As for what in the cycle makes auteurs unlikely in big budget games… how many games and movies have auteurs like peter jackson? The answer is very, very few. Not having one also does not prohibit a game from being good. Fallout 3 and Saint’s Row 2 – two of my favorite games from last year – managed to be great without a brand name producer helming them. Because big-budget affairs require so many people to produce, a studio system is both more likely and more sensible. If individual auteurs emerge to leave their imprint on games through sheer talent and force of personality, so much the better, but they aren’t required for quality products.

The bottom line seems to be that auteurs occur at a more or less similar rate (though video games do have catching up to do, being a much younger medium), and with a similar degree of quality. For every Jackson there’s a Miyamoto… and for every Micheal Bay there is a John Romero.

Still, I agree that it does seem like it’s time – based on the size of the industry – for the video game guys to start being famous like the movie guys!

As for the Jade Raymond example, I have to say that I was really disappointed in the community’s reaction to her. That backfired because Ubisoft’s publicizing of Raymond somehow felt (rightly or wrongly) inauthentic, and so it fell prey to a puerile 4chan – style flame-war mentality. It’s a shame because that is exactly the sort of thing that gives gaming (and interactivity in general) a bad name.

In contrast, Boom Blox did pretty well and it was associated with a big name: Steven Spielberg. Genre-wise, the game isn’t exactly what I’d call a ‘Spielberg’ experience – I’d expect more adventure, more epic, less pretty bright colours and physics puzzles. Still. When Spielberg’s name is on a game, you take it seriously.

It seems worth noting that the development cycle of big budget games almost prohibits auteurs. It is also relevant that when studios have tried to create auteurs to sell games, it often fails miserably, a la Jade Raymond.