Creativity in Quebec Video Game Industry: A House of Cards?
Keywords:
Video game, creativity studies, transdisciplinarity, sociocultural model of creativity, 4 P’s model, creative industries, game design, MontrealAbstract
The province of Quebec is seen as a center of “creativity” for video games and this concept is regularly used and valued. But the complexity of the socio-cultural phenomena leads us to question the meaning of this concept. What is creativity, who or what is creative? This paper uses a constructivist version the Four P’s framework (product, process, people and press) to show the limits of the concept of creativity in the Quebec video game industry, specifically in Montreal. This model allows us to focus on different interrelated dimensions of creativity, from government economic policies to the creation process, including the products created and the people involved. At first glance, the results show a disturbing lack of creativity. But it is rather the lack of theorization and operationalization of the concept in the context of Quebec video games that is problematic. If the province wishes to maintain its status as a leader in this sector, a transdisciplinary research effort must be undertaken.
References
Alliance numérique. (2014). Perpétuons le miracle québécois: l’avenir de l’industrie du jeu vidéo au Québec. En ligne : http://alliancenumerique.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/Mémoire_AN-commission-Godbout-2014.pdf.
Anadón, M. (2006). La recherche dite «qualitative»: de la dynamique de son évolution aux acquis indéniables et aux questionnements présents. In Recherches qualitatives, 26(1), 5-31.
Arsenault, D. (2011). Des typologies mécaniques à l'expérience esthétique : fonctions et mutations du genre dans le jeu vidéo. (Ph.D. thèse en études cinématographiques). Université de Montréal, Montréal.
Benessaieh, K. (2017). Fin de partie pour le studio Hibernum. In La Presse, 17 juillet. En ligne : https://www.lapresse.ca/techno/jeux-video/201708/17/01-5125239-fin-de-partie-pour-le-studio-hibernum.php.
Bethke, E. (2003). Game development and production. Plano, Texas: Wordware Publishing Inc.
Bilton, C., et Leary, R. (2002). What can managers do for creativity? Brokering creativity in the creative industries. In International Journal of Cultural Policy, 8(1), 49-64.
Bouchard, S. (2017). L’UQAC lance un programme en création de jeux vidéo. In Le Journal de Québec, 11 décembre. En ligne : https://www.journaldequebec.com/2017/12/11/luqac-lance-un-programme-en-creation-de-jeux-video.
Bousbaci, R. (2008). "Models of Man” in Design Thinking: The “Bounded Rationality” Episode. In Design Issues, 24(4), 38-52. doi:10.1162/desi.2008.24.4.38
Chambre de commerce du Montréal métropolitain. (2018). Industries créatives : réussir dans un environnement en mutation rapide. En ligne : https://www.ccmm.ca/fr/publications/etude/collaboration-art-affaires/industries-creatives--reussir-dans-un-environnement-en-mutation-rapide/.
Chen, M. H., et Kaufmann, G. (2008). Employee creativity and R&D: A critical review. In Creativity and Innovation Management, 17(1), 71-76.
Chiapello, L. (2015). Le designer de jeux vidéo comme agent d’évolution à l’ère du jeu casual. InSciences du jeu, 4, En ligne : https://sdj.revues.org/474.
Chiapello, L. (2017). Epistemological Underpinnings in Game Design Research. In P. Lankoski et J. Holopainen (dirs.), Game Design Research: An Introduction to Theory & Practice (p. 15-33). Pittsburgh, PA,: Carnegie Mellon University ETC Press.
Chiapello, L. (2019). Le pragmatisme comme épistémologie pour le design de jeux Enquête sur la créativité et le processus de design. (Thèse de doctorat Thèse de doctorat). Université de Montréal, Montréal.
Cohendet, P., Llerena, P., et Simon, L. (2012). The Routinization of Creativity : Lessons from the Case of a video-game Creative Powerhouse. En ligne : file:///C:/Users/perro/AppData/Local/Temp/The_Routinization_of_Creativity_Lessons_from_the_C.pdf.
Cohendet, P., et Simon, L. (2007). Playing across the playground: paradoxes of knowledge creation in the videogame firm. In Journal of Organizational Behavior, 28(5), 587-605.
Communauté des jeux vidéo du Québec. (2020). Jeux vidéo du Québec. En ligne : http://www.gamesfromquebec.com/fr/.
