Game developer game career guide fall 2005

p re s e n t s >> SCHOOL DIRECTORY MORE THAN 100 GAME DEV PROGRAMS >> SALARY SURVEY GETTING PAID FOR GAMING AROUND FA L L 0 >> A DAY IN THE LIFE THREE DEVELOPERS SPILL THE BEANS >> INDIE STUDIO TIPS GOING IT ALONE? WE EXPLAIN HOW >> INDUSTRY GLOSSARY THE WHO, WHAT, AND WHERE OF GAMES SCHOOL OF ANIMATION & VISUAL EFFECTS Student Jeffrey Hawkins want game? we teach it! 80% of our graduates are working in the art and design industry S C H O OL OF A N I M AT I O N & V IS UAL E FFE CT S Ga m es, 3D Animati on, 2D A n i m ati on, 3D M o de lin g , Ch ar ac t e r A n imat io n , B a ck ground P aint in g, S tor y board & V F X / Compo sit in g F O U ND ED I N SAN F RANC I SC O 9 BY ART I ST S F O R ART I ST S 1.800.544.ARTS | www.academyart.edu 79 New Montgomer y St., San Francisco, CA 94105 • REGISTER NOW FOR FALL, SPRING AND SUMMER SEMESTERS Nationally Accredited by ACICS, NASAD, FIDER (BFA-IAD), NAAB - Candidate Status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presents FALL 2005 [CONTENTS] GAME CAREER GUIDE F E AT U R E S 21 IT’S ALIVE! FROM CONCEPTION TO PROFIT: THE LIFE AND TIMES OF INDIE GAME COMPANIES Game developers often fall into two camps: those who work for a large, conglomerated company, and those who fight tooth and nail to survive independently When the benefits and stipulations of big business— steady pay check, health insurance, working toward someone else’s vision— don’t exactly float your boat, there is another way to make great games, but it’s among the riskiest ventures around It takes sacrifice, guile, and dedication to make it work—and even then, sometimes things don’t work out 21 By Andy Schatz 29 GAME DEVELOPER’S SALARY SURVEY For the first time in our Career Guide, we present our entire annual salary survey, a close look at the facts and figures affecting game developers most directly: their wages By Jill Duffy 29 38 SO YOU WANT TO BE A GAME PROGRAMMER: HOW TO GET OUT OF COLLEGE AND INTO GAMES 10 A DAY IN THE LIFE What, exactly does one when one works in the game industry? While the job of a game developer can vary tremendously from month to month or sometimes even hour to hour, we’ve found three professionals who are willing to share the details of a typical day in the office One programmer, one designer, and one artist catalogue their routine at work making games In traditional Career Guide fashion, we present a tip-packed and honest guide to getting into one of the most coveted industries in the technology and entertainment sector Matt Gilgenbach and Daniel Sass, two established game professionals, share their secrets about breaking in 38 By Matt Gilgenbach and Daniel Sass By John Miller, Noel Llopis, and David Sirlin DEPARTMENTS LETTER FROM THE EDITOR By Simon Carless The Golden Path HEADS UP DISPLAY Fact sheets on the biggest industry events and organizations COVER ART: ORIGINAL ART BY SCOTT HANSEN CAREER GUIDE 2005 | GAME DEVELOPER 48 GAME SCHOOL DIRECTORY Our comprehensive listing of university-level game programs 80 TOP 10 BOOKS by Brad Kane Whether aspiring to be a designer, programmer, or artist, having a well-rounded reading list can put you a head above the competition ,=Fh]^e;r>qik^llbhgLmn]^gmIZneG`nr^g KGE=H=GHD= O=J=:GJF>GJL@AK& L@=