Diploma in Game Design and Development...... now what?

[trueno92]

A good friend of mine graduated in this MINISCULE arena of work and is having a lot of trouble finding work...... is there ANYTHING that he can do that is related to his studies?

Anything related to graphic design or gaming would be appreciated.

[UrbanPoet]

i doubt he'll find a job in it... or even related. Seems like something along the lines of a Fine Arts degree.

[Tofu Drift Shinji]

Probably not without relocating. There are a lot of game development studios in Cali and Van City. If he wants to try to find work in the field locally, I only know of two studios here in Ontario: Silicon Knights (http://www.siliconknights.com) (St. Catherines) and Pseudo Interactive (http://www.pseudointeractive.com) (in Toronto, no less). There is also Ubisoft Montreal, but you can probably figure out that that isn't local.

Here's a good website (http://www.gamesindustry.biz) for looking for a job in the industry.

[Jaytee]

My co worker was telling me about his friend who works for EA Games in Vancouver. He got the job by creating a demo to display his talents, worked his butt off on it for 6 months. They hired him based on his demo and is on the Need for Speed: Underground team now.

Without industry contacts and any related experience this is a good option to consider. If he isnt working anyway he will have time to create something (mod or stand alone demo) whether its programming, level design, texture creation. Your friend might even have something already from their schooling, but he will have to polish it up and make it really stand out.

Another option is to start at the bottom (aka bug tester) and try to work your way up internally. But even the bottom is still ultra competitive.

Either way, as Tofu said, he has to be willing to relocate.

BTW. I have a few friends that were in video games but they arent anymore because of the long hours and (relatively) low pay.

[phd1969]

There's plenty of gaming studios in Canada, we're actually one of the hotbeds for game development. You have to remember that you don't need to work for the big name studios, there's plenty of smaller name studios that create some great work and then distribute through the bigger names.

I use to work for a mobile gaming company myself called Magmic, they are shaping up to be the largest mobile gaming company in Canada.

Here's the website: http://www.magmic.com

[dell]

Aside from Pseudo and Silicon, most people don't know this but there is a Rockstar Games studio in the Mississauga/Oakville area with near QEW/Winston Churchill. They worked on The Warriors and I think they are currently working on a next-gen title.

Toronto is definitely not a gaming hotspot compared to BC and Montreal. Ubi on Montreal is getting much bigger and by next year will probably have over a thousand people working there. I think EA is opening up shop in Montreal as well.

I'm a 3d artist/compositor in the movie biz and getting a job in TV/film/gaming is definitely WAY harder then most common careers out there. A good demo reel is the key to getting any opportunites. If your friend is into the 3d side of things then focus on low-poly modelling. If its more 2d stuff then focus on making great in game textures. It doesn't matter what school you go to because an individuals reel will make or break them. If relocating isn't an option then that will certainly make things even more difficult.

[ullyeus]

The only succesful person I know who got a job in this field did it because he designed amazing maps and games...and people played them and word or mouth got out about him. Currently he works at Ravensoft.

Does this candidate have any networking? Know anyone in the industry?

[Jaytee]

Toronto is definitely not a gaming hotspot compared to BC and Montreal. Ubi on Montreal is getting much bigger and by next year will probably have over a thousand people working there. I think EA is opening up shop in Montreal as well.


I think Montreal is the place to be for development right now. The province is giving massive tax incentives/breaks to companies that setup shop there as there has been large investments there as a result. Our Montreal development office is growing significantly while our Toronto office is stagnant.

[Ben31]

Not sure where your buddy lives but you could give Groove Games (http://www.groovegames.com/index.php) a try located in Toronto....or Bioware (http://www.bioware.com/bioware_info/jobs/edmonton_jobs/) in Edmonton....there is also Propaganda Games (http://propagandagames.go.com/) in Vancouver.......
I suggest for your friend to look at Gamasutra site (http://www.gamasutra.com/php-bin/jobs_display.php)

[Thanh]

To add to this topic: we're (Ubisoft Montreal) definitely looking for Jr. Game Designer. If your friend wants to apply here, feel free to send me his resume and I'll forward it internally to the appropriate person. Make sure to have him look at http://jobs.ubisoft.ca. Here's an opening:

Game Designer (#REF 278)
The person we are looking for will have:
* 3-4 years of experience in video games in a position of Game Designer or equivalent
* Relevant experience : good knowledge of the basic rules of Game Desig (learning curve, difficulty curve and rhythm curve)
* Excellent knowledge of video games.
* Developpment for console games-strong asset
* Strong analyst capacities
* A structured, creative and initiative spirit
* Excellent inter-team communication and good autonomy
* Capacity of building on already existing bases
* Perfect knowledge of Word, Excel, Power-Point. An asset : knowledge of 3D-Max
* Bilingual (french-english) <- would be nice but french skills are not mandatory ... but our studio is in Montreal so an interest in improving your french is certainly desirable
* Passion for video games and the desire to have fun at work!

[airodus]

game design is a tough industry. they work you very hard and there is high turnover due to burning out. since it is many people's "dream job" to be making games, game studios never have a shortage of applicants who are willing to do the job for cheap.

but if you do make it in, and stay there... it can be a very fun time. many of the environments are very interesting and exciting.