Djaouti, D., Alvarez, J., et Jessel, J.-P. (2010). Concevoir l’interactivité ludique: une vue d’ensemble des méthodologies de ‘Game Design’. Paper presented at the Ludovia 2010 Ariège-Pyrénées.
Drake, P. (2013). Policy or Practice? Deconstructing the Creative Industries. In P. Szczepanik et P. Vonderau (dirs.), Behind the screen: inside european production cultures (p. 221-236). New York: Palgrave Macmillan.
Dyer-Witheford, N., et De Peuter, G. (2006). “EA Spouse” and the crisis of video game labour: Enjoyment, exclusion, exploitation, exodus. In Canadian Journal of Communication, 31(2006), 599-617.
Dyer-Witheford, N., et Sharman, Z. (2005). The political economy of Canada's video and computer game industry. In Canadian Journal of Communication, 30(2), 187-210.
ea_spouse. (2004). EA: The Human Story. En ligne : https://ea-spouse.livejournal.com
Entertainment Software Association of Canada. (2017). Canada’s Video Game Industry in 2017. En ligne : http://theesa.ca/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/ESAC2017_Booklet_French05_ Digital.pdf.
Flew, T. (2002). Beyond ad hocery: Defining creative industries. Paper presented at the Cultural Sites, Cultural Theory, Cultural Policy, The Second International Conference on Cultural Policy Research, Te Papa, Wellington, New Zealand.
Florida, R. (2014). The rise of the creative class--revisited: Revised and expanded. New York: Basic Books.
Florida, R. (2017). The new urban crisis: How our cities are increasing inequality, deepening segregation, and failing the middle class—And what we can do about it. New York: Basic Books.
Glăveanu, V. P. (2013). Rewriting the language of creativity: The Five A's framework. In Review of General Psychology, 17(1), 69.
Glăveanu, V. P. (2014). The psychology of creativity: A critical reading. In Creativity: Theories - Research - Applications, 1(1), 10-32.
Glǎveanu, V. P. (dir.) (2019). The Creativity Reader. New York, NY: Oxford University Press.
Glăveanu, V. P., Hanchett Hanson, M., Baer, J., Barbot, B., Clapp, E. P., Corazza, G. E., Hennessey, B., James C. Kaufman, J.C., Lebuda, I., Lubart, T. , Montuori, A., Ness, I.J., Plucker, J., Reiter‐Palmon, R., Sierra Z.,Simonton, D.K., Neves‐Pereira, M.S et Sternberg, R.C. (2019). Advancing Creativity Theory and Research: A Socio-cultural Manifesto. In The Journal of Creative Behavior, 1-5. doi:10.1002/jocb.395.
Gouvernement du Canada. (2018). Exigences du Programme pour le Volet des talents mondiaux. En ligne : https://www.canada.ca/fr/emploi-developpement-social/services/travailleurs-etrangers/talents-mondiaux/exigences.html#cus.
Grandadam, D., Cohendet, P., et Simon, L. (2012). Places, Spaces and the Dynamics of Creativity: The Video Game Industry in Montreal. In Regional Studies, 47(10), 1701-1714. doi:10.1080/00343404.2012.699191.
Grandadam, D., Simon, L., Marchadier, J., et Tremblay, P.-O. (2010). Gérer des communautés de création: Ubisoft Montréal et les jeux vidéo. In Gestion, 35(4), 56-63.
Gruszka, A., et Tang, M. (2017). The 4P’s creativity model and its application in different fields. In Handbook of the Management of Creativity and Innovation: Theory and Practice (p. 51-71). Singapore: WSPC
Hernández, R. J., Cooper, R., Tether, B., et Murphy, E. (2018). Design, the Language of Innovation: A Review of the Design Studies Literature. In She Ji, 4(3), 249-274.
Hesmondhalgh, D. (2008). Cultural and creative industries. In T. Bennett et J. Frow (dirs.), The SAGE handbook of cultural analysis (p. 553-569). London, UK: Sage Publications.
Hodgson, D., et Briand, L. (2013). Controlling the uncontrollable: ‘Agile’ teams and illusions of autonomy in creative work. In Work, Employment and Society, 27(2), 308-325. doi:10.1177/0950017012460315.
Hotho, S., et Champion, K. (2011). Small businesses in the new creative industries: Innovation as a people management challenge. In Management Decision, 49(1), 29-54.
