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Hmm, I wasn't aware that you couldn't get a business development job in the video game industry right out of college. I am graduating in two weeks and was just starting to look for marketing jobs in the industry, with the intent of learning how to develop games in my free time. Would you goons recommend I try to get a marketing job somewhere else then? The tech industry maybe? I live in Silicon Valley.
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Jun 1, 2011 23:34
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Shalinor you are the only one who ever replies to me... :P But I'm so down to do this! Maybe it will help distract me from the depressing fact that I won't be marketing games straight out of college...
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Jun 2, 2011 01:17
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Carfax Report posted:let's talk about marketing. Thank you very much for the reply, that is really encouraging to hear! I have actually been wondering about this for a while now. I am an economics major who wants to be a game developer, but I don't have any of the skills right now, so I am more interested in marketing than BD anyway, because of the (potential) collaboration with the game developers. I am thinking that a good plan would be for me to get some experience on the marketing side (preferably studio, since it seems like one is closer to the actual game production in a studio environment), while slowly building up my game development skills on the side, so that I will have contacts and experience within the industry by the time I decide to transition over to game development. Does that sound like a good/feasible long-term plan?
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Jun 2, 2011 06:24
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Hey everyone, I am checking in again to get your opinion on a career choice I am trying to make. My main goal in life at this point in time is to become a video game designer, however, I graduated this spring with a degree in Economics and no design/programming experience, so I definitely don't have the training to make this dream a reality and become a video game designer right now. When I graduated from college in June and was trying to figure out how to obtain those skills, I considered two options: 1) Enroll at another college that offers a game design major and pursue that as a second major (UCSC, USC, Drexel, ect.) 2) Start a career in Marketing, then learn game design skills on my own. I felt and still feel confident that I can learn how to design games without a formal education in the subject, given a year or two of dedicated studying on my own. With this in mind, I picked option 2, figuring that once I had a stable job I would have time to pick up game design skills. However, I haven't been able to land a marketing job in the last three months and am now reconsidering my decision. Would it be smarter for me to take out some college loans, get a part-time job, and head back to school for another two (or three?) years? Goon designers, do you think it's possible for someone working a marketing job to pick up game design skills in a reasonable amount of time? Or would a formal education (and atmosphere in which one is surrounded by like-minded people) be a better option? This decision is causing me a lot of stress, so thanks for your input. Please let me know if there is any other information that would make this easier to answer.
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Sep 27, 2011 01:55
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Shalinor posted:Game design isn't a skill that is much use in isolation, and isn't so much a skill as an instinct you develop over time and experience. You need a solid skill to back it up that gives you value beyond "I have ideas!", and usually that would be programming or art. An artistic background gives you the ability to sell your ideas visually, and a technical background sets you up well for prototyping. Shalinor, you rock, thanks for replying to my post (for the second time!). This makes so much sense to me. However, I am curious what you would think about a technical program like UCSC's, which is a combination of game design and computer science. Would that be a worthwhile time investment for someone interested in making games? As for me, would you recommend continuing trying to get a job in something like marketing while teaching myself how to make games on the side? Are there quicker ways to get a job making games for someone in my position? Thanks for your continued feedback, it has been really helpful!
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Sep 27, 2011 02:49
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Cool, you guys are awesome. I'll definitely try aas Bandit's plan of spending some time applying to jobs and some working on my game creation skills— right now I am spending all my time trying to get a marketing job, and it's causing me a lot of stress. I think learning to make games will be a good way to remind myself of my goals and WHY I am applying to marketing jobs... so that I can eventually defect and join you guys  As for leveraging my economics education, that's excellent advice. Maybe I'll look for something more analytical than marketing, or seek out an analytical position within marketing. It would be great to get an economics job within the game industry, but frankly I don't think I'll be able to do that with just an undergraduate education. If I were to supplement that with some years of analytical experience, maybe that would help my odds. Good thinking.
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Sep 27, 2011 04:23
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Shalinor posted:Definitely focus on the game creation part, not the design part. You need to show competence with toolsets, finished projects - not just paper designs. Which is ultimately what I meant, with my overly harsh reply... focus on applied skills, not theory. Have a portfolio full of evidence that if someone sits you down with a UE3, a Unity, a <whatever>, that you can start cranking out cool game design prototypes / levels / fun stuff ASAP. Good to know about the "game design" schools. I think I'm going to continue muddling along and trying to get a job while learning the basics of game creation. As for learning how to make decent quality games, is there some resource that lists the prerequisite skills? What would be a good jumping-off point? Thanks again Shalinor (and everyone else) for your replies- they are helping me immensely.
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Sep 28, 2011 04:00
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cgeq posted:Anyway, what exactly do you mean by "decent quality games"? As in well made art assets and smooth running/non-buggy code or in terms of the gameplay? Probably all of that stuff. Basically whatever would be required for me to submit in a portfolio that will help my chances of getting a job designing game levels, combat systems, ect.... you know, "video game designer" stuff. Interesting take on game design schools as well, it seems that the predominant sentiment in this thread is something along the lines of "they can be a good use of time, if you find one that isn't poo poo and teaches you to specialize in something desirable."
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Sep 28, 2011 22:03
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