How to break into the video game industry: four essential pointers
Interested in a career in the video game industry? The following information will help you find out what positions are available and how to land a job in the business.
The gaming industry is still growing as technology advances and permeates more areas of our life. People of all ages today enjoy playing video games as a hobby all over the world. But it doesn't have to end up being simply a pastime. Learn how to make your passion your profession.
Are you prepared to discover how to enter the gaming industry? We'll learn about the gaming industry in this post, look at several gaming occupations, and talk about how to break into the video game industry.
What is the gaming industry?
Even if many of us like playing video games as a hobby, it's conceivable that you haven't thought about what happens in the background of the games you play. The gaming industry is a vast field with a wide variety of intriguing jobs and duties.
The industry goes far beyond the creation of games – there’s the graphics, music, development, design and much more. The gaming industry encompasses all of the roles involved in the world of gaming, from mobile to console.
We frequently see new games and new platforms to play on, making the industry a particularly dynamic one that is still expanding. With sites like Youtube and Twitch emerging as hubs for watching game-related material, the world of gaming has even expanded far beyond merely having fun.
Naturally, a space as unique as this is home to a wealth of creative opportunities, which can make for a fulfilling career. In our open step on careers in game development, Katherine Bidwell, founder of State of Play Games spoke about her experience. She said, “I could create worlds and they became real. I could take a player on an emotional connection and have a lot of fun with it. And I feel like the video games industry gave that to me.”
Job roles in the gaming industry
The gaming sector offers a wide variety of career opportunities. Let's look at a few of the employment opportunities in the gaming sector in the hopes that you'll find one that appeals to you.
Marketing roles in the gaming industry
To get involved in the gaming industry, you don’t necessarily have to have a hand in creating the games. Marketing is an essential part of the gaming industry, and is key to spreading awareness of available games and consoles. In our Explore and Understand the Gaming Industry course, you can learn all about the gaming landscape and how to engage a gamer audience.
Even within the marketing realm, there are an array of different roles to choose from. Explore our digital marketing courses to learn more about each of the different channels involved in marketing.
Game developer
Games wouldn’t at all be possible without the crucial work from game developers. But what is game development? What does a game developer do? With their knowledge of computer programming, game developers will code many aspects of the games they’re working on. Game developers transform ideas and concepts into playable material.
They frequently collaborate closely with the game designer and on sometimes create game elements themselves. On a variety of platforms and consoles, game creators truly bring ideas to life.
Get familiar with coding for games in our Introduction to Game Programming course. Throughout this 2 week course, you’ll discover the major concepts involved in game programming.
Game designer
For creative individuals with an interest in gaming, the role of a game designer could be ideal. Game designer roles vary between companies, but generally they’re responsible for creating ideas, gameplots and levels. Pretty much any aspect of a game will be imagined by a game designer – whether that be characters, backgrounds, plots and much more.
Become a game design expert with our Create Expressive Videogames course by UAL and the Institute of Coding. Here, you’ll learn the artistry and technique to create incredible video games. If character design is an area of interest, check out our video game character design course by Abertay University.
Gaming bug tester
There are numerous gears in the mechanism that is the gaming business, therefore not all of the roles inside it are what you may anticipate. A fascinating job is that of a game tester, who tests games to see if they have any bugs by playing them. Any bugs found by the game's bug testers will be reported to the developers so they can be fixed.
This position almost seems too good to be true for avid players. Who wouldn't want to be compensated for their gaming time? Given how interesting the field is, it can be challenging to find these positions due to strong demand.
Games animator
Another creative position in the gaming business is that of a games animator. The creation of any interactive components in games is the responsibility of a gaming animator. In essence, they ensure that characters, locations, and everything in between may move and be interacted with within a game.
A games animator will work very closely with the games designer, and there is often crossover between the roles. This role may require you to work on 2D animation or 3D animation, depending on the games you work with.
We discuss game animation in a little more detail in our How to get started in animation article.
Sound designer
If sound is your thing, a job as a sound designer can catch your eye. As you might have guessed, a sound designer is in charge of producing the music, sound effects, and soundtracks for video games. The sounds you record and edit as a sound designer must match the animation and, to the greatest extent feasible, fit the mood and subject of the game.
Become an expert on video games sound with our History of Video Game Music course. In this course, you’ll get the chance to explore sound within games from early arcade games to modern open-world adventures.
How to get a job in the gaming industry
You may be asking at this point how you may enter the dynamic field of the gaming industry. Do not worry; we will provide some advice for people who are unsure of how to break into the game industry.
There are a few skills and interests that will help you get a job in the gaming industry. Let's look at them first, and after that, we'll go over some advice for landing a job in the gaming sector.
