At Affordance Studio, video games are more than just screens and consoles: they’re a space for exploring ideas, a megaphone for voices and a catalyst for change. Since 2014, Kim Berthiaume and her team have been pushing the limits of the medium, turning every project into an experience that provokes thought, educates and brings people together.
At Affordance, stories aren’t just for entertainment: they open minds, give a voice to those who too often go unheard and inspire new ways of creating and doing business. With every game, every partnership and every act of mentorship, the studio is building a future that’s more inclusive, collaborative and hopeful.
Impact above all
At Affordance Studio, every project begins with a deeply held conviction: that video games can be more than simple entertainment. They can be a space for reflection, a tool for cultural transmission and a powerful driver of human connection. For the studio’s co-founder Kim Berthiaume and her team, a game only has meaning when it tells a story that resonates, engages and gives a voice to those who are rarely heard. When they founded the company in 2014, their mission was clear: to put video games to work for education, awareness and social change.
It was in this spirit that Two Falls was born, their most ambitious project to date, developed under their Unreliable Narrators banner. After spending years creating entertaining, educational experiences for the Montréal Science Centre, Desjardins and urban garden initiatives, the studio felt the pull to create a universe of its own.
Through this game, Affordance Studio is showcasing the rich culture of Quebec and Canada and integrating Indigenous perspectives, while offering immersive and inclusive experiences. Working hand in hand with members of the community, they make sure authentic voices are heard and address themes rarely explored in video games.
Going into business at the right time
Kim’s path has been shaped by an unshakeable passion for interactive storytelling. Coming from the world of film, she naturally gravitated toward video games, attracted by the possibilities the medium offers for telling stories in different ways. But becoming an entrepreneur wasn’t something she had planned. It was more that the stars aligned: inspiring encounters, shared ambitions and the right environment.
In 2012, a recent graduate in game design, Kim was entering an industry experiencing a slowdown. But behind this apparent lull, it was also a moment when startups and entrepreneurial support programs were taking shape. Riding that momentum and surrounded by partners who shared her vision, she decided to go for it: founding a video game studio that can tell powerful stories and have a positive impact.
She sees entrepreneurship as largely a question of alignment: being at the right place, at the right time, with the right people — and, above all, persevering.
A team that makes a difference
Affordance Studio isn’t just a place or an abstract idea: it comes to life through its people. It has around 40 employees – split between creation and services – each contributing their own perspective, culture and experience. For them, designing a game isn’t just about entertainment; it’s about conveying a message, prompting reflection and connecting with as many players as possible.
This cultural, professional and human diversity is at the heart of their efforts. It shapes the stories they imagine and colours the messages they want to convey. In an industry often dominated by major studios with rigid hierarchies, Affordance Studio cultivates creative freedom and close collaboration within its teams. Everyone can make suggestions, experiment and contribute to the collective impact, with the conviction that the best stories are born from a plurality of voices.
Persevere, learn, advance
For Kim, every stage of entrepreneurship offers its own lessons: learning to persevere in the face of failure, identifying the right time to make a move and surrounding yourself with the right people. Her favourite quote sums up this philosophy perfectly: “Success means going from failure to failure without losing enthusiasm.” For her, never losing hope and continuing to believe in her project is essential for transforming challenges into concrete opportunities.
Her message to future entrepreneurs is clear: dare to take the leap. The world needs people motivated by the desire to have a positive impact. More than ever, we need positivity, hope and the belief that we can build a better future. You can’t give up. Believing in your path means finding a community that shares your vision. And this is one of the greatest challenges: networking, meeting people and making connections. Because, ultimately, it’s together that we can create a true movement.
A future driven by new voices
The studio is no longer defined solely by its own creations. With the upcoming launch of its Publishing division, it wants to support other studios and developers, help them firm up their ideas and bring their games to market.
Mentorship also plays a central role in their approach. Kim and her partners engage with young people who want to start their own studios, share best practices to avoid common mistakes and cultivate essential entrepreneurial instincts. This is even more meaningful in an industry as unique as video games: a sector in constant evolution, where developing a game often takes two years or more before a return on investment and where you always have to anticipate cultural and economic trends.
For Affordance Studio, the next step goes beyond producing its own games. Every creation, every partnership and every mentoring initiative helps build a movement, in which entrepreneurship and creativity work together for a more inclusive, diverse and inspiring future.
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Kim and her partners have been supported by Sylvie Gasana, Regional Director for Montréal. She believes that every encounter with an entrepreneur is above all a human experience: listening attentively, understanding the journey, anticipating challenges and offering the tools to advance. Because beyond financing, what matters is building strong relationships that give entrepreneurs the confidence to go further.
Thanks to the engagement of invaluable partners: Économie Québec, through its agent Investissement Québec, the Government of Canada, National Bank, the Business Development Bank of Canada (BDC), the Fonds de solidarité FTQ, and Fondaction, Evol has a large envelope to support, through conventional loans, businesses with inclusive, diversified ownership that generate positive social and environmental impacts in line with the UN’s sustainable development goals (SDG).