Rather than the creativity of individuals, it is industry that propels the videogame medium. While the economic sector still has a hand in music and film, (evidenced by corporate entities like Hollywood & the Music Recording Industry) the degree of influence business has on videogame development is unparalleled.
To fully understand the issue, one must have at least a cursory knowledge of the game industry. In order to develop a videogame, a Game Developer must recieve a publishing deal with a Game Publisher. The Developer must then purchase a development kit, (usually for one of the consoles he plans to develop for). However, in order to get the publishing deal, the Developer must have a history of console developments. It's cyclical at best, and bureaucratic at worst. One can see the underlying trend without understanding the industry's nuances: videogame development is an insiders playing field, and the insiders are not artists but businessmen.
The Publisher is essentially at the top of the creative ladder. More often than not it is the Publisher who orchestrates and initiates a videogame's development. Game Producers are now an industry standard, but their main objective is far more executive than it is artistic. More detrimental still, the publisher commonly maintains creative control (to a variable degree). The result is that marketing interests, trends permeate the creative process. Unlike film, which has been largely liberated by filmmakers, videogame development is rarely overseen by an artist. The creative process is so diversified, so nebulous, and ultimately so corporate, that it lacks any significant auteurship.
The position that a videogame auteur would occupy is best defined as a videogame Director, (a title almost universally absent from western games). The videogame Director, held to the same standards as the auteur of film, the author of literature, or even the painter of paintings, is essential to forwarding videogames as an artistic medium.
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