4 answers
Ramon
Student
Schaumburg, Illinois
2
Questions
Asked
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What are the steps I need to become a video game developer
Hi my name is Ramon I am a student at New Endeavors and I would like to learn more about becoming a video game developer
#video-games #games #tech
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4 answers
Jorge Chang
Engineering Manager
10
Answers
Sunnyvale, California
Updated
Jorge’s Answer
Take Math, Physics and Computer science classes in school.
Take coding classes especially ones related to gaming.
If you are into the arts side of video game, take computer illustration and animation classes.
Practice Practice Practice. Start building your own game. Depending on your experience level, there are many things you can try:
Beginner: https://scratch.mit.edu/
Intermediate: https://www.buildbox.com/, https://www.scirra.com/
Advanced / Professional: https://unity.com/, https://www.unrealengine.com/
Some classes to get you started: https://codakid.com/kids-online-coding-courses/3d-game-development-with-unreal/
Once you have built a few games and know you love it, you can start considering it as a career. Many game companies hire software engineers who have university degrees, although it's not a must-have, but if you don't, you have to have a very strong resume and portfolio. It also depends on what type of games you want to develop, and studios you want to join. Many studios write games using Unreal or Unity, which requires you to know C# or C++. For mobile games, you may need to know ObjectiveC or Swift for iPhone, and Java or Kotlin for Android.
Take coding classes especially ones related to gaming.
If you are into the arts side of video game, take computer illustration and animation classes.
Practice Practice Practice. Start building your own game. Depending on your experience level, there are many things you can try:
Beginner: https://scratch.mit.edu/
Intermediate: https://www.buildbox.com/, https://www.scirra.com/
Advanced / Professional: https://unity.com/, https://www.unrealengine.com/
Some classes to get you started: https://codakid.com/kids-online-coding-courses/3d-game-development-with-unreal/
Once you have built a few games and know you love it, you can start considering it as a career. Many game companies hire software engineers who have university degrees, although it's not a must-have, but if you don't, you have to have a very strong resume and portfolio. It also depends on what type of games you want to develop, and studios you want to join. Many studios write games using Unreal or Unity, which requires you to know C# or C++. For mobile games, you may need to know ObjectiveC or Swift for iPhone, and Java or Kotlin for Android.
Tim Dorais
Software Engineer
1
Answer
San Jose, California
Updated
Tim’s Answer
Ramon, that's fantastic! Games are such a booming art form and with the rise of indie and smaller studios, the field is more creative than ever! There are many different skills and professions surrounding making games, so the paths can vary quite bit, including some that end up with a person being the designer, producer, writer, and developer. Regardless of your choice, the first advice is to start making games. There have never been more tools freely available at your disposal then now. Some, like Stencyl, don't require any programming, but on the other end, you can use the tools that professional studios use, like Unity and Unreal. Start small and find out what you love doing, and what you are and are not interested in. It might be surprising, but you might find you like making different kinds of games than the ones you enjoy to play.
Since you mentioned being a video game developer, I'll focus on the engineering side of things. Learn to program. Java and Python are great languages to start with in general, and don't feel you have to commit to a single language. C++ is often used, but once you know how to write code in one language, it's easier to the learn the next. Getting a college degree in Computer Science is a great route, but not the only one. Another thing to keep in mind, you might find along the way that you enjoy programming itself. A lot of engineers start learning to program because they want to become game developers but find out they'd be happier just being software engineer and make games as a hobby on the side.
This is not meant to dissuade you, but the industry is very competitive and you could find yourself working longer hours, for less pay, on a project you may or may not be enthusiastic about. A lot of it depends on the studio you work for. The beauty about starting in this direction is that you develop skills that are useful for a good career, even if you decide to make games as a hobby. There isn't really a point you have to commit; game developers leave the industry, and other software engineers will get into games.
And with any other form of art, don't forget to live! Visit new places. Read up on subjects that interest you: history, philosophy, science, economics, religion. Invest in yourself and your personal life. Some of the best games can start by a person dissecting a philosophical theory, or being fascinated by city-planning. The more you enrich yourself and soak in all the things you find interesting, the more compelling material you'll come up with.
And good luck! Can't wait to see what you'll bring into this world!
Since you mentioned being a video game developer, I'll focus on the engineering side of things. Learn to program. Java and Python are great languages to start with in general, and don't feel you have to commit to a single language. C++ is often used, but once you know how to write code in one language, it's easier to the learn the next. Getting a college degree in Computer Science is a great route, but not the only one. Another thing to keep in mind, you might find along the way that you enjoy programming itself. A lot of engineers start learning to program because they want to become game developers but find out they'd be happier just being software engineer and make games as a hobby on the side.
This is not meant to dissuade you, but the industry is very competitive and you could find yourself working longer hours, for less pay, on a project you may or may not be enthusiastic about. A lot of it depends on the studio you work for. The beauty about starting in this direction is that you develop skills that are useful for a good career, even if you decide to make games as a hobby. There isn't really a point you have to commit; game developers leave the industry, and other software engineers will get into games.
And with any other form of art, don't forget to live! Visit new places. Read up on subjects that interest you: history, philosophy, science, economics, religion. Invest in yourself and your personal life. Some of the best games can start by a person dissecting a philosophical theory, or being fascinated by city-planning. The more you enrich yourself and soak in all the things you find interesting, the more compelling material you'll come up with.
And good luck! Can't wait to see what you'll bring into this world!
Ben Parks
Social Impact Sales
1
Answer
New York, New York
Updated
Ben’s Answer
I recommend thinking about this career path across four categories: game design (artwork), game engineering / development, storytelling (writing), and business (marketing, sales, etc.). Some colleges (like the one I attended, Miami University of Ohio) have a "Games + Simulation" major:
https://www.miamioh.edu/cca/academics/departments/etbd/academics/majors/games-simulation-major/index.html
The courses that you take will help you build a well-rounded understanding of the video game industry in addition to the technical skills required to develop games themselves.
Here are some additional resources to look into!
https://www.northeastern.edu/graduate/blog/building-video-game-design-development-career/
https://www.miamioh.edu/cca/academics/departments/etbd/academics/majors/games-simulation-major/index.html
The courses that you take will help you build a well-rounded understanding of the video game industry in addition to the technical skills required to develop games themselves.
Here are some additional resources to look into!
https://www.northeastern.edu/graduate/blog/building-video-game-design-development-career/
Susan Arcuri
Marketing
1
Answer
New York, New York
Updated
Susan’s Answer
There are a number of educational areas that lend itself to becoming a game developer. The main area is that of learning computer engineering/program. This requires a heavy emphasis on mathematics and science. In high school, we would suggest you take as many math and science classes as you can. If you are able there might be community "coding" camps - after school programs - online courses, etc., that you can attend that would give you the necessary foundation. College is almost a necessity on this as there are several programming languages that you will need to learn to land a job in this field.