Industry and Portfolio
Week 1 - Jobs and Skills
Job 1:
Games Tester
A game tester tests specific aspects of a game, writes detailed reports of each bug they find and then re-test it once the development team has fixed it. The look for bugs, spelling mistakes, graphical or audio glitches and even copyright issues that may have been undetected by the developers. Testers work to very hard deadlines and must be able to document their findings in detail, usually with a software quality management system. They may also need to spend hours at a time repeating the same process/section of a game - long after it may be fun to them.
A game tester needs to be able to meet deadlines efficiently and without fail. As well as this, game testers must be well spoken in their reports to easily convey their findings to a development team with no trouble and finally a game tester must have determination and willpower to easily repeat monotonous tasks over and over without stopping.
Previous experience playing a game for multiple hours at a time, creating content for the game or actively 'bug finding' as a member of its community are all good beginnings to get into this role even if the game in question isn't the one you do the previous things for. Showing competence and expertise in bug testing and finding is crucial to this role and would be valued a lot.
Job 2:
Community Manager
Community Managers are responsible for the community that grows around the game. They deal with criticism, set up live streams, organise social media, write newsletters and attend events. They know their fans more than anyone and the fans of a game define its success. They are the link between the game and its communal feedback.
Community managers need to understand the games they work with and the needs of their fans and be able to communicate with them well. They have to be well organised and be able to read analytics.
Some routes into the job include: experience moderating forums, blogs and other online chatting platforms. Education in English and being well spoken with public speaking skills. Getting into a AAA games development team may require previous experience in indie teams or lower.
Job 3:
3D Modelling Artist
3D modelling artists create models for all 3d art assets within the game. These can range from characters to weapons to vehicles to furniture to trees and so on. They often start with a brief hand drawn sketch. In some game studios, 3D modelling artists are given specific fields like "environment artists" or "character artists" however in other studios they are responsible for several types of models.
A 3D modelling artist has to be good at using 3D software and game engines. They need a strong artistic ability and the ability to collaborate well and be organised. They also need to understand how their models will be interacted with inside a game scene.
A 3D Modelling Artist needs lots of practise modelling and a strong portfolio with examples from industry or freelance.
Job 4:
Lead Game Designer
Lead game designers are responsible for how a game looks and what it's like to play. They work with a small team figuring out the characters and props and what is going to happen - the building blocks of game development. Once a game is in the works, they make sure deadlines are being met, handle budgets and decide if changes need to be made. They may also do their own art and designing in smaller studios.
A lead game designer needs to be a leader, they need to be able to handle a large amount of tasks and be able to communicate their ideas well and convincingly. They need a knowledge of gameplay, game engines and the gaming market.
A lead game designer is a very high up role that subtly covers most areas of game development so they would definitely either need lots of experience in multiple roles in a different company or achieve this role in their company via promotion.
Job 5:
Level Designer
A level designer understands what makes good gameplay, level wise. They take a specification from the gameplay designer and go into detail with the actions, events, objects and environment. The level designer plans on paper while trying to be in the perspective of a player trying all possibilities with this experience for the first time and maps out a fun experience for them. They need to think about the logic and flow of events and actions, the conditions that need to be met for certain things to happen and the challenges the player will encounter.
Level designers have to be creative, artistic, good at communicating and knowledgeable of gameplay, physics and programming.
A level designer having education in art and physics is a very strong introduction as they are both vital for this career.
References:
ScreenSkills. 2021. [online] Available at: <https://www.screenskills.com/job-profiles/browse/games/>
ScreenSkills. 2021. [online] Available at: <https://www.screenskills.com/job-profiles/browse/games/quality-assurance/games-tester/>
ScreenSkills. 2021. [online] Available at: <https://www.screenskills.com/job-profiles/browse/games/production/community-manager/>
ScreenSkills. 2021. [online] Available at: <https://www.screenskills.com/job-profiles/browse/games/art/3d-modelling-artist/>
ScreenSkills. 2021. [online] Available at: <https://www.screenskills.com/job-profiles/browse/games/design/lead-games-designer/>
ScreenSkills. 2021. [online] Available at: <https://www.screenskills.com/job-profiles/browse/games/design/level-designer/>
Games Designer Case Studies
Jeff Kaplan
Jeff Kaplan, 48, was born in New Jersey, United States on November 4th, 1972. He is an American video game designer, famously known for being Vice President of Blizzard Entertainment, leading the design of Overwatch and designing some elements for World of Warcraft.
Kaplan was born in New Jersey but raised in California where he spent most of his younger life. He spent most of that time playing games but, with a lack of programming skills, he didn't believe he could get a career in the video games industry. He ultimately got a degree in creative writing at the University of Southern California followed by a graduate degree for creative writing from New York University.
He worked for his father's recruiting business whilst writing creative stories on the side, however, he was unsuccessful for several years, receiving over 170 rejection notices in a single year. By the year 2000, he decided to stop writing stories and spent his time playing video games, like he used to before, as well as experimenting with level editors for exisiting games at the time.
Jeff Kaplan became involved in an MMO called Everquest and became well known in his guild for his accomplishments and his commentary videos about the game. This caught notice of the Blizzard Employee who was the leader of the guild, Rob Pardo, who invited Kaplan to the Blizzard Offices where he met more employees and was told about a project they were working on; several similar meetings happened over the next few months. After World of Warcraft was announced, Pardo suggested that Kaplan applied for a job working on WoW. At this point Kaplan realised that his previous visits were informal interviews and he was hired into Blizzard by May 2002.
