Learn how to start your career making video games from game industry expert Jason W. Bay! This practical "question and answer" book offers insider advice, information, and inspiration on how to get a job and grow your career making video games.

Become a Player in the Business of Video Game Art Every year video games generate billions of dollars and some of the most dynamic and engaging artwork today. It’s an ever-growing field that holds great professional opportunity, but you need the right skills and savvy if you want to stake your claim. In How to Become a Video Game Artist, veteran video game designer Sam R. Kennedy provides the inside track on everything you need to forge a career in the world of video game art. Starting with the basics of game creation and a look at the artistic skills necessary to get started, Kennedy spotlights specific, key roles for creators—from concept artists to character animators to marketing artists and beyond. Each chapter features screenshots from popular video games like Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon and World of Warcraft; interviews with video game art professionals who’ve worked for top gaming companies like BioWare, Blizzard, and Ubisoft; step-by-step examples of actual game art; and detailed breakdowns of the training and portfolio samples you’ll need to make these jobs your own. For anyone who wants to go from gamer to game designer, this book contains all the secrets you’ll need to rise to the top of one of the most exciting industries of our time.

Provides an overview of the game industry and offers advice from experienced professionals on entering the video game industry.

Love video games and dream of a career as a professional game developer but unsure where to begin? Already working in games but want to learn more about the good and bad of a career in the games industry from an experienced developer? Video games are more popular than ever but the industry is small and notoriously difficult to break into. This book will cover the complete process from job application to landing a job as well as give an honest look at life as a professional video game developer. In an ultra-competitive industry, you need every advantage possible to stand out from the crowd. By reading this book you will receive Power-Ups and Bonus XP for your journey in game development. Some of the topics covered in this book include: Different career paths inside professional video game development. Deciding whether to enroll in a school or program in order to get a job. Tips on writing your cover letter, resume, and creating a high-quality portfolio or demo reel. Using networking and social media to become a better job candidate. Proven methods of searching for game development jobs. A look behind the scenes at the typical job application process inside video game studios. A breakdown of the full interview process. What to expect during an on-site interview and how to have a successful one. Information about money such as salary, relocation, benefits and at-will employment. Some of the perils of working in video games such as layoffs and working overtime. Reasons why a career game development might not be right for you. If you are interested in a career working in video games or just curious about how game studios work from an insiders perspective, this book will shine a light on all these topics and more. Whether you dream of a successful career in video games or are simply curious, this book will provide knowledge and insight about the game industry written by a professional game developer. Buy this book today and journey to a career making video games!

Audisee® eBooks with Audio combine professional narration and sentence highlighting for an engaging read aloud experience! You might think that working in the video game industry is all fun and, well...games. Jobs like combat designer and animator sound pretty exciting. But do you know what it really takes to do one of these jobs? Do you have the skills? The knowledge? Are you ready to work hard? Game designers create the images, sounds, and action that gamers enjoy. Find out if you can handle a job in this fast-paced industry.

VIDEO GAMES HAVE COME A LONG WAY since the days of Pong and Spacewar! Within just a few decades, the global video game industry has grown into a $180 billion a year behemoth with players all over the world buying games for their Xbox systems, computers, smartphones, and handheld game consoles. It is still growing, at a rate that is four times faster than the growth of the overall US economy. It is not unusual for major studios to have 200-plus teams working on a single game with a $20 million budget. Yet, this industry is unique in that anyone - even a single self-taught home coder - can make a new game and potentially get into the action. Game development combines art and science to create games for entertainment and education. On the artistic side, a designer comes up with the idea for a new game, artists add visual elements like characters and environments, and audio engineers flesh out the ambience with sound effects and voices. On the technical side, programmers bring it all to life with coding that tells the computer what to do throughout the game. A game developer is defined as anyone who makes games. That could be someone who does it all, from beginning to end. It is more often someone who is on a game team, performing a specific job function such as concept artist or quality control tester. The workday is usually spent either in front of a computer or in meetings to discuss the next steps.There are two kinds of employers in this field: independent studios and AAA studios. Indie studios can be as small as one person, but they usually have a small team and a small budget. AAA studios are big corporations with millions to spend and best-selling titles to their credit. The demand for developers is steadily increasing in both, however, there is a certain element of uncertainty in the business. Layoffs are common due to intense competition in the marketplace that often causes a project to fail. As a result, developers need to be prepared to move on to another job at any time. On average, a developer will hold three or four jobs within a five year period. On the plus side, the pay is excellent even for beginners. Entry-level salaries start at around $50,000 and experienced developers can command upwards of $150,000.Due to the differences in job roles, there is no prescribed way to prepare for this career. Learning the necessary skills can be accomplished in one of two ways: informal (self-study) or formal (college). Which one you choose depends on the type of work you want to do. Self-taught developers learn their skills through books, workshops, and online courses. Much of it can be acquired for free. Developers who go the college route usually pursue bachelor's degrees in computer science, art, or video game development. There are also a few specialty vocational schools that are focused on training game developers.The video game industry employs thousands of people from around the world, with almost 8,000 new positions opening up each year. It can be tough to land one of those jobs, regardless of education and experience. Like most creative fields, many people are attracted by the money and the perceived glamor. There are millions of kids who grew up on video games who dream of spending their entire lives with games. Despite the competition, it is possible to break into this field. The key is to work really, really hard to sharpen your skills and learn every aspect of the game development process. Prove you have done that with an excellent portfolio that demonstrates talent and a genuine interest in the work itself, and employers will be interested in you.

Find out from an industry veteran exactly what you need to do to become a game designer, tester, artist, producer, programmer, writer, soundtrack composer, videographer, or sales/marketing professional. You’ll get full-spectrum coverage of positions available within the game industry as well as details on how a game is created--from start to finish--and much more.