career change time
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- bull
ok, I'm now bored of designing for the web. I want to get into games. Anyone got any good pointers; companies, skills, blah blah blah?
Thanks in advance
- shutdown0
I heard Eidos hire and fire quicker than you can say I'd shag Lara Croft
- mitsu0
are you interested in a particular area of game dev? do you have any game-related dev experience? ever done a game mod?
- bull0
nope, nope, and nope.
I'm just itching to get my teeth into something really meaty and complex; games seem to be the way to go.
I'm at step one, here. Just need some direction.
- JazX0
take Software Engineering classes and learn hard core programming for games or start learning 3D packages such as Maya, Lightwave, 3D Max, SoftImage 3D etc, etc. ;)
- JazX0
obviously, there is a front-end and back-end way to think about it :)
- mitsu0
ok, are you into video games at least? :)
the very first step would be to find out what you would want to do. game modding is a good way to find this out. there are sites all over about this and you can get on as an artist doing texture maps, modeling, etc. ever played counter-strike? it was a half life mod that got the modders jobs at valve. they are considered gods in the industry, yet just a few years ago they were just a bunch of guys who liked modding games..
if you don't really have a love for games, you're going to have some difficulty getting into the industry as there is some pretty tough competition out there.
- mirola0
games for the web or pc/play station or what?
- mirola0
if you want to do flash/diector games and you're in london drop me a line on i know of two places that are looking for such a person.
- godot0
mitsu, are you in the games industry or something? just wondering coz u always have insightful comments to make about videogames e.g. half life 2 source getting nicked or, um, what the best console is.
peace
- mitsu0
thanks, actually i do my own game development. and i have been following the industry since atari and have had the great opportunity to meet several people w/in the industry.
- bull0
Been looking at jobs in the industry, and would love to get involved in the concept/ game design area, or charater development.
Love gaming, don't do much at the mo, as my current job is hellish on the hours and pressure, woulkd love to be working for ps, xbox platforms
- JazX0
in speaking with my bosses, university software engineering professors, they said the market for game programmers is slim. Go front end. :)
- bull0
cool. all good, keep it coming.
- JazX0
I don't know myself, but I trust them because they are very involved with corporate sponsorhip ($) and such for this SE program.
- mitsu0
ok, well the good thing for you is that for that type of position, you don't need much game-related experience... that bad thing is, neither does your competition, so you've got to really be good.
i'd approach this two ways. assuming you don't already know anyone in the industry, first, get active on game dev forums. people know people and you might get lucky and find some opportunities that way. it happens here all the time.
second, and most important, put together a strong portfolio showcasing work that might lend itself well in the gaming field. comic book art, sketches, concept art, whatever you have. you should do some research and find out what companies you would most like to work for and find out who the lead artists are. email them with scans of your work, or links to your portfolio. i've heard of people with no industry experience getting art-related jobs at game companies just becuase of their outstanding work, so it's worth your time!
- bull0
You are the kings of everything
Thanks