How to Become a Video Game Designer
If you have a flair for design and turning your passion for video games into a career, you might consider seeking a video game designer position. In this role, you can bring to life worlds created by you and your team, feel rewarded, and ultimately bring together people from all over the world from diverse backgrounds.
What Is a Video Game Designer?
In video games, the designer is responsible for creating the story, characters, and aesthetics. Designers get together with varied groups to build a unified strategy. They also collaborate closely with designers and developers to implement the design, try out new ideas, and fix any bugs that may crop up.These responsibilities are analogous to those of a video game programmer, who designs the game’s code and checks that it is correctly implemented. In order to iron out any kinks and make sure the game is as smooth as possible before it reaches the hands of players, developers often turn to focus groups.
What Does a Video Game Designer Do?
Designers for video games are involved in numerous phases of the industry’s production cycle. In general, video game designers may be asked to accomplish any of the following, though specific duties will vary depending on the position held:
- Brainstorm new game ideas that would engage a wider audience
- Outline the game’s concept and storyboard the overall game experience
- Develop characters and plots based on the storyboard of the game
- Develop the code necessary for a game to work
- Document the code and work out any bugs or issues with the code
- Work with developers and other members of their team to ensure that there are no bugs or problems from start to finish
- Respond to feedback about concerns with the game
- Create patches or bug fixes to ensure that the game continues to work well
What Education Does a Video Game Designer Need?
Step 1: Earn a bachelor’s degree
Starting with a bachelor’s degree in software engineering is highly recommended for those who desire to work as video game designers. Gain essential skills in data administration, software basics, web development, user experience, and more with a degree in this field. If you want to pursue a profession in video game creation, you’ll need to have a firm grasp of these concepts.
Step 2: Gain experience
You’ll need actual game design experience if you want to climb up into a video game designer position. You may get this kind of experience and develop the abilities you need to advance your career through internships and entry-level jobs.