The video game sector has seen significant growth in recent years. We take stock of some fundamental questions. First case: the proliferation of independent studios.
CH players often started skating before kindergarten. OSM musicians have been practicing their scales since their early teens. Chloé Lussier, co-founder of the Lowbirth Games studio, designed her first video game (JV) with her sister Raphaëlle and cousin Olivier when the trio were still in elementary school.
“We have always been very active and creative,” says the young woman. But it was a hobby and nothing professional, we understand that. » Their first, very simple game was created using the free RPG Maker software, which was released in 1992 and is still on the market.
Video game enthusiast and entrepreneur Chloé Lussier is actually one of the first pure products of Quebec's entertaining, digital and educational ecosystem. Shortly before the pandemic, she completed her specialist program at the Université du Québec en Abitibi-Témiscamingue (UQAT). Once she graduated from high school, she completed a hands-on summer micro-program to market businesses in the industry, teaching how to apply for grants or create a business plan.
Lowbirth Games was quickly launched in the fall of 2019 with the other two Lussiers, the sister and the cousin. “I was therefore fortunate to have a university education in game development, while many owners of independent studios are veterans of large companies in the industry,” concludes the CEO.
This is the case of David Fugère-Lamarre, co-founder and CEO of Illogika, a studio born in Montreal in 2009. “We were at the beginning of the independent wave,” he says. There were four of us and we worked for Behavior, which was then called Artificial Mind and Movement. Two elements played a role in our choice. First, the introduction of the Apple App Store, which completely democratized video game distribution and was later expanded to other platforms. Then the brand new Unity game engine, the first real technical solution available to an independent developer. »
Mr. Fugère-Lamarre was also drawn to the digital games industry at a young age. “My father told me that I was talking about it as a career when I was six years old,” he says, admitting that he kept his vintage consoles. In 2004, he graduated with a degree in computer engineering and earned a master's degree in management.
Illogika brings together around 65 employees who execute contracts for partners (Spongebob, Cuphead, etc.) and also develop their own games (Beyond Earth, Rogue Racers, etc.), again following the example of Behavior, but on a smaller scale.
For now, the Lowbirth Games company is concentrating on its own creations. The first result, This Bed We Made, was released in November after more than three years of production. The very original setting revolves around Sophie, a chambermaid who leads an investigation at the luxury Hotel Clarington in Montreal in 1958. We're very, very far from Call of Duty…
“It wasn’t our goal to make an activist studio with stories with a social appeal,” says the CEO. “First of all, we want to tell good stories.” But since the majority of our team is made up of women and queer people, we offer games that are like us, non-competitive, non-macho and non-violent games. We are in the narrative, in the fantasy, with strong characters. »
Since the majority of our team is made up of women and queer people, we offer games that are like us, non-competitive, non-macho, and non-violent games.
The young growth also reflects values of inclusion and respect. The fifteen employees worked from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., four days a week, in a very close and friendly team spirit, the boss assures. “We are a little more than the three we were from the beginning, but at the same time we are still a family. »
An oasis full of toys
The Smala is installed in the center of Indie Asylum's vast open space in a building in Montreal's Mile End. The Lussier company was even the second company to join this incubator and accelerator, which was officially launched in 2019 to support the growing number of small independent studios. Today, Indie Asylum is home to a dozen studios and has 120 people on the waiting list to get in.
“We enable small studios to dream big,” summarizes Pascal Nataf, co-founder and president of Indie Asylum. We met him in the large loft that served as the first-ever headquarters of the giant Ubisoft in the 1990s, at the time of the founding of the Montreal video game industry cluster. The Indie Asylum covers 30,000 square meters of space and has reserved twice that amount for expansion.
Of the 87 companies in the industry in 2011, hardly 9 had fewer than five employees. On the other hand, in 2022 there were 148 out of 291 in this category. Overall, there are now hundreds of SMEs in Quebec that are not part of foreign multi-billionaire consortia. Mr. Nataf, who has just returned from a business trip to France, draws comparisons with this market: There would be about 18,000 jobs in the JV sector, compared to 15,000 in Quebec, and 600 studios for 400 here, with a population eight times smaller .
“For Quebec independents, many development opportunities have been missed over the last thirty years due to a lack of business knowledge,” explains the president. The industry has made many bad business decisions. We're very good at making games, but all too often the intellectual property of those creations stays in Paris or San Francisco. At Indie Asylum, we bring together entrepreneurs who will guide others to scale studios from two or three to ten or more while avoiding too many mistakes along the way. »
Mr. Nataf helped set up the UQAT JV entrepreneurship micro-program, followed by Chloé Lussier. Indie Asylum goes one step further by bundling acquisition, accounting and marketing services. Mr. Nataf explains that the highly competitive global industry brings dozens of new games to market every day. Quebec creators must therefore learn to stand out, ensure discoverability and even brag.
The NPO defends values of mutual aid, cooperation and well-being, including in the type of games developed. “We want to make sure that the games we make have a positive impact on the world,” summarizes the president. Development plans published on Indie Asylum's website include adding a workplace daycare, an innovative school, a fleet of car-sharing vehicles, a pub, community gardens and “why not community chalets,” the proposed text says.
“I think that neoliberalism is simply not viable,” explains Pascal Nataf. We are trying to achieve something permanent and fairer here. It remains capitalist as long as we bring private companies together. »
He himself came to this more participatory and caring calling after a personal shock. A biochemistry graduate and neuropsychology researcher, he was struck by a devastating illness at the age of 29. “I was lucky to have cancer,” said the man, who has since recovered. I say lucky because I was forced to step off track and think about my life. I chose gaming. I went back to university and in this environment I found a place where I could combine my knowledge of science and creativity. »
In 2012 he co-founded the independent studio Affordance, which initially specialized in serious games and gamification. He then became involved in the Quebec Video Game Guild, which brings together all the major players in the industry, and then in the Indie Asylum, where Chloé Lussier and her gang continue the work begun in her early childhood.