Comments on: Become a Video Game Designer: Everything You Need to Know Part 1

By: military scholarships

military scholarships — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 19:10:08 +0000

Albert Einstein: It is a miracle that curiosity survives formal education.

By: Shakaboob

Shakaboob — Thu, 31 Dec 2009 04:41:52 +0000

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By: Guy Gibson

Guy Gibson — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 21:39:54 +0000

I really appreciate your article. I know that there is nothing more I’d rather do than work in the video game industry, even if it means working from the bottom up at a studio. One question for you, I live in Texas, and degrees in game and art focused areas are hard to find and at the few places they are offered they are around 80k. I have found a few places offering associates degrees that are affordable for me (the degrees are called “Digital Media and Design, and “Game Design”) but I wonder if an associates degree, passion and a good work ethic would be enough to get my foot in the door, or should I get an online Bachelor’s in Game Design from a school like Westwood or ITT tech. So the real question is, would an Associates degree in digital media and design or game design be adequate for a starting position or would it be more beneficial to get a Bachelor’s and if so, Would and online school like Westwood or ITT tech be acceptable or would an employer look down upon the degree, and if it is acceptable which online school could you reccomend?

Again, you have no idea how much this is appreciated, thank you.

By: Jessie Broxterman

Jessie Broxterman — Sun, 09 Aug 2009 14:53:29 +0000

Fantastic article, easily the most helpful information I’ve found so far, and I can’t tell you how much I appreciate your thoroughness. A couple questions I was hoping you could help me with:

1.) Are there gaming companies you would recommend, or one’s you’d strongly avoid? Personally I’m looking at PC based MMO’s, though I enjoy FPS’s as well and feel the gaming industry is getting close to developing something that successfully combines the two.

2.) In terms of a degree, are there any schools that seem to have a “renown” factor when it comes to producing / training game designers? Or, perhaps, could you recommend any schools or universities?

Again, thank you for all your help.

By: Coty

Coty — Fri, 08 May 2009 08:12:01 +0000

WOW, Tony i feel stupid on part 2 i left a comment and put Justin because i read justins comment that had that stuck in my head sorry hehe.

By: Tony Huynh

Tony Huynh — Thu, 12 Mar 2009 03:53:00 +0000

Hey Jim,
Thanks for the compliments. Blizzard is a unique company. They have a history of hiring hardcore theorycrafters of games in the same genre that they are working on. For instance Rob Pardo and Jeff Kaplan of Blizzard can trace their origins back to the Everquest guild Legacy of Steel.

It is never too late for a career change. If you make the decision to make the change, go all the way. Don’t half-ass it. Start talking with your friend and ask him how he did it. Play RTS games of all types and analyze them, write down what you are seeing, start learning the tools that come with the games and begin to make your own maps. Build out your portfolio.

Good luck!

By: Jim

Jim — Thu, 12 Mar 2009 03:13:11 +0000

Great site, just when I was thinking if I could work as a game designer like my friend who works as a designer in blizz for Sc2. But he started off playing at professional level SC and went into balancing then finally design.

However, I am probably only half the professional player he is. Do I have hope for the career change ?!

By: Tony Huynh

Tony Huynh — Sat, 03 Jan 2009 18:22:02 +0000

Good luck Justin. I’ve found it to be a rewarding career path. To answer your question regarding the difference between game developers and game designers is that the term “game developer” encompasses all video game disciplines, while the term “game designer” only covers the designer discipline. For example, a developer can be any one from the animation, artist, programmer or design discipline. The term “game designer” only refers to a designer. To sum it up, “Game developer” is just a broader term. Hope that made sense

By: Justin

Justin — Sat, 03 Jan 2009 05:13:56 +0000

Hello! I am still in high school, but I look forward to go to college and learn a lot about game developing and designing. What is the difference between game developing and game designing?

By: Call of Duty: World at War Through the Eyes of a Game Designer at LimitlessUnits.com

Sat, 06 Dec 2008 16:34:33 +0000

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