Many game developers also manage individual departments within the game company. Computer science has resulted in many different careers, but those who make their way into the video game industry need education beyond traditional computer science courses. Technological enhancements have allowed for a great increase in the quality and range of video games that could be considered an art form. Let’s discuss five things you should know if you’re pursuing a career in game development!
1. Understand the Game Development Cycle
A game starts as an idea in the mind of a game developer, who creates a game design document that specifies the game’s goals and how to achieve them. The design document also details the replayability and entertainment value of each anticipated game level, character, or story. Once created, the design document is passed on to a producer who monitors production costs.
2. Know Your Platforms
The PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, and Nintendo Wii are just a few gaming platforms available today. Some game developers focus on one particular platform; others have several versions for different systems. Within the games industry, we call this porting.
3. Understand What’s Involved in Testing and Debugging
In most cases, a game goes through a software testing phase to ensure that all its features are working correctly before being sent to the manufacturer. Once the game is manufactured by a company like Nintendo, Sony, or Microsoft, game designers have to test it repeatedly to ensure it plays properly on all possible systems and platforms.
4. Understand Game Excerpts
A game developer’s job might entail creating video games or writing them. What they do doesn’t matter as much as their skill in creating and writing the final product. Game developers are artists, and their product is a piece of art. Only the best game developers in a given company get to perfect their creations by testing, debugging, and finalizing them for public consumption.
5. Storytelling
Storytelling is a critical skill for game developers. Many video games are created to be entertaining, but some are created to tell a story. Video Game developers need to think of the user about the game world and create an emotional connection with the character doing the action or performing the dialogues.
Game developers need to understand how the game is created from start to finish. It may involve purchasing a game design document produced by the developer’s client. Programming and testing are also part of the work that one must complete. The outcome of a game is just as important as the creative process, which has helped create high-paying careers for people interested in video game development.
