This is the second part of the interview. To read the first part, click here!
Marc: What advice would you give to students who want to enter the industry?
François: Get involved and maintain your network. It is a small industry. In the world of esports, for example, almost everyone knows each other from near or far. Your involvement in events, teams, or projects, will not only allow you to make beginners’ mistakes, which are essential to your personal and professional development, but also allow you to make contacts. Just be careful not to be exploited voluntarily endlessly. Many start-ups and companies have abused the fact that people are passionate about the field, and that they would be willing to do everything to one day work in the field, to make them look forward to a future filled with beautiful promises that have proven to be false.
Marc: What advice would you give to parents who want their children to play in moderation?
François: Good question. This is a topic that we are working on a lot right now with the Virtual Guardians Foundation for possible training. It’s all about balance. For example, at the end of the session that has just ended, playing more than 30 minutes a day would have had a negative impact on the rest. There with my session finished, no new contracts for a few months and much more free time, I could play several hours a day, and this would have no negative consequences on any sphere of my life. Conversely, since I often play online games with friends, this would allow me to reconnect with them. If you find that your child is playing too much, discuss it with them and find solutions together. From experience, when the tags are made in collaboration with the young person, and not by taxation, it creates much less friction.
Marc: Do you have any other tips for parents who don’t know a video game?
François: For those with children old enough to go and download the video games they prefer themselves, the first thing to do, in my opinion, would be to sit down with their youngster, and ask him to explain to you the game he is playing and what is going on. People like to talk about their passion, this is also true for video game lovers. Then you can ask him to explain other games, or other facets of the environment. The key word here would be to “interest” you in what it does.
Marc: What are you playing right now? And do you recommend the titles in question?
François: When I have big days, I can start part of a single-player game, which can therefore be put on pause, and take breaks by doing one mission at a time. For example, this lends itself well with games like Civilization VI where you can set yourself a limit of tricks to play. Obviously, it takes discipline not to exceed the number of laps or the number of missions we said to ourselves.
In a gang, I will play mainly first-person shooters: Valorant, Rainbow Six Siege (R6) or Overwatch. Yes I recommend them, but some titles, like R6, are intended for an informed public.
Do you have any games to recommend for the kids? and for teenagers?
Haha, I would recommend going to Écran Partagé instead, which is a great resource for that. Otherwise, games like Minecraft and Roblox are interesting. In a very summary way, we could compare these games with a LEGO game (LEGO Undercover sheet here), but with an exponential number of possibilities and which can be played by several on the Internet. For kids, LEGO Harry Potter games are co-op games that I’ve already played with my 7-year-old daughter and she enjoyed.
François, on which social networks can we find you? Do you have any creations, sites to promote?
It’s all on my website, Leonin.ca. Alternatively, people can also contact me on LinkedIn or Facebook.
François, thank you very much for your time and advice.
It’s a pleasure!