Creativity
As you may have guessed, creativity is at the top of our desirable skills list. No matter which role you sit in within the gaming industry, it’s likely that a creative mindset will help you progress within your career. This is particularly true for the creativity based roles such as game designers and animators, but the industry as a whole is a very creative space.
Teamwork and communication
The ability to effectively work as a team is absolutely essential if you’re planning to work in the video game industry. You’ll need to feed back to other members and work very closely with different members throughout the game making process. Since it’s important for every aspect of the game to be synchronized, a game can only be made up to scratch if all team members cooperate and communicate effectively.
A passion for gaming
Even though it's not a need, if you're seeking to get into the gaming industry, having a passion for gaming will help you immensely. You'll gain from being around people who have a similar perspective because many others in the field share this desire. You'll also need to keep up with the latest trends and developments in a field that changes so often; if you're already passionate about gaming, chances are good that you are!
Technical skills
The precise platforms and technologies you'll need to be familiar with will be strongly influenced by the kind of career you decide to pursue. Within your chosen field of specification, you will undoubtedly need to pick up technical abilities. Before applying for positions, we advise developing some fundamental technical skills if you're eager to become engaged.
Game developers, for example, will need to learn appropriate languages to code games. As we learnt in our open step, the most common languages to code games are C# and C++.
Java is also frequently used within game development, particularly for mobile games. While Python is also used within game development, it’s less common. Get to grips with both of these languages in our software development with Python and Java course in collaboration with Github.
4 top tips for getting into the gaming industry
After learning more about the gaming industry and the talents that you may need, let's look through the top four advice for breaking into the field.
Attend a game jam!
Participating in a game jam is a fantastic way to get involved if you're interested in game creation. A game jam is an activity similar to a competition where teams collaborate to create a game in a given amount of time.
If you're trying to spark your creativity, game jams frequently feature prompts or themes, so this is a wonderful place to start! Just do a search for local game jams or, if you prefer, online ones.
Try your hand at 3D modelling
If your taste lies in the artistic and creative aspects of game creation, look no further. Getting to grips with 3D modelling will open many doors for you in your career and personal life. It’s a particularly useful skill to yield if you’re keen to get involved in virtual reality gaming.
Step into the world of VR game development with our Introduction to VR, Programming, Design and Unity course. Or, learn the basics of modelling in our Intro to 3D Animation using Blender course.
Make connections
Within the gaming industry, there are many like-minded individuals creating games of different styles and genres. Online forums and communities are a great way to connect with others in the industry and share tips. By connecting with others, you can learn about potential opportunities and share experiences.
There is a community for you to look for no matter what part of the gaming business you are interested in. If you're looking for a community in your niche, Reddit is a terrific place to start.
Upskill
Using your free time to upskill is one of the finest methods to land a job in the competitive game business. Online materials are readily available for learning the fundamentals of many various facets of the gaming industry.
Even watching streams of programming and development can help you understand how it works. The best approach to learn the necessary skills to thrive in the gaming industry is through online courses. We've compiled a concise list of highly regarded programs that relate to careers in the gaming sector.
- Data science in the games industry with University of Dundee
- Introduction to game programming with Abertay University
- Create expressive videogames with UAL Creative Computing Institute and Institute of Coding
- Introduction to indie games with UAL Creative Computing Institute and Institute of Coding
- Introduction to 3D animation using Blender with VR Voom
- A bit-by-bit history of video game music with Abertay University
- Explore and understand the gaming industry with D&AD
- Video game character design with Abertay University
Is the gaming industry worth pursuing?
You might be asking whether the industry is useful beyond the many people who are passionate about gaming as a hobby. Are there attractive employment opportunities in the gaming industry? What does the sector resemble?
When it comes down to it, a career in the gaming industry is unquestionably valuable. People who are interested in working in the sector are probably passionate about it, and for good reason. The game industry is fascinating and teeming with originality and creativity.
That being said, the gaming industry is known for being a competitive sector. Some roles may be harder to secure than others due to increased demand, and roles within this space are desirable. That being said, according to Hitmarker.net, jobs in the gaming industry grew by 5% in 2021. The area that saw the most growth in this field was software development, and remains the strongest area in terms of employment.
When considering a new role, it’s also worth thinking about what the future holds for your chosen industry. The gaming market was valued at 198.4 billion USD back in 2021, and is expected to grow to 339.95 billion by 2027. This is a staggering growth trajectory, and only proves how much of a demand there is for gaming.
Final thoughts
Are you now inspired to make your gaming pastime into an extraordinarily rewarding career? It only makes sense to take advantage of the prospects that are available to you in the gaming sector, which is bursting at the seams with fascinating options. This essay should have provided some guidance on how to break into the video game industry, we hope.
There is something for everyone, whether you prefer game design or game development. Why not enroll in one of the courses we suggested above if you're keen to begin your path to a job in the gaming industry?
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