Who am I?

A practitioner-researcher in Game studies, I’ve been involved at various levels in Canada’s videogame communities since 2002.

In 2015, I left my career as an officer in the Canadian Armed Forces to focus full-time on various esports-related projects. I’m a founding member of a multitude of organizations, including the Fédération québécoise de sports électroniques, the Fondation des Gardiens virtuels, and UQAM Gaming.

Since 2020, I’ve been more involved in the academic world, using my vast experience to enhance scientific research and the advancement of good videogame practices. n addition to my master’s degree at UQAM in communications, with a focus on video games and gamification, I’m a lecturer at UQTR in the esports microprogram, and for the École Supérieure de Commerce et d’Économie Numérique in a course on marketing project management for gamified applications.

I’m also a guest speaker at numerous conferences and symposiums.

François Savard

Current affiliations

Member of the Homo Ludens research group (UQAM)

The Homo Ludens research group focuses on the social, philosophical and semiotic aspects of play from a communicative perspective.

Website: https://homoludens.ca/

Member of the Canadian Game Studies Association (CGSA/ACÉJ)

The Canadian Game Studies Association (CGSA/ACÉJ) is an organization dedicated to the interdisciplinary study of digital games. Its main objective is to support the work of Canadian researchers, graduate students, artists, game designers, programmers, theorists and others working in this field.

Website: https://gamestudies.ca/

Member of the Association pour la Recherche et les Etudes Francophones sur l'Esport (AREFE)

Created in 2018, this research association brings together nearly thirty French-speaking researchers around the world who work to uncover new information about esports.

Website: https://arefesport.fr/

Associate member of the Esports Research Network

The Esports Research Network is a collaboration of researchers promoting interdisciplinary research into the emerging esports phenomenon. Esport is truly global and digital. It can therefore be used to study existing social problems and act as a foresight tool in the digitized world. Esports research can be seen as a laboratory of the future.

Furthermore, to understand esports, it is necessary to study in depth the social impact and evolution of esports, as well as the current and future role of esports in society. The objectives of the Esports Research Network are to acquire rigorous knowledge about esports, to foster the sustainable growth of esports, to shape the role of esports in society, and to translate this knowledge into cognition for the digitized world in which society evolves.

Website: https://esportsresearch.net/

Board member (Chairman), Virtual Guardian Foundation

The Virtual Guardian Foundation is a registered Canadian charity whose mission is to be a beacon on the Internet for people in distress, and to promote responsible digital use.

Webite: https://gardiensvirtuels.quebec/

Citizen member of the Association québécoise de prévention du suicide

The Association québécoise de prévention du suicide is involved in all aspects of suicide prevention in Quebec. A non-profit organization founded in 1986, AQPS now has some 200 members. Its mission is to mobilize all players, support communities, equip caregivers, raise public awareness and influence decision-makers to prevent suicide.

Website: https://aqps.info/

Partnerships

Web Hosting Canada

Web Hosting Canada is a Montreal-based web service provider that I use for all my different websites.

Nature of partnership: Only an affiliate code allowing me to reduce my web hosting costs.

Website: https://clients.whc.ca/aff.php?aff=1407

Régulus

Régulus takes charge of the accounting management of SMEs, advising and supporting entrepreneurs so that they can devote themselves fully to their raison d’être and prosper. I’ve been doing business with them for several years for my professional and personal accounting.

Nature of partnership: Exchange of courtesies

Website: https://reguluscompt.com/