Gaming Industry : Job Prospects & Career Options
With the advent of greater technology, the game industry is churning
out dozens of companies engaged in video game production and development.
Gaming industry is considered as one of the hottest professions, with
a great deal of specialization varying from broader design principles
to more specific tasks such as level design and game balance. So a plethora
of career options are available for aspirants from artists to musicians
to sound engineers to programmers in this field.
Job Outline : Gaming industry is a broad field and
those who are interested in this field should be familiar with the basic
concepts of game designing. Developing and designing all these types of
games is a step by step process, where variety of tasks are performed.
As visuals are the most important elements of presentation in a game,
the initial stage of a game development deals with designing and creation
of arts. This includes a comprehensive storyline; scripting; character
sketching; objects, levels and background designing and other relevant
information's necessary for telling a story and incorporating the player
in the experience. After that, three dimensional designs of the objects
are generated on computer with the help of various types of game engines.
During this stage, the designers has to pay special attention to the facial
features and expressions where the characters are meant to speak, move
and act. Sound effects, voice recordings and background music are also
incorporated in this stage. Then comes the most important and time-consuming
field of gaming, i.e programming where the framework and all the elements
of the game are packaged into a playable product. Programmers need to
have a firm grasp of multiple computer programming languages, as well
as computer logic and mathematics. They take all the three-dimensional
designs of backgrounds, cut scenes, characters, level designs and sound
effects and combine them all into one coherent game experience. Then the
game is tested for any bugs and errors and goes into production if everything
is up to the tester's standard. Then, the entire game is compiled and
burned to a single master disc. This disc is then inserted into a specialized
machine designed to produce copies of the disc at a very high rate of
speed. The copies are placed in pre_made plastic cases and then wrapped
in plastic to be shipped to distributors across the country.
Some among the common job prospects in gaming industry are :
- Game Developer - Game developer is the specialised
software developer and their major task is to create and design the
plan of the game which includes the theme, missions, the rules and the
game play.
- Game Designers - Game designers also known as Content
creators are individuals responsible for the playability and fun factor
of the game. They take care of the art side of the game and designs
the various levels, characters and user interface (UI) elements of the
game. Depending on their tasks, game designers can be further classified
as Lead Designers, Level Designers etc.
- Game Artists - Game artists are those who create
the virtual reality elements of the game and make games come to life
visually. According to different styles, techniques and areas of specilisations,
the artists in the game industry can be classified as concept artist,
2D/ 3D artists, modelers, character animators, texture artists etc.
- Game Programmers - Game Programmers are the software/
computer engineers or programmers who are concerned with the programming
aspects of the game. It is the game programmers who design and develop
the code for working the video games and they work with the design team
to implement its vision for the final product. In big companies, game
programmers may be classified as Lead programmers (in charge of all
programming for the game), Artificial intelligence (AI) programmers
(who develops the logic of the game to simulate intelligence in enemies
and opponents), Sound programmers, Game programmers, UI programmers,
multiplayer/ network programmers etc.
- Network Programmer -Network programmers develop codes
that allows players to interact and play with other players in different
locations through the Internet or a LAN. It is one of the most technically
challenging type of programming in the game industry.
- Game/ Script Writers - These are the people responsible
for the documentation and instructions that accompany the game. Script
writers create the story the game is based upon, and write dialogue
for the characters.
- Audio/ Sound Engineers - The audio/ sound engineering
department of the game industry is responsible for the overall acoustics,
ambience, sound effects and audibility of a game. The audio engineers
need to use their creativity to make sure that the game has the right
sound effects to fit its story line and tones like explosions, car chases,
crowd noises, weather conditions like storms or rain or whatever it
may be.
- Game Testers - Also known as quality assurance tester,
game testers are in charge of quality assurance, finding mistakes, bugs
and other problems in the game. To ensure excellent user experience,
game testers test through the paces of the game while still in development
and when completed.
- Game Management - The management department
of the game industry is similar to the other production departments
which include game producers, art director, technical directors, development
directors, project managers etc. The game producer is responsible to
ensure that the game is done on time and on budget, and he/she should
be aware of everyone's task.
In the gaming industry, one can find job openings in small or large
organizations, corporations and design firms. Numerous established
companies like Synapse, Smackall, Ishir Infotech, Csharks, Dhruva Interactive,
Paprikaas Interactive Services etc., which designs mobile phone games,
online games and video games, offer excellent opportunities for professionals
in game designing. Besides educational qualification, what the employers
prefer is the specific talents of the individual like the creativity,
technical intelligence, design sensibilities etc. With their key skills
in game designing, candidates can find employment in these firms as junior
game designer, level designer, game designer, lead designer, content designer,
user interface designer, game tester or writer etc.
Online game designers may work as freelancers. But for this, one has to be
multifaceted, i.e they should do all the basic artwork, sound effects
and music, programming and coding etc. by themselves. A graduate in game
development can also seek employment opportunities in the field of software
development, computer programming, industrial design, animation or writing
for film and television, project management and more. |
