Creativity, the Talent Myth and Craft

Everyone can be creative to some extent. The world isn’t 90% made up of Emmet from The Lego Movie (although I for one thought the double-decker sofa was a great idea). What makes especially creative people stand out is their ability to demonstrate their skills that they have built off their talent.

There has always been some debate as to the overall effects of natural talent on skill. I’ve seen that most people at a certain skill level will, when asked, respond that skill has nothing to do with anything, that it’s all practice, practice, practice. But really, the interest someone has in a particular creative outlet is going to inevitably be enhanced by their natural affinity for it. In education, people tend to shy away from less “academic” subjects because we think there are no jobs in the creative sector, but creative fields are incredibly important. “Creativity is as important as literacy”, says Ken Robinson in his talk about creativity and education, and “If you’re not prepared to be wrong, you’ll never come up with something original”. This is one way the rigid structure of education can even have a negative impact- creativity is hard to learn, but easy to discourage.

"All children are artists. The problem is to remain an artist once he grows up"- Pablo Picasso

Personally I think that in lower levels of education when it comes to art there is often one of two problems- the curriculum either focuses on skill without creativity or creativity without skill. To become a good designer you need both, so those with a talent for it who are inevitably more likely to gain knowledge in their own time are going to get a head start for when education becomes more relevant at higher levels. Of course people who are very driven individuals will also be able to achieve this even from starting at a low level of skill, but really being motivated is a talent in itself.

In the games industry, creativity is important for almost every aspect of development. However, the amount of creativity a position will utilise can sometimes be quite small, especially in large companies and more subordinate positions.  A lot of the time you will be given a brief that is extremely strict and allows for little creative input. Of course having too little guidance on a project is generally bad since it can be hard to find a starting point, and can even start to cause worry about being wrong which of course ends up actually hampering creativity. But for creative types being too confined by a brief can get frustrating, and some may find this difficult.

Creativity is most important in making elements of games individual and iconic when compared to similar titles. This goes for all elements- gameplay, visuals, or story. Consumers have little reason to take notice of a game if it doesn’t bring something new to the table or have some kind of individual hook to it. Everyone recognises TF2’s art style, everyone remembers Mass Effect’s dialog wheel etc. While it is true that gameplay concepts thought of as innovations can backfire and ruin games, the risk can be worth it. It only becomes a problem when developers forget why elements that have become staple work the way they do.

As for my own creativity, when I was younger I was told often that I had talent to encourage me but of course now everything is all about skill. Plus I now have to branch out from simply drawing and develop more skills that complement each other in the industry such as 3D. My affinity for art as a child has boosted my skill level, but now it all comes down to hard graft if I want to bring these skills up to a level that is useful in the industry.