path to game design

[raiderfan4eva]

after reading several articles on this site its come to my attention that it is obviously very difficult to become a lead designer or a designer in the gaming industry right off the bat. After college, what steps or positions should be filled to satisfy the needs of those who are in need of game designers? does working at a gamestop or EB games and what not count as some sort of experience? how do you get into conferences and conventions such as E3 and GDC? Is there anything i should learn or try and work on, in high school, that will help me acquire the tools and knowledge i need to succeed in the gaming industry? just for reference ( and im asking for opinions not facts) does being a game designer programmer and what not satisfy your lifestyle needs? would you have taken another path if you could? how hard is it to get into the line of work with major companies such as 2k, EA, Ubisoft, Bioware and what not>?

thankz for tha help

[yaustar]

after reading several articles on this site its come to my attention that it is obviously very difficult to become a lead designer or a designer in the gaming industry right off the bat.

For someone who has just graduated with no industry experience, yes it is very difficult (some would say next to impossible) to go into a Designer role. It IS impossible to get into a Lead Designer role straight off the bat.

After college, what steps or positions should be filled to satisfy the needs of those who are in need of game designers?

Read: http://www.sloperama.com/advice.html

does working at a gamestop or EB games and what not count as some sort of experience?

Some sort of experience, yes. Some of sort of Games Industry experience, no.

how do you get into conferences and conventions such as E3 and GDC?

E3 is for press and industry only.
GDC is open to the public. Just buy a ticket and go.

Is there anything i should learn or try and work on, in high school, that will help me acquire the tools and knowledge i need to succeed in the gaming industry?

Read: http://www.sloperama.com/advice/lesson12.htm

just for reference ( and im asking for opinions not facts) does being a game designer programmer and what not satisfy your lifestyle needs?

Yes.

would you have taken another path if you could?

Different path to my current job? Possibly.

how hard is it to get into the line of work with major companies such as 2k, EA, Ubisoft, Bioware and what not>?

No more difficult then any other company. Probably easier because the larger companies are willing to invest in graduates more then smaller ones.

[raiderfan4eva]

E3 is for press and industry only.

ahh i see so E3 is for press and industry only, is this an event that you need to get invited too or something? does being in design (for video games) involve alot of math?

For someone who has just graduated with no industry experience, yes it is very difficult (some would say next to impossible) to go into a Designer role. It IS impossible to get into a Lead Designer role straight off the bat.

so what roll should i invest my time in that will count as sufficient game industry experience?

[yaustar]

Originally Posted by raiderfan4eva

ahh i see so E3 is for press and industry only, is this an event that you need to get invited too or something?

After E3 downsized a couple of years ago, it may be invite only. Not really sure.

does being in design (for video games) involve alot of math?

Not really. Although that would depend on the game. Something like a football manager simulation may do due to stats and formulas. Nothing overly advanced though.

so what roll should i invest my time in that will count as sufficient game industry experience?

The most common are QA and Level Editing/Scripting. Both of which are entry level. From there, you can attempt to apply to a Game Designer role which may lead to a Lead Designer role once you have several games under your belt and several years of experience as a Game Designer.

[raiderfan4eva]

do major companies such as Microsoft, bungie or ubisoft offer like internship sort of things? if so how old must one be to apply? based on opinion what are the top 5 colleges that you would personally attend for game design purposes?

sorry if im getting annoying yaustar lol

[yaustar]

Originally Posted by raiderfan4eva

do major companies such as Microsoft, bungie or ubisoft offer like internship sort of things?

Yes.

if so how old must one be to apply?

Mostly likely over 18 due to labour laws and insurance.

based on opinion what are the top 5 colleges that you would personally attend for game design purposes?

Personally? None of them because I believe it is extremely hard to teach and probably only a couple of courses are actually any good. Also since Game Design is not an entry level role, what other job outside the industry can I do with a games design degree?

[raiderfan4eva]

ahh i feel yuh so what did you get your degree in ?

[yaustar]

BSc in Games Computing and an MSc in Games Programming.

Bear in mind that I am a games programmer and not a designer.

[raiderfan4eva]

None of them because I believe it is extremely hard to teach and probably only a couple of courses are actually any good.

what courses are you referring to? have you worked for any major game companies like bioware or bungie?

[yaustar]

If you looked at my blog or read my CV in my portfolio (links in my signature), you find who I currently work for.

As for the courses, note I said 'probably'. I have no hard proof of which game design courses are actually good. Personally, I would probably look at doing an English or Psychology degree and work on games design, level editing, game theory, etc in my own time if I was aiming for a Game Designer role.