What should my Major be?

[Billyjoeray]

Hey all,
I'm a first semester freshman at UC Berkeley and I'm still undeclared as far as majors go, but I was hoping to pursue a career in game design. What major would give me the skills and knowledge that would be most applicable to game desgin, because at UCB they don't really have anything that is explicitly for that path. I was thinking something like Anthro (because it's such a diverse major that deals with lot of topics, plus it's kind of interesting) or English. I would really rather not take computer science because it's not really my cup of tea and it doesn't really leave me a lot of room to diversify because it's a really intense major here at Berkeley. So, any thoughts would be welcome and thanks for your time.

[BorisK]

i would suggest 3D animation/modelling or a film/media studies module(it really makes coming up with stuff easier)

i DETEST programming lol, so im basically dodging all the programming modules

[Zooch]

English is definately a very acceptable major no matter what job you intend on pursuing.

English and Philosophy are the top two majors chosen by CEOs across the country, so businesses have to appreciate the weight of these two paths.

That doesn't mean you shouldn't explore options that interest you, though. The game design field is similar to many other fields in the fact that you aren't required to get a specific major in order to get a job. It isn't like being a doctor.

[Cod]

I believe English, History, or some other form of liberal arts would be the way to go because in those majors, you won't have to deal with too much math, programming, etc.. English is probably the route to go for you since you've already mentioned it as a possibility.

Don't forget, before you choose one way or the other, be sure to go and talk with advisors from the prospective department as well as current and former students from that department. Most schools keep a database of where their students got jobs after college as well. So that'd be something else to explore through your career center.

[IndianapolisSeo.com]

Well I would recommend computer design or graphic design if you want to get into designing games. If you are looking for an easier path maybe sociology or english. You could go into marketing, and have the business knowledge to market and sell your skills/products for gaming.

[BGiaime]

When you say "Game design", what exactly do you mean?

Systems design?
i.e. Conception to implementation of such nebulous terms as "Combat", or "Leveling".

Level design?
i.e. Placement of enemies, AI scripting, Pacing, encounter design.

Environment design?
i.e. Creating aesthetically pleasing, immersive environments for games via 3D modeling.

Character design?
i.e. Concept sketches / 3D models /animations for characters in games.

Or something else entirely?

These can all be called areas of "Game Design", but do not all benefit equally from training in the same areas.

[Siberianhusky89]

I could be wrong, but he may be referring to a Video Game Designer as in the people who work together to create the idea for a video game. I'm not sure if it has a specific name, but then again I could be wrong.

[Tetragrammaton]

Originally Posted by Siberianhusky89

I could be wrong, but he may be referring to a Video Game Designer as in the people who work together to create the idea for a video game. I'm not sure if it has a specific name, but then again I could be wrong.

Nobody just comes up with "the idea". There are people who write the story, or design the systems, or architect the levels, but nobody just comes up with ideas for games, if that's what you meant.

[Siberianhusky89]

Originally Posted by Tetragrammaton

Nobody just comes up with "the idea". There are people who write the story, or design the systems, or architect the levels, but nobody just comes up with ideas for games, if that's what you meant.

Not quite what I mean, allow me to interpret. I mean the guys who come up with the main concept for a game. Battle system, storyline, ect... Write it down, ect... They also have to deal with the advertising and such, they also must write the script for what they'd like applied for the game in an organized understandable manner. Designing for the game usually means that you create the idea of it, if someone was to make the system of the game, not the idea but the actual idea, and apply it to the game, that's the programmers job. They apply your ideas to the game. The designer makes up the idea and helps apply that idea, but they don't do it them selves. Heck, sometimes designers don't even know how to draw, so they draw the main idea of what they want and a better artist makes the finished product.

[Liz England]

Originally Posted by Siberianhusky89

Not quite what I mean, allow me to interpret. I mean the guys who come up with the main concept for a game. Battle system, storyline, ect... Write it down, ect...

You are talking about the person who writes the GDD - the Game Design Document - which contains the overall vision of the game and sets down the rules, systems, and mechanics.

There is no game designer position where all you do is write documentation. Writing a GDD is not a full-time position. You also have to do other things - like create game content.

They also have to deal with the advertising and such

The publisher does this, not the developer.

Designing for the game usually means that you create the idea of it, if someone was to make the system of the game, not the idea but the actual idea, and apply it to the game, that's the programmers job. They apply your ideas to the game. The designer makes up the idea and helps apply that idea, but they don't do it them selves.

You are correct in that programmers implement the game via code. You are incorrect to think that designers just sit around designing and tell other people to implement. Why would games have teams of designers if all they did was document and tell others what to do? Designers spend most of their time implementing the game through things like levels, missions, story writing, and balancing systems. There is a lot of work that goes into a game that is done outside of programming and art.