How to Become a Video Game Designer

Current and future students enjoy several demo rounds of the FPS Game during our June 2011 Video Game Showcase at the Academy of Design.

A video game designer’s job is to produce games for computers, game consoles, the internet and more recently mobile phones. They can work on developing new games or updating and improving games that already exist.

Video games can be complex to make and produce. Even when some of them do go out on the shelves, there are still glitches and problems with them.

The video game industry is constantly growing, with figures showing that over 50% households, play video games in the US and Canada.

Your day-to-day tasks will include:

• Creating and designing ideas
• Planning and producing new ideas or improvements to other games
• Market research, comparing and contrasting other games
• Designing and creating new animation and images for games
• Attending games festivals and events
• Keeping up to date with new games and software

What do I need to start with:

It can be helpful for you to have a degree in something such as graphic design or web page design. You don’t need anything specifically to start, just a lot of imagination and persistence as video game creation can be a long and at some times tedious job.

What else do I need?

There are no specific tests that you need to pass in order to become a video games creator designer, but having a diploma and experience can always help you in the long run.

Where are the jobs?

Some video game designers start off at a business and learn the skills they need. They then move onto being self-employed and create their own game to then supply to production companies. There are a lot of jobs though, teaching video game designer, game maker companies, games testing units. Canada’s animation and video game scene is booming.