Welcome!

Welcome to the wonderful world of game design academia! You've got a lot of work ahead of you, but don't let that hold you back. College is a wonderful opportunity to meet new people, explore the world and reinvent yourself. It's easy to feel the pressure to study hard and prepare yourself for the industry, but life is happening right now so don't forget to enjoy it.

Choosing a Path

Congratulations on deciding to devote your life -or some portion of it- to making video games. The most important and most difficult task you have now is to decide what path you want to take in the industry. Do you want to work for a AAA company? Do you want to go indie? Do you want to be a programmer? Artist? Musician? Designer? Producer? How about a tools programmer? Gameplay programmer? AI programmer? Engine programmer? Concept artist? Technical artist? Character artist? Environment artist? Level designer? UX designer? Mission designer? Systems designer?



There are so many different disciplines in video games and each discipline has several different paths you can take within it. The best way to learn about all these paths is to expose yourself to the industry. Go to events like GDC and Day of the Devs. Talk to people who make games, ask them what they do and how game teams structured at their company. Developers like growing their community and will take the time to help someone with genuine curiosity. Watching GDC talks at the event or on YouTube will give you a better idea of what people in the industry actually do.



Of course just learning which paths exist isn't enough. It can take several years for you to find a path that's right for you. The best way to choose a path is to try as many as you can. Start making games with friends. Find/create a club on campus or just gather people you generally like and make as many games as you can. Attend a game jam and try to make something within a short time limit. If you don't have any technical skills, make a tabletop or word game. Working in a group will improve your game making skills while also letting you try out different positions. I thought I was going to be an artist, but the team I was on needed a programmer and I grew to love it.

Making a Plan

As you start to figure out what path you want to take, you might become stressed about trying to learn everything you need to by the time you graduate. It'll help to write down a list of skills you want to learn before you graduate. Talk to your professors and people in the industry to find out what skills someone in your desired position would even need. If you want to stay indoors, go on forums or Stack Exchange and ask for help there. Creating an online presence is also a great way to meet people working in the industry.



I'm serious about going to conferences and talking to people in the industry about this! They'll know what skills you'll need but will also have fun ways of learning them. I asked a mission designer what skills their role involved and they told me that mission designers often need to learn a scripting language like Lua and that one of their interview questions was to make a small game using Lua. Lua can be intimidating, but there's a cool engine called LOVE 2D so you can learn the language by making games with it. Find people who do what you want to do and ask them questions!



Once you have this list, getting all the skills you need will feel much more accomplishable. You have 3+ years to do it, so there's no rush. They'll come naturally. Side note: look up the dates of big conferences like GDC and let your professors know about them at the beginning of the quarter. They might conflict with class events like finals and letting the professor know early is the only way to work around that.

Level 1: Starting Fresh

Alright! You're at the starting line. You have no skills, no work experience and no personal projects. You should make a resume and portfolio! It might seem counterintuitive to make a resume/portfolio when you haven't done anything yet, but it will help. Writing a resume and creating a portfolio are invaluable skills and making one at all -even a crappy one- is a huge step. As you learn new skills and gain new experiences, you can update these and see your progress over time. I also highly suggest creating a LinkedIn account while you're at it. It's a really cool way to keep track of all the people you meet professionally.



Most game studio's start accepting internship applications somewhere around September-December, near the beginning of the school year. I can't emphasize enough how important it is that you apply to these. Even if you aren't qualified for them, it's worth your time. Studying a game company, writing a specialized cover letter for that company and getting even one interview with that company are incredibly valuable experiences. Even if no one responds, you'll have gotten better at the application process. And these job descriptions are a great place to find out what skills you'll need for next year. You should be writing the skills in the job descriptions down to look at in the future. There are plenty of places like iD Tech that require very little of new applicants and have all their interview questions posted on Glassdoor.



Tons of people don't get accepted to any internships during their time at college, but applying is an entertaining and educational process. A wise man once told me, "Don't set yourself up with high expectations just to be disappointed. Starting out, set them low, grow, and have fun." Let yourself fail! If you try to move forward and trip immediately, you are already further than those who stayed still!

Surviving Classes

Getting to know your classmates and professors is a great way to do well in class. You're not going to be naturally interested in every class you take, but someone in your class will be. Form study groups and support each other! Even if you don't need a study group right now, it's a great way to make friends and get to know people who might be able to help in a different class. There does not exist a class that cannot be beaten with the power of friendship. Everyone else is in the same situation is you, so no one will judge you for reaching out and saying hello.



Your professors are being paid to help you learn, so use that resource! Go to their office hours and talk to them. They've devoted their lives to whatever they're teaching, so I suggest asking what inspired them to teach what they teach. I bet you will leave that conversation with a greater appreciation for the class's subject matter. I once went to a professor's office hours to express concern about an upcoming interview and the professor went through the trouble of giving me a mock interview and giving me pointers on how to improve!



Also, the professor has the power to raise your grade arbitrarily so that helps too... Speaking of which, don't be so concerned about your GPA! Getting high grades is good because it means you really understand and care about what you're learning. But if you are doing the best that you can and learning what you need to, the difference between a 3.0 and a 4.0 doesn't really matter. Don't stress out about it.



