Game Design Careers

Often when one thinks of a career in game design the direction of thought goes to creating  complex 3D games.  However with the incredible popularity of smart phones and tablet computers there has been a huge resurgence in the demand for simple games.  Consumers are constantly hungry for new and fun game apps which means more opportunities are opening up for those pursuing a career in game design.
Apps today can be either 3D or 2D, game play can be very basic or more involved.  There is plenty of market for both.  Opportunity abounds so don’t neglect this large and lucrative area of game design.

Often when we think of game design careers we imagine ourselves working for some large mega game design firm.  Offices, employees, time clocks… the whole nine yards.  More and more however, people are choosing to leave the confines of cubicles and launching out on their own as independent game developers.

There are many advantages to becoming an independent game designer.  Most obvious perhaps is the freedom from bosses and the corporately structured work environment.  As an independent you can work when you want, where you want and wear whatever you want.  Going independent allows you the creative freedom that may be stifled by the ‘powers that be’ in a traditional workplace.  Nor will you be confined to a particular game design project or specific design function.  No longer will you be limited to some cookie cutter job description or relegated to a dark corner if you happen to ‘color outside the lines’.

Of course with freedom comes responsibility.  No longer will you be able to pass an unpleasant task onto someone else at the next desk (although you may choose to outsource).  No longer will you get a regular paycheck and a benefits package.  And it will take a fair amount of discipline to remain focused and productive, as well as knowing when to step away from it for a break.  But for those who long to be on their own and out from under the thumb of a supervisor the trade off is worth it.

Freedom is the name of the game for “indies” and if you have the entrepreneurial spirit and the ability to multi-task operating your own game development business from home might be perfect for you.

You might have dreamed of game design career with a  top game development firm but become discouraged when you’ve considered the competition for such jobs.  There’s no doubt that game design jobs can play hard to get but there are certain things you can do to stack the deck in your favor while preparing your career.

The cornerstone of your game design career is a quality education.  Even though a diploma or degree doesn’t necessarily guarantee a game design job it can help you get your foot in the door.  Depending upon your goals and the the companies you plan to apply for work with, the choice of schools can make all the difference for you.  Certain game design colleges carry more weight with certain companies than other.  This can be due to a variety of reasons.   Sometimes a game firm is more familiar with, and trusting of a specific game design school in their region.  Other times decisions are based upon a potential employer’s past experience with their degreed employees.  Many times game development companies have found one or two particular game design colleges that seem to excel in a type of training they particularly value.  If you have a particular company you want to work for, try calling their human resources department and asking what schools they recommend.

Experience will help you clinche the job you want.  Make sure you work at building a portfolio of all the projects you work on at game design school and also do the extra effort to create a few side projects on your own.  Compile a virtual notebook of your work to show potential employers.  If your school offers internship opportunities or a work-study program in the game design field don’t pass it up.  Such jobs will give you some of the ‘real world’ experience companies crave (and often demand).  If no such opportunities are available you might want to consider developing your own mini-game as an independent game developer.  Not only will this provide you with some proof of experience but will also give you something tangible you can actually hand to a prospective employer on a disk.

A game design career might be a little tough to break into but do the things I mentioned above and you will be head and shoulders above others.

One of the most common questions one tends to ask when considering a game design career is how much various jobs pay.  As you know within the pages of this website average game design salaries are given for some of the careers available in the industry.  We have done our best to give an overall average.  However salaries vary greatly by geographical region.

For instance, according to the April issue of Game Developer Magazine (excellent magazine) the average annual salary for a game programmer in the United States is around $85,000 whereas in Canada the same job pays the USD equivalent of just over $74,000 and in Europe the job pays just $48,000.  That’s quite a difference isn’t it?

Even within the United States game design salaries are quite different from one part of the country to the other.  The south pays the least with the average game design salary being around $64K but the same job out west pays around $85K.  So you might conclude the western United States is best for game design jobs.  For the highest pay that certainly has been true.

However before you head west for the great video game designer gold rush there are a few things you should consider.  First, the cost of living is much lower down south than is is out west.  Housing alone can cost you much less for sure, not to mention the many other necessities of daily life.  Next you might want to think about your lifestyle.  Climate is much different in say, the northeast than it is out west.  You might love the changing seasons, wetlands, winter activities.  Perhaps you would enjoy the fast pace and city lights of New York or you might instead prefer the beauty and warmth of the gulf coast.

Nonetheless, many have found the western US to be a great place to work and live.  You might just find for you the west really is best.

