(Montreal) Over time, Montreal has forged a reputation as a video game hub, but this sector must now adapt due to a new challenge: the labor shortage.
Posted at 4:40 p.m.
Several major players like Ubisoft, Warner Bros. Games and Behavior Interactif, have premises in Montreal, which has allowed the city to be recognized for its video game sector for nearly 30 years.
At least 14,000 people, spread over 280 studios, work in this field across the province, according to the director of communications for La Guilde du jeu vidéo du Québec, Émilien Roscanu.
The special relationship between Montreal and video games really began in 1997, when Ubisoft moved to Mile End, where its offices are still located. The previous year, Quebec introduced its refundable tax credit for the production of multimedia content, including video games.
Even today, many studios are settling in Montreal, because the city now has the highest concentration of international video game companies in the world, explains Mr. Roscanu.
But with this popularity comes a new challenge: recruiting and retaining qualified employees. Everything indicates that there will be a shortage of video game developers over the next 10 years, in particular due to the continual expansion of this sector and retirements, according to data from the federal government.
Recruitment is always a key element for companies, but it is above all the retention of staff that has long been the Achilles heel of this sector renowned for its sometimes difficult working conditions due to a heavy workload.
“Young people arrive with a lot of energy and enthusiasm, but we often see that when they start having children, they choose to change fields”, observes the professor of game design and virtual environments at the University ConcordiaJonathan Lessard.
Necessary adaptation
In the periods leading up to deadlines for completing projects, employees in this sector often have to work for many consecutive hours – what people in the industry call the “crunch”.
These periods of work also marked Chris Ferriera when he arrived at Electronic Arts in the early 2000s, he who claims that he “literally lived under (his) desk” at times.
“It was during a period of my life when I could afford to do it, and I liked it,” says the man who is now vice-president of creation at Behavior Interactif.
Despite everything, the sector seems to be evolving in order to better communicate what the “crunch” represents. Harry Marshall, who studies video game design at LaSalle College, says he was encouraged to ask questions about these pivotal periods to better understand how businesses operate.
“It’s really important to treat employees right when it comes to critical times because it’s something that can destroy you. You have to be careful with that, ”recalls Mr. Marshall.
Professor Lessard, of Concordia University, has observed an improvement in work-life balance in the sector since the “human resources crisis of 2020”, when accusations of a toxic work culture and harassment at Ubisoft led to a reshuffle of its executives, including the departure of the president of the Canadian division of the company.
Businesses and educational institutions have collaborated to facilitate the transition to the labor market. In particular, students can participate in networking events and summits throughout the year to get in touch with companies.
“With the Canada Media Fund and Ubisoft being kind of a hub, Montreal is still a great place for smaller studios because of the talent that’s attracted here,” said Shaheen Dottridge, a game design student at LaSalle College. Montreal is a really interesting place to get chances. »