Challenge and question everything. You don’t have to follow the “expected/default” college path if it won’t help you. Stand up for yourself and for your peers if you feel something isn’t fair. On the flip side, understand that most faculty are interested in supporting you, and you have opportunities to work with them to better your curriculum and overall experience. The curriculum is not perfect, so don’t be afraid of going out and getting what you want in this major!

Class Projects

Class projects are a great way to build your portfolio! If you are in a non-game class, always take the opportunity to ask the professor if you can adapt the assignment into something related to games. Taking an architecture class? Maybe the professor will let you build a game environment to show your mastery of the material. Taking a culture class? Maybe one of the class subjects has a tie to video games that you can write about. Be creative and you'll find a lot of cool opportunities to build your skills and show your stuff. As a side note, if you make a game or do something that might go on your portfolio, publish it online. Studios want to know that you can produce a finish product, release it into the world and incorporate the world's feedback. Don't let your project die when the class ends. Studios care a lot more about projects that were done on your own time than projects that were only done because a class required it.



If you are writing an essay or doing a project on something game related, reach out to the people involved. Did you know you can message the people in a game's credits with a question and there's a good chance they will answer? How cool would it be for your essay about a video game if you got to interview the lead designer of that game? Well you can! Find their LinkedIn, their email or their Twitter and message them! There's a good chance they won't respond, but it's worth the try (the more junior their position, the more likely they are to respond). The key phrases are "I am a student" and "I know you're busy so no worries if you don't have time to respond". This is both educational and a great way to network.

Networking

Networking can often feel disingenuous, like you're using people as tools to get a job. Don't think of networking or people like this!! When you network, your goal should be to improve yourself and expand your horizons, not to get a job. For example...



If you want to make art, find an artist you like or from a company you like on a site like ArtStation. Try to replicate their art style. Reach out to them and tell them why you like their art and that you want to make something similar. People love being told that their work has a positive impact. They might be willing to critique your work and guide you on the process. You're building a relationship through your desire to learn, not your desire to get a job.



If you want to design, find a game you like or a designer you like and play their games. Analyze its design, write a blog post about it or make a game using the lessons you've learned. Reach out and ask questions. Once you get to know them, ask them if they're going to be at GDC and/or would be interested in getting coffee. Ask design questions on the Game Dev Stack Exchange and other forums. The people on those sites are often industry professionals that would love to chat about game design with you.



If you want to program, buy a book by a programmer working at a studio you like. Read it, learn it, love it. Send the author an email with a question. Start a conversation. Even something like "I loved your book Game AI Basics , I really want to become a game AI programmer after I graduate. Can you suggest any books or other resources for where to go from here?" is enough to get started.

Level 2: Staying Healthy

As important as growing your skills and preparing for the industry are, it's even more important to grow as a person and stay healthy. Don't become too focused on becoming the perfect game maker above all else. Sometimes life can be like hiking up an enormous mountain. It's true that those who reach the top are rewarded with an amazing view, but if you slow down and focus on where you are... you will realize that that view is all around you.



Eat and sleep well. Don't beat yourself up. Ruminating on yesterday's mistakes keeps you from solving todays. If you don't want to do something, don't. Recharge your batteries with alone breaks and social breaks. You will come back to a project better than before.



You cannot separate the mind and the body. If you try doing yoga, eating healthier and sleeping enough, you will feel better and have more energy for making games. During freshmen year, I would try to pick up working out and eating healthy once every 4 months, only to give up after about a week. But during sophomore year I would give up after 2 weeks. Then in junior year I would give up after 5 weeks! In senior year I started a routine that I keep to even now. It's okay to fall back into not working out and not eating healthy, but if you keep trying it will stick eventually.

Communication and Collaboration

In my opinion, the most important skill of any game maker is empathy. Soft skills like communication and collaboration are the backbone of every team project. The ability to emphasize with your teammates and see things from their perspective is more important than any technical skill. A person without empathy will destroy a project from the inside, but a person without skills will -at worst- do nothing.



If you don't pay attention to anything else in this, PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE watch this video. It is has helped me as a game maker more than any other video I've watched.



Get feedback from people! Seek out critique and only ask questions to clarify. Don't get defensive (even if you disagree). You may not need to use the feedback you get, but getting it gives you new perspectives on yours and others' work.



When it comes to personal improvement, there is so much that can be learned. Everyone is different so remember to always keep an eye out for how to improve your own communication skills. Find a friend to talk to about it with and improve together.

Teaching and Mentorship

The best way to solidify your knowledge in a subject is to teach it to other people. Get a group of people together a share your skills. Teach at a summer camp like iD Tech. Maybe you can give a workshop at a local gamejam. Speaking of which, does your school participate in the Global Game Jam? If not, you should ask faculty about the possibility of hosting it! It's a lot of work to host a game jam, but the management and production experience you'll get from it can be very educational.



It's difficult to do, but finding a mentor can be a huge help. There are forums and programs out there designed to partner new game makers with industry veterans. Some industry veterans even offer paid lessons if you have the money. You might find a senior student willing to share some of their knowledge with you or let you participate on their capstone projects. I highly recommend collaborating on senior projects even if you have to go outside your discipline or are still mediocre at what you do.

Level 3: The Real World

That's actually all the advice I have. The specifics of how to make a game, how to write a cover letter, etc. are things you'll learn along the way I'm sure. Make sure they're teaching that to you! Sorry if it got a bit ramble-y near the end, it's quite late. Good luck!