An aspiring game programmer needs your advice
 

Introduction

Hey guys first let me give you a little introduction. My name is Chris, I'm 21 years old and I live in Oregon. I've been a hardcore gamer since the age of 2 and an avid computer user since the age of 14. Growing up I always loved to do creative things like drawing and writing, and I've always loved creating levels for any/every game that had a level editor. I knew at an early age I wanted to create games, and at the age of 19 I enrolled at Southern Oregon University pursuing a computer science degree in the software programming option.

During the last two years of my enrollment in college I began questioning if I really wanted to become a game programmer. However, I now realize the main reasons I began to question this is because all the classes I had taken were very early in the morning (I'm a night person) so I would end up missing class a lot and end up getting a bad grade. Also, the programming classes were all just learning the fundamentals of Java, MySQL, C and Unix by creating random, boring programs. However, I recently took a class called "Introduction to Game Programming" which lifted my spirits as I loved the class and even worked on the game that I turned in for my final for a month or so afterwards(until my HD crashed).

So now that I've bored you to tears, let me explain why I'm making a topic. Since I have only roughly two more years left before I graduate with my Bachelors in Computer Science, I've began doing some serious research regarding programming jobs, salaries, locations etc. I began looking at Gamasutra.com which has an up-to-date list of available jobs in different game companies and I began to get a little worried. It seems most game companies looking for programmers require previous experience with professionally programming games. So to anyone on these forums who is a professional game programmer, has experience in the field or just has some knowledge about the industry I would really appreciate answers to the following questions and any other information/feedback you can give me.


With your replies, please give information regarding your experience with game programming and/or the industry thank you very much.

Questions

1. Is a Bachelors degree in Computer Science all I should bother getting to pursue a position of game programmer?

2. As stated previously it seems many game companies only hire programmers that have previous experience in the industry programming games. Is it very difficult to find entry-level game programming positions?

3. Do game companies typically offer internships? If so, could you offer some examples?

4. I've heard California is the best state for game programmers to look for a job, is this true?

5. Do most game companies require their programmers to have knowledge in multiple languages? Or are strong C++/Java skills sufficient?

6. Do you think it's unwise to set my goals exclusively on becoming a game programmer? Should I leave myself open to becoming a software programmer for a non-game company/the government and if so what additions should I make to my preparation?

7. Can any professional game programmers give me any advice on how to maximize my success of becoming employed as a game programmer post-graduation?

8. How is the lifestyle when you're a professional game programmer? Do you enjoy the work? Why or why not? (You can answer for someone else if you know someone).

9. With resumes, do you provide a demo disc with games/game related things you've created? Would you recommend I begin working seriously on some smaller games to show on a demo disc?

10. Is there any other information you think I need to know as someone who will be graduating in two years with a bachelors in Computer Science aspiring to be a game programmer?

Whoever takes the time to read through this post and answer all the questions has my deepest thanks. If you have a website, I will put a link to yours on my website in thanks.

After I completed my degree, I too looked into getting work in the computer games industry. I eventually decided it wasn't for me, but I can attempt answers to some of your questions based on my own experience.

I haven't seen any game programming jobs that require a Masters or a PhD. However, they do tend to look for programmers who have scored highly on their degree; a first is preferable.

Exceedingly so. Most programming positions tend to require experience, but game companies tend to be even more exacting. Whilst my first job wasn't developing computer games, it still took a great deal of effort to land it. Conversely, when the company I was working for folded, and I started looking for my second job, I was inundated with interview requests, received two job offers mere weeks after starting looking. My salary went up by around 80% as well, which was nice :)

So getting on the ladder is extremely difficult. Your degree doesn't count for much compared to real work experience. You'll have to be tenacious and patient.

Mostly C++ from my experience, although knowledge of graphics frameworks like Direct3D and OpenGL are quite important.

No, it's not unwise. Any programmer skilled enough to make a computer game isn't going to find it hard to switch to another part of the industry. The only factor you really need to consider is how long can you spend out of work looking for a game programming job. And even then, there's nothing stopping you taking another job in the meantime to pay the bills, whilst you try to break into the games industry.

I'm not a professional game programmer, but I have spoken to them about this very question. The answer was always the same: demos. If you don't have experience, the only way to adequately demonstrate your talent is through some impressive demos.

Now, I've always lacked the tenacity and patience to design complex programs in my spare time, so the best I was able to do was spend a few days creating a tree generator. You'd probably need to create something better than this to get a look in.

