Game Art Design And Other Careers In The Video Game Field

The economy is bad but the video game industry is prospering. Retailers such as Gamestop are forecasting double digit growth in sales for 2009 (source: Marketwatch). This means that if you want to a career in the video game industry, then get some education because now is the time.

But what kind of job would you want in the video game industry? Can you be in game art design? Can you be a video game programmer? Hey, how about becoming a video game tester? What type of video game jobs are out there and what do you do?

Making a video game today is kinda like making a movie. In fact, some video games have budgets that are as a big or bigger than movies. Popular games like Halo or Star Wars take a couple of years to make and require budgets in the millions of dollars. But that's ok because they return back ten times more.

What do video game makers spend their money on? Well, in a movie, for example, actors, directors, camera crew, make-up artists, wardrobe consultants, sound specialists, and other production personnel are hired. Video games are the same, except they hire video game testers, game art designers, video game producers, character designers, and others with proper schooling and training.

What are the video game jobs?

There are different types of jobs in the video game industry and some are entry level that you can get after getting a degree from a video game design college. See the examples below:

VIDEO GAME TESTERS -

2-D CONCEPT ARTISTS - These guys almost always have an arts degree or a strong portfolio of making creative images, whether digital or not. They are artists and they flesh out ideas on screen or paper before any real work takes place.

3-D CHARACTER DESIGNERS - These are the guys who made Master Chief come alive. They take the character design on paper and translate it to the computer. They make sure that the character's look is consistent as a gamer pans 360 degrees.

3-D OBJECT MODELERS - Do you like how that Brute Plasma Rifle look (Halo 2)? How about the sharp new Manslayer of the Qiraji two-handed sword (World of Warcraft)? Well, the people to thank are the 3D object modelers who designed not just cool weapons that gamers can buy or quest for, but also space ships, tavern buildings, command consoles, cars, etc. Of course, this is another job that requires training or schooling in image rendering programs.

INTERACTIVITY DESIGNERS - In any video game, there is always a way to reward the gamer. Whether it's killing the dragon, vanquishing evil demons, or defeating an invading horde of orcs, a gamer has to do something to beat the game. Even in open-ended games like World of Warcraft, a quest has a reward at the end. Interactive game designers are the ones responsible for setting up the game play rules so that the experience is challenging and cool.

BACKGROUND ARTISTS - The job of background artists is to transform the experience of the gamer into a new world that they can only see through a computer screen. There's a lot of creativity and imagination involved. This job typically requires someone with an art degree or a strong portfolio in creative digital images. Some schools call their programs game art and design degrees.

The list above is just a small group of creative jobs in making a video game. For some of these jobs, the skills necessary can be obtained through experience, but many of the companies who hire for the position requires a degree in video game art design or something similar. Researching the position that you want will help you a lot because it may have different requirements.

Lastly, whether or not video games have recession proof jobs is still a matter of opinion. The trends certainly favors it. And time will tell.

Grab competent info in the sphere of Free Traffic System - your personal tips store.