containers - including Security Lockers.

Spaceport

The best places to find Blueprints on Spaceport are the Arrival and Departure Buildings, as well as Control Tower A6 and the Launch Towers . All these areas are labelled as high-value loot regions, and many of them are also very handily connected to one another by the Spaceport wall, which you can use to quickly run from one area to the next. At the tops of most of these buildings you’ll find at least one Security Locker, so this is an excellent farming route for players looking to find Blueprints.

The downside to looting Blueprints on Spaceport is that all these areas are hotly contested, particularly in Duos and Squads. You’ll need to be very focused and fast in order to complete the full farming route.

Image credit:Rock Paper Shotgun/Embark Studios

Blue Gate

Blue Gate tends to have a good chance of dropping Blueprints, potentially because it generally has a high number of containers which can hold lots of items; so there’s a higher chance of a Blueprint spawning in each container. In my experience, the best Blueprint farming spots on Blue Gate are Pilgrim’s Peak, Raider’s Refuge, the Ancient Fort, and the Underground Complex beneath the Warehouse .

All of these areas contain a wealth of containers to loot. Raider’s Refuge has less to loot, but the majority of the containers in and around the Refuge are raider containers, which have a high chance of containing Blueprints - particularly during major events.

Stella Montis

On the whole, Stella Montis seems to have a very low drop rate for Blueprints (though a high chance of dropping other high-tier loot). If you do want to try farming Blueprints on this map, the best places to find Blueprints in Stella Montis are Medical Research, Assembly Workshop, and the Business Center . These areas have the highest density of containers to loot on the map.

In addition to this, the Western Tunnel has a few different Security Lockers to loot, so while there’s very little to loot elsewhere in this area of the map, it’s worth hitting those Security Lockers if you spawn there at the start of a match.

That wraps up this primer on how to get all the Blueprints in Arc Raiders as quickly as possible. With the Expedition system constantly resetting a large number of players’ Blueprints, it’s more important than ever to have the most up-to-date information on where to find all these Blueprints.

While you’re here, be sure to check out our Arc Raiders best guns tier list , as well as our primers on the best skills to unlock and all the different Field Depot locations on every map.

ARC Raiders

PS5 , Xbox Series X/S , PC

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