That's what I was told. Demos are absolutely essential in order to land that vital first job. After that, I suspect it's plain sailing.

I've often heard it said that working on mods for games is a great way to build up a body for work with which to sell yourself to employers.

When I was in the highscool age I spend a lot of time building maps for Unreal Tournament, which was a very popular game back then. This also made me begin working with 3D modeling/animation tools like 3ds max. The final year I realized that 3D was the thing I really wanted to work with. To bad I didn't qualified for the game artist part of the "Computer games development" program, so I instead begun the "Game engine design" program, which I am very glad for. Coding is the shit ;).

The college had some programming projects where I participated during my last year, which also led me to a Swedish game company which offered me a job as a game programmer. I have now been working there for about 1.5 year, so I don't have very much experience in the industry, but I will give it a try to answer your questions anyway. Though I live in Sweden, I can only tell you about how it works here, and it might differ from US.

1. It will put you higher in the recruitment pile. But your skills and hobby projects will definitely weigh much.
2. Every company want people that have "Several years in the industry" and "Released at least two commercial games". But this is just what they want.
3. -
4. -
5. Depends on your position. If your working as an engine coder you need strong C++ skills and understand assembly language. As a game programmer you will often use scripting languages like Python and Lua. But you should learn C++ well and it will be enough.
6. Can you code a game you can code other softwares too.
7. Show them that you have programming as one of your biggest hobbies. Write readable and documented code. Social competence is also very important though you have to work with a lot of different kinds of people like artists and designers.
8. Game programming is very fun, and you will work with different kinds of stuff every day. During the crunch periods you will not get much rest though. Long days and long weeks.
9. -
10. Be forward and show them that you are the best! :)

If you want more information about being a game coder you should post in the www.gamedev.net forums, where all game coders are. Have a nice day!

/Klarre

(You don't have to put my website link on your site)

Im not a professional game programmer yet, but it is my goal as well. And Ive done ton's of reading on the industry.

1. Is a Bachelors degree in Computer Science all I should bother getting to pursue a position of game programmer?
Yeas, This is what most programmers in the Industry hold.


2. As stated previously it seems many game companies only hire programmers that have previous experience in the industry programming games. Is it very difficult to find entry-level game programming positions?
Arevos said it all.

3. Do game companies typically offer internships? If so, could you offer some examples?
Many game companies do offer internships but you need to have some sort of experience in game development even then. Basically you need something to show your skillset as well as interest in the industry. Look at EA's site, they have a link to their 'jobs' site and it has a list of internship options and qualifications to get them.

4. I've heard California is the best state for game programmers to look for a job, is this true?
The 3 main concentrations of game development companies seem to be in California, Toronto, and Japan. But there are many other companies scattered around the country.

5. Do most game companies require their programmers to have knowledge in multiple languages? Or are strong C++/Java skills sufficient?
C/C++ is for the most part industry standard, It might also be good to learn some scripting languages as well because most engines these days have their own embedded scripting languages. Learning and Understanding the inner workings of DirectX and Opengl is a large factor as well. Just learning how to just use them is always good, but understanding how they work and understanding the theory behind what they do will make everything easier for you. If your school offers a Graphics Theory course I highly suggest you take it.


6. Do you think it's unwise to set my goals exclusively on becoming a game programmer? Should I leave myself open to becoming a software programmer for a non-game company/the government and if so what additions should I make to my preparation?
I guess my opinion on this would be more from my bias then experience because thats what I am doing. But as Arevos said, you will always be able to find a job in the software development industry if it doesn't work out.

7. Can any professional game programmers give me any advice on how to maximize my success of becoming employed as a game programmer post-graduation?
As Arevos said, demo's of your skill set are the largest factor. Thats why Ive been working on as many different side projects I can. From a Level editor for the ogre engine to a 3d game engine of my own. During the late 90's, creating Mod's was a good way to gain a job in the industry as well. But that seems to be falling off as many companies are releasing relative easy to use Mod SDK's for their games which doesn't really show off your skills but the skills of the SDK developers.


9. With resumes, do you provide a demo disc with games/game related things you've created? Would you recommend I begin working seriously on some smaller games to show on a demo disc?
It doesn't always have to be just a game, but some aspect of Gaming and Simulation research as well.

Thank you very much for the replies, you have all been very helpful. So it's clear to me now that I really need to jump on working on some side projects/games while I'm finishing up school. What kind of games do you guys think I should work on for my demo disc? Will game companies not be impressed unless it's a 3D game?

Let me know thanks again guys :)