Monday, May 9, 2011

Jobs in computer games, where are they?

Having watched Gamasutra's career developer newsletter, and a couple other sources, it seems there is a trend in the jobs posted.  Most of the work is in code or art.  Having forsaken coding many years ago in order to favor business it's becoming apparent that if someone's goal is to get a job at a computer game company quickly they should have a coding education.  In that light was it a mistake or a good choice to go with business as a degree?

What we all see posted are the jobs which require people in the seats right now either because someone left or because the company needs to get work done faster.  Are those jobs really in the position to move up the chain?  Well yes.  But they aren't in the position to be higher up the chain now.  Technical knowledge gets your foot in the door and you can work your way up in the business.  But where are business jobs posted?

An interesting throught occurred to me today...  The kind of jobs which require leadership are never posted.  Existing companies don't post open jobs for the creative person who started the company.  That job was already filled before a company could exist to post the job.  You cant search for the kind of jobs I really want to look for, because they don't exist.  After a couple months of doing this has brought up a different thought...  Maybe they are never posted because they are impossible to fill.  Or perhaps they are never posted because they are the easiest job to just DO, and by jumping in and just doing that job you can make a place for yourself.

Ultimately I love business as a study, and it is universally applicable to any jobs at any time in the future.  I would not and could not make any other choice and do not regret my decision.  Likewise I will always be making games in some way.  Looking back there has always been a game that was getting some design effort, so that will continue in the future irregardless of any job in the future.  This helps make me realize that being a game designer is not my ultimate goal...  Working in the industry in some capacity is my goal.  It's worth spending time doing the networking and learning the industry for that.

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