One of the best ways to establish a career in the video game design industry is through learning game programming.  Many of the best jobs available in game design are programming oriented.  Whether you would like to specialize in game level design, animation, interface design or even sound engineering, programming education will go a long way to help you get one of those jobs and serve you well once on the job.  There’s no question that learning programming can be an intense, and even difficult process the career rewards make the work worth it.

Often when people think about game design careers they think of things like game programming, game art or animation.  But there is one career that is absolutely essential for the creation of a successful video game-  the job of Game Sound Designer.  Also referred to as audio developers or sound engineers these are the people responsible for all the music and sounds you hear while playing a video game.  Though many gamers aren’t even aware of it the audio portion of a game plays a huge role in the immersitivity value of a game.  Sounds must be realistic and believable.  Music must be precisely matched to every scene and sequence of the game.  While most game sound designers work with the music composers and sound effects technicians other produce their own musical compositions and sounds.  Many game sound designers work independently from their own studios.  The average salary for game sound designers with 3 years or more of experience is over $80,000!  If you have a passion for working with music and sound effects and love gaming or movies becoming a career as a Game Sound Designer might just be perfect for you.

If you are planning to pursue a game design career it is essential that you first put together a plan for your education.  It is rare to break into game development without a diploma or degree from one of the many game design schools available.  Often the larger the game development company you are applying for, the more necessary your education come from one of the more prestigious game design colleges.  However if you are applying to a smaller game design firm the extent of your education and the quality of your portfolio may well trump the name of the game design school you received your training from.

A good place to start is to contact the game design schools you are considering to find out what they do to prepare you for job seeking as well as obtain a list of some of the game design companies their graduates are employed with.  Frequently schools will have a job placement department or career coordinator that assists graduates with finding work in their field.  Keep in mind that some game design schools will be better known for their training in certain disciplines over others.  One school may be most respected for their game programming training while another better known for their game art or  animation degree.  Therefore you should consider your planned course of study when investigating your education options.

Finally, you may want to consider contacting the human resource departments of the game development companies you hope to eventually obtain employment with.  Tell them the type of game design career you plan to pursue and ask them which game design schools they would recommend.  While on the telephone with them also ask about internship opportunities within their firm.  Every bit of information you can gather will help you make better decisions as you plan your education and ultimately your future in game design.

One of the more sought after jobs in game development is that of Video Game Tester, also known as Quality Assurance Tester. Many avid gamers imagine game testing to be a dream job since it involves the actual playing of video games. The reality however is turnover among game testers is very high. Some quit because they believe the job will be all fun and games but quickly discover that playing a game over and over again, documenting every possible problem and filing endless reports is a whole lot less pleasant than they imagined. Others move on to other things using the position of Video Game Tester as a ‘stepping-stone’ to another game design career opportunity. There are some however, who become professional Video Game Testers and perhaps even rise to a supervisory game tester position. When you consider that starting full time video game testers can earn as much as $30,000 USD a year and some experienced video game tester supervisors are making over $65,000 it is not a bad paying career to pursue. If you want a job as a video game tester you had better be prepared to work hard at finding one. Since the job of video game tester is one of the few game design career options that doesn’t necessarily require a game design degree it is not unusual for large crowds of people to apply for positions when they are posted.

In today’s economy a good paying  job might seem impossible to find but the reality is that game design careers are available… and the game development  industry pays very well.  Just take a look at the video game design job description pages in this website and you will find some very good salaries being paid out.  Even the lesser paying job of full time of Video Game Tester can pay as much $30,000 a year to start.  Positions in Game Art & Animation have been reported to start out as high as $45,000 and some Video Game Programmers and Game Sound Designers have been hired at nearly $60,000!  Of course not every game development company will start you out at these wages but keep in mind that your salary will increase with your education, experience and skill level.  No matter how you look at it a career in game design is not a bad way to make a decent living.

Not all that long ago if you wanted to get a job with a video game design firm your education options would have been pretty much limited to degrees in computer programming or graphic arts.  Specific training in game programming, game art and design, or video game development was hard to come by.  Nowadays however there are a number of universities, tech schools and even specialized game design colleges that offer a variety of game design degrees.  Courses now being offered are designed to give you the precise training you need to be a part of the game designing industry.  Many game design schools will help you construct a portfolio of your work to show prospective employers.  The advantage of such specialized training and preparation cannot be overstated.  Many schools have even constructed programs where you can earn game design degrees online.

Training for a game design career has never been better… or more available.  More and more opportunities are opening up for those who are properly educated and prepared.  Visit the education pages of this site for a list of top video game design schools and the degrees they offer.  Check them out and begin your journey for your career in game design.