So, Like millions of others, I have thought about getting into the video game industry. I don't really plan to make a career of it as I will have other options, but I thought it would be interesting to work in it for awhile and see where it goes. I know how lots of people say it's terrible. That it's long hours for little pay, but I'm in school right now and it's long hours and I'm paying them, so it's not like a downgrade in quality of life for me. I'm in the unique position of getting a masters degree in architecture, and I figured that I would love to be a concept artist for environments/levels and maybe even characters. This of course was sparked by my intense love for recent trends in gaming which have pushed the envelope in terms of cinema, emotional engagement, and writing/narrative. I truly believe that games are starting to mature into a serious cultural-art form and that as such, my formal training as an architect will perhaps serve games well. I still have a couple years to finish off my masters, but I'm wondering if there is anything I should look into. I've thought about taking a year at a game-dev school after, but frankly, they're expensive, and I've had about enough school already. Training as an architect will inevitably expose me to 3d modelling software (Rhino, Max, and Maya are often used and available at my school). In the end, if what a gaming company needs is someone who can conceptualize space, the only extra bonus-up I'll need is to learn about the technical side of things, like memory budgets and optimization etc. Any ideas?
self teach, its the only real way, get a proper 3ds book and grind it from start to finish and experiance of using max for architechture is a bonus.
The games design business is incredibly competetive and growingly so; it's not really something to aspire to on a whim. Personally I'd love to work on some indie games myself but these hardly ever get completed and don't produce much income. Games design degrees do seem to look good on your CV but my impression is that at the end of the day all that matters is experience and the connections you make. A lot of people are self taught. I don't have any real experience of the industry but this is the impression I get from people I know within the industry. If that doesn't work out you can create assets for my "project".
My impression is that game degrees show a level of dedication, but they in themselves really don't do much. There doesn't seem to be a very standardized program or accreditation board set in place. I agree though, it's all about connections and personal portfolio. I was just wondering about the worth of a school program. From reading the sites of places like Full Sail and Gnomon, they charge about as much as an Ivy League university and it just seems like a technical/polytechnical-college except with a slightly more focused stance on gaming and entertainment. Other than software, which can be learned, and the obvious connections necessary, any other ideas? I suppose it is a whim that I want to get into game design, but it's also an extension of what I've always wanted to do. I just see virtual environmental design as another medium of architectural expression.
I can give you the perspective of me (a games buyer for a major retailer). Everyone in the industry works obscene hours, I finished a conference call with a publisher at 7.30pm and got back through my front door at 9pm. But its the way it works, with so many new releases and stores to manage it takes time. But we work hard, play hard. Guitar Hero 6 launch party tomorrow... whoop. If you're serious about joining a developer/publisher drop me a PM and i'll see if anyone's got any more information. I'll ask about views on "gaming courses" etc for you
So I started looking at some game-dev programs and I'm wondering how useful they are. I suppose they are offered by technical schools so they provide a great deal of practical training, but they are all so expensive. At $30k a year, they make my masters degree look like a damn steal. I suppose the Vancouver Film School looks promising. A one-year program and their alumni seem to be working in the places I want to be. Yet, I'm already spending lots on my masters and I don't think I could spend another $35k CAD, even just for one year.