Kaplan spent his time at Blizzard working as a tester for Warcraft III until the game released, when he was transferred to work on World of Warcraft quests and later served as the game's director. Kaplan later worked for 5 years on Titan before the game's cancellation. After Titan got cancelled he was assigned to design a new game from which, Overwatch was first imagined.
Overwatch became a huge success, earning more that $1 billion in the first year and drawing in more than 35 million players. Jeff Kaplan being the lead designer and game director, saw this as his big success.
For 3 years, Kaplan and his team worked on Overwatch until its release in 2016, from which he continued to update and work on the game until April 20, 2021, when he announced he was leaving the company after 19 years.
2021. Jeff Kaplan - Wikipedia. [online] Available at: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeff_Kaplan>
2021. Jeff Kaplan - Age, Family, Bio | Famous Birthdays. [online] Available at: <https://www.famousbirthdays.com/people/jeff-kaplan.html>
The Health of the UK Games Industry
What's the growth of the game's industry looking like in the UK last year?
The video games industry is an expanding industry which has slowly gained more and more traction over the past couple years. It is growing in the UK slowly but surely with the Industry in 2020 being worth 29.9% more than in 2019. This exponential momentum is probably due to an increase in popularity in technology and dependence on the online subspace during covid-19
Where are jobs concentrated geographically?
Most of the Video Game Industry operates in the south of the UK and/or in highly popular areas like the Midlands and London. There are barely any organisations in Northern Island and Scottland
What proportion of freelancers are there in this sub-sector?
4% - Note this statistic includes people who work multiple roles (e.g. works part-time but does freelance on the side)
From a personal perspective, are there any equality and diversity challenges presented by this sub-sector?
Looking at the graphs, only 10% of the workers in the Games Development Industry is BAME compared to the 13% of BAME population in the UK (that is legible to work). This portrays the Games Development Industry as a predominantly white British/other dominated field. As well as this, 70% of the work force is also male. 57% more than female, non-binary and other combined. Overall, this is a predominantly white male field and tends to lack diversity in most areas.
References:
Ukie.org.uk. 2021. UK Games Industry Census - understanding diversity in the UK games industry workforce - Ukie. [online] Available at: <https://ukie.org.uk/UK-games-industry-census-2020>
WePC | Let's build your dream gaming PC. 2021. Video Game Industry Statistics, Trends and Data In 2021. [online] Available at: <https://www.wepc.com/news/video-game-statistics/>
Ukie.org.uk. 2021. Ukie. [online] Available at: <https://ukie.org.uk/news/uk-games-industry-valuation-2020>
Ethnicity-facts-figures.service.gov.uk. 2021. Working age population. [online] Available at: <https://www.ethnicity-facts-figures.service.gov.uk/uk-population-by-ethnicity/demographics/working-age-population/latest>
How to Create a CV
Progression Options
Teamwork Dilemmas
Logo and Business Cards
Here is my logo and business card designs. I made the logo using Adobe Illustrator. I first started by creating overlapping circles around the canvas from which I used the shape builder tool to create a random array of shapes that could be the basis of the design. I put my initials around it, blending them slightly into the main body of the shape then made a purple circle. I found a picture of an orb online and image traced it by 3 colours then removed the background and placed the texture over the circle. I then monochromatically image traced pictures of leaves.
Work Experience Potential
Opportunity 1: Editor/Designer for Affiliated Twitch Streamer
I have close contact with multiple twitch affiliates/partners that would be open to accepting help with logos or emotes or editing and far more.
I can contact most via business emails, mobile or online services (e.g. discord).
Opportunity 2: Glowing Eye Games
Glowing Eye Games is a local games company that focuses on IOS mobile games. They are a small team of around 7.
I would be able to contact them through their website (Team – Glowing Eye Games)
As they have a 'Contact us' section on the website.
Opportunity 3: Freelance Logo Design for Companies
There are lots of opportunities online and local for aspiring companies that require a rebranding or an update to their online presence. The main advantage here is that you can transfer from one employer to the next fairly quickly meaning that the likelihood of getting work is higher.
I would be able to contact the business via their websites, emails or contact information given in-store.
Final Career Plan (Conclusion)
Short Term: Years 0-2, work experience and finish college
As of currently I have work experience and college, relating to my desired field, to complete before I progress. This includes modelling, texturing, animation, programming, sound production, video editing and image manipulation, unreal engine and much more and this education should suit me well to find a place in the industry.
Mid Term: Years 2-4, unaffiliated work while building a portfolio
After college I plan to find full-time or part-time, local, work where I can slowly start to make a living and money to survive. However, in this time, during my free time I plan to build a portfolio of games development and learn from home anything I need for my industry that I am not currently aware of, this could include learning a programming language such as C++ and programming my own small games to test my skills, all of which I could document and create a large portfolio to give to a possible employer later when I choose to work in my industry. I would expand my skills using free online sources and if required for something specialised online paid services; I could also contact experts in their fields who could help if I needed it or go find local sources of information.
Long Term: Years 5 onwards, working at a games company
When I have all my affairs in order from the previous step I plan to work at a games company fully developing games with a team full-time. Using my previous knowledge and possibly focusing more on a single aspect that I enjoy more from the list of skills I will have developed. Depending on where I work and how I feel about it, this might be the last step as I gain promotions and acquire a higher position in the company.
End Goal for Career: Running a games company or working as a high-up employee
As a final goal I plan to go down one of two paths; either becoming a higher-up in an existing popular games company via promotion or starting and running my own games company. Either option requires lots of experience and time working in the industry and even if I don't start my own games company I can still make games myself in my own time. No matter what at this point I plan to be working full-time. If I work for a company as my end goal I plan for the company to be fairly well known and recognisable.