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By Posted in Careers 2 Comments

The below is a free sample from my book, Start Your Video Game Career. Enjoy! – Jason

CHAPTER ONE

Introduction

I’ll never forget the day I got my first video game console. It was a chilly Montana morning. I climbed out of bed and stumbled bleary-eyed to the living room, with plans to watch Saturday morning cartoons in my full-body Spider-Man pajamas. (Did I mention I was six years old?) As I turned toward the television, there it was: a brand-new Atari 2600 home video game system, in all of its beautiful faux-wood and black-plastic glory.

I immediately fell in love. Read more »

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By Posted in Careers, Resume 14 Comments
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Understanding the game designer job requirements is the first step to mastery.

Is your goal to become a video game designer, but you don’t know how to get there? Start by understanding the game designer requirements and qualifications that game companies demand.

Every game company has specific requirements you’ll need to meet before they’ll hire you as a game designer. Luckily, you don’t need to ask companies what those are. Instead, simply find an online job posting by any game studio you’d like to work for, and read the game designer job requirements they’ve listed. It’s that easy. Read more »

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By Posted in Careers, Tools No Comments

After four years of research and over a year of writing, editing, and re-writing, I’m thrilled to announce that my new book Start Your Video Game Career is finally complete, and available for purchase!

Start Your Video Game Career, by Jason W. Bay

Click here to buy Start Your Video Game Career now!

This book is a big deal for me personally, since it’s the most in-depth book I’ve ever written. More importantly, I think it will be a powerful tool for you, because it’s packed full of knowledge, guidance, and inspiration to help you start your own successful career in the video game industry. Read more »

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By Posted in Tools 30 Comments
With books, you're less likely to drop your phone in the toilet.
With books, you’re less likely to drop your phone in the toilet.
Image: Indi Samarajiva/Flickr

It’s easy to get started with game development, thanks to a variety of pre-made game engines that help you create basic games quickly. But to make anything substantial – not to mention anything unique or ground-breaking – you’ll need to invest time and effort into your programming skills.

For learning a deep topic like game programming, nothing beats a book. You can throw it in your bag and read it anywhere – on the bus, at school, on your lunch break, on the toil… well, you get the idea.

The game programming books listed below are some of the best available, and they come highly recommended by professional game programmers like Brandon Fogerty, David Galloway, Dan Posluns, Brian Gish, and Yours Truly – me. Start at the top, and build your coding chops as you work through the list.

Note: For younger children, see the list of coding books for kids.
Read more »

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By Posted in Applying, Podcast 2 Comments

In this episode of Game Industry Career Guide Podcast, I answer a question from Mihai, who asks “I have a question regarding game art colleges. I’ve watched Marc Brunet and other artist’s videos and they strongly advised us not to attend any colleges as long as our portfolio is as strong as the Industry demands. Would you recommend attending a game art college if I already have a game studio quality portfolio?”

In this episode, you’ll learn:

  • Whether you can get a job as a game artist without a degree
  • Why an art degree doesn’t guarantee you’ll get a job… or that you’ll be a good artist
  • How to get real, candid feedback on your art skills

Read more »

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By Posted in Careers, Podcast No Comments

In this episode of Game Industry Career Guide Podcast, I answer a question from Robert, who asks “I’m in high school and I was wanting to know how long you have to be in college to become a Lead Game Designer? So I was wondering if you could give me information on this career and the path to take.”

In this episode, you’ll learn:

  • Why you’ll get conflicting opinions on this question
  • Which fields were studied by today’s top game designers
  • How long you should go to school for game design degrees

Read more »

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By Posted in Podcast No Comments

In this episode of Game Industry Career Guide Podcast, I answer a question from Blake, who asks, “I want to become a game tester, but I am not sure if I have the right qualifications. So I was wondering, are there any special requirements for doing this job? Also, I’m 16 years old. How old do you have to be to get this job, and how much do you get paid for your work?”

In this episode, you’ll learn:

  • The basic requirements and pay of a video game tester
  • Which skills are most important to getting a testing job
  • My favorite resource for learning how to test games

Read more »

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By Posted in Podcast 4 Comments

In this episode of Game Industry Career Guide Podcast, I answer a question from Ramo, who asks, “I am currently an airman in the navy, but when I get out I would like to fulfill my dream of becoming a sound producer for a video game company. I would like to know what schools could I attend, and what people I should I connect with?”

In this episode, you’ll learn:

  • Various educational options for audio engineering and production
  • Why career networking is critical to your future audio career
  • The best way to grow your career network rapidly, so it will be there when you need it

Read more »

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By Posted in Careers, Podcast 1 Comment

In this episode of Game Industry Career Guide Podcast, I answer a question from John Paul who asks, “I was wondering a few things. 1: Do you get paid more for being at a company, say 10 years versus 2 or 3? And 2: If you work for a bigger company are you more likely to make more? 3: How many years of schooling do you have to go to for most companies to hire you?”

In this episode, you’ll learn:

  • Why salary is an important consideration when selecting a career
  • The 4 major factors that determine how much you’ll make in your game job
  • How project bonuses actually work, and why they’re not quite what they seem

Read more »

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