^^^The 10.0 system didn't reward for creativity either. In other words they didn't give one girl an 8.9 and one a 9.8 because they thought the latter was more creative than the former (at least they weren't supposed to). Every routine (well, there were a few differences in vault start values) under the old system started at a 10 assuming the gymnast performed all the required elements and then they deducted for "mistakes" or execution errors.
That led to gymnasts or their coaches "playing" the code of points (which are the elements a gymnast has to perform to value it at a 10.0) and often having them do several easy things that added up to a 10 but would get them fewer deductions rather than risking difficult elements that wouldn't/couldn't increase the value but would probably lead to higher deductions (this is still an issue at the lower levels which still use a 10 scoring value).
The new system does reward for trying riskier and more difficult moves. What happens however (and this is the creative element) is that in order to pack in that difficulty and get the first score up as high as possible, the artistry element often suffers. That shows up on the beam and floor.
Unless something changes dramatically, you will be disappointed when you see the Romanians. They've suffered a huge fall from grace, and aren't even close to their glory days, but they have returned to their old coach, so I'll be anxious to see how much that's helped. The Russians have improved since the last Olympics actually...the Chinese will be good. They' also probably be 8.