Industrie Canada. (1997). Préparer le Canada au monde numérique : rapport final du Comité consultatif sur l'autoroute de l'information. En ligne : http://publications.gc.ca/site/eng/9.680195/publication.html.
Investissement Québec. (2016). PME et grandes entreprises crédits d'impôt pour production de titres multimédias. En ligne : http://www.investquebec.com/quebec/fr/produits-financiers/pme-et-grandes-entreprises/credit-d-impot/production-de-titres-multimedias.html.
Jeannotte, S. (2006). Timeline of Canadian Federal Cultural Policy Milestones 1849 to 2005. Em ligne : http://socialsciences.uottawa.ca/governance/sites/socialsciences.uottawa.ca.g overnance/files/timeline.pdf.
Johansson-Sköldberg, U., Woodilla, J., et Çetinkaya, M. (2013). Design thinking: past, present and possible futures. In Creativity and Innovation Management, 22(2), 121-146.
Kuchera, B. (2018). Report: 7,672 games were released on Steam in 2017. En ligne : https://www.polygon.com/2018/1/10/16873446/steam-release-dates-2017.
Kuittinen, J., et Holopainen, J. (2009). Some notes on the nature of game design. Paper presented at the 2009 DiGRA Conference: Breaking New Ground, Brunel University, London.
Kultima, A. (2010). The organic nature of game ideation: game ideas arise from solitude and mature by bouncing. Paper presented at the International Academic Conference on the Future of Game Design and Technology, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
Kultima, A., et Alha, K. (2010). “Hopefully everything I'm doing has to do with innovation”. Paper presented at the International IEEE Consumer Electronics Society's Games Innovations Conference, Hong Kong.
La Guilde des développeurs de jeux vidéo indépendants du Québec. (2016). La plus grosse coopérative de jeux vidéo indépendants au monde voit le jour au Québec. En ligne : https://www.esmtl.ca/nouvelles/article/la-plus-grosse-cooperative-de-jeux-videos-inde pendants-au-monde-voit-le-jour-au-quebec/.
Le Masson, P., Weil, B., et Hatchuel, A. (2006). Les processus d'innovation : conception innovante et croissance des entreprises. Paris: Lavoisier.
Létourneau, A. (2008). La transdisciplinarité considérée en général et en sciences de l’environnement. In VertigO-la revue électronique en sciences de l'environnement, 8(2), 1-9. En ligne : https://www.erudit.org/fr/revues/vertigo/2008-v8-n2-vertigo2774/019961ar.pdf.
Malouin, J.-F., Arsenault, D., Dagenais, O., et Noury, M. (2016). Le rayonnement de la culture québécoise par le jeu vidéo. Mémoire présenté au ministère de la Culture et des Communications dans le cadre du renouvellement de la politique culturelle québécoise. En ligne : https://www.mcc.gouv.qc.ca/fileadmin/documents/Politique-culturelle/Memoires___Metadonnees/La_Guilde_des_developpeurs_de_jeux_video_independants_du_Quebec.pdf.
McEntee, C. (2012, October). Rayman Origins Post Mortem. In Game Developer, 19(10), 26-31.
Meloche, J.-P., et Hammouda, K. (2017). L’aide fiscale à l’industrie du jeu vidéo à Montréal-Quelques éléments de réflexion. Rapport pour discussion. En ligne : https://www.cirano.qc.ca/files/publications/2017DT-01.pdf.
Metacritic. (2012). The Secret World PC. En ligne : http://www.metacritic.com/game/pc/the-secret-world
Ministerial Creative Industries Strategy Group. (2001). Creative Industries Mapping Documents. Rapport pour le Department of Culture, Media and Sport. En ligne : https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/creative-industries-mapping-documents-2001.
Montuori, A. (2013). The complexity of transdisciplinary literature reviews. In Complicity: An International Journal of Complexity and Education, 10(1/2), 45-55é
Oakley, K. (2009). The disappearing arts: Creativity and innovation after the creative industries. In International Journal of Cultural Policy, 15(4), 403-413.
Parmentier, G., et Mangematin, V. (2009). Innovation et création dans le jeu vidéo. Comment concilier exploration et exploitation ? In Revue française de gestion, 191(1), 71-87. En ligne : https://www.cairn.info/revue-francaise-de-gestion-2009-1-page-71.htm.
Phillips, T. (2015). “Don't clone my indie game, bro”: Informal cultures of videogame regulation in the independent sector. In Cultural Trends, 24(2), 143-153.
Pineault, Y. (2015). Le jeu vidéo à Montréal: une négociation entre création et production. In Sciences du jeu, 4, 1-17. En ligne : https://journals.openedition.org/sdj/494?lang=en.
Plucker, J. A., Beghetto, R. A., et Dow, G. T. (2004). Why isn't creativity more important to educational psychologists? Potentials, pitfalls, and future directions in creativity research. In Educational Psychologist, 39(2), 83-96.
Politowski, C., Fontoura, L., Petrillo, F., et Guéhéneuc, Y.-G. (2016). Are the old days gone?: a survey on actual software engineering processes in video game industry. Paper presented at the 5th International Workshop on Games and Software Engineering, Austin, Texas.
Puccio, G. J., et Cabra, J. F. (2010). Organizational creativity. In J. C. Kaufman et R. J. Sternberg (dirs.), The Cambridge handbook of creativity (p. 145-173). Cambridge, MA: Cambridge University Press.
Rhodes, M. (1961). An analysis of creativity. In The Phi Delta Kappan, 42(7), 305-310.
Runco, M. A. (2004). Creativity. In Annual Review of Psychology, 55(1), 657-687. doi:10.1146/annurev.psych.55.090902.141502
Runco, M. A., et Jaeger, G. J. (2012). The standard definition of creativity. In Creativity Research Journal, 24(1), 92-96.
Salen, K., et Zimmerman, E. (2003). Rules of Play Game Design Fundamentals. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.
Sauvé, N., Briand, L., et Hanin, F. (2010). Étude exploratoire des entreprises du savoir: le cas des développeurs de jeux vidéo du quartier Saint-Roch de Québec: Centre de recherche sur les innovations sociales.
Schlesinger, P. (2007). Creativity: from discourse to doctrine? In Screen, 48(3), 377-387.
Schlesinger, P. (2012). Expertise, politiques publiques et économie créative: le cas britannique. In Actes de la recherche en sciences sociales, 193(3), 80-95.
Schlesinger, P. (2017). The creative economy: invention of a global orthodoxy. In Innovation: The European Journal of Social Science Research, 30(1), 73-90.
Schön, D. A. (1983). The Reflective Practitioner : How Professionals Think in Action. New York: Basic Books.
Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage. (1999). A Sense of Place, a Sense of Being. The Evolving Role of the Federal Government in the Support of Culture in Canada, 9th Report of the Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage. En ligne : www.pch.gc.ca/.
Stenros, J. (2016). The Game Definition Game: A Review. In Games and Culture, 1(22), 1-22.
Tremblay, G. (2008). Industries culturelles, économie créative et société de l’information. In Global Media Journal, 1 (Inaugural Issue), 65-88.
Tschang, F. T. (2007). Balancing the tensions between rationalization and creativity in the video games industry. In Organization Science, 18(6), 989-1005.
UQAT. (2018). Baccalauréat en création de jeux vidéo Profils art et design. En ligne : https://www.uqat.ca/etudes/creation-et-nouveaux-medias/baccalaureat-en-creation-de-jeux-video-profils-art-et-design/.
Weber, R. (2012). Secret World designer: MMO needed to be more commercial. En ligne : https://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2012-10-09-secret-world-designer-mmo-needed-to-be-more-commercial.
Weiner, R. (2000). Creativity & beyond cultures, values, and change. Albany, NY: State University of New York Press.
Whitson, J. R., Simon, B., et Parker, F. (2018). The Missing Producer: Rethinking indie cultural production in terms of entrepreneurship, relational labour, and sustainability. In European Journal of Cultural Studies, décembre, 1-22.
Wikipedia. (2018a). List of best-selling video game franchises. Wikipedia. En ligne : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_best-selling_video_game_franchises.
Wikipedia. (2018b). List of best-selling video games. Wikipedia. En ligne : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_best-selling_video_games?oldid=559733465.
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2021 Laureline Chiapello
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
The copyright for work in this journal is retained by the author(s), with first publication rights granted to the journal. In keeping with a Creative Commons license, articles are free to use with proper attribution (to both the author and Loading…) for educational and other non-commercial uses.
