When we think of the “rockstars” of the game industry, we immediately think of people
like Tim Shafer, Hideo Kojima, SUDA51, and Shigeru Miyamoto.
What do these heroes have in common?
They’re all game designers!
Great game designers have built entire industries and have shaped culture as we know it.
So it’s easy to see why there are a lot of people dreaming of becoming game designers.
As we’ve seen in our previous video, the barrier to entry for making games is lower
than it’s ever been - you can start becoming a video game designer today!
So where do you start?
We ‘re going to tell you all you need to know about what a video game designer does,
and how to get started on a career path in game design today.
We are Ask Gamedev and this is how to become a video game designer in 2018.
[What they do] Before we get into how to become a design
designer, let’s take a closer look at the role.
What does a game designer do?
Game designers play a pivotal role in the overall direction of a game - everything starts
with a game designer.
Before a single line of code is written, game designers are busy planning in pre-production
working on game design documents.
Using written documents, visuals, and in-engine examples, game designers scope out key design
pillars and rules, explore over-arching designs, prototype, and plan ahead for production and
post-launch.
Keep in mind that there are many different types of designers - and they often hold titles
that reflect their area of expertise.
Gameplay designers have a deep understanding of mechanics and controls, and work closely
with gameplay engineers.
UX designers have a good feel of how to build UI screens and HUDs - and they work closely
with 2D artists, UI engineers, and animators.
Level designers are commonly used in games with episodic worlds - like shooters, platformers,
and adventure games.
They are good at creating fun and challenging levels and work closely with environment modelers
and animators.
Scripting designers often create code scripts that can automate certain aspects of the game
creation.
They typically use scripting languages and provide the bridge between design and engineering.
Systems designers architect complex systems like the progression or metagame features.
They do a lot of work in spreadsheets and work closely with systems engineers.
And Finally, in the free-to-play mobile space there are a lot of specialized designers that
focus on developing retention and monetization design.
These designers are heavy users of analytics and are constantly reviewing data in order
to optimize the game.
This list is by no means exhaustive - there are designers that specialize in virtually
all areas of game design.
[How to become one.
Education, career path] So how do you become a designer?
Whatever type of design role you want to pursue - it’s important to remember that very few
people jump right into a career in game design.
A common way to become a game designer is to start working for a game studio in an entry-level
testing job.
The benefit of being in quality assurance is that you work with multiple teams and acquire
a firm grasp of the entire development process.
In addition, the amount of hours spent in QA play-testing games can contribute greatly
to your overall game design IQ as playtesting and quality design go hand in hand.
Finally, testers often have to interact with existing game designers to interpret whether
an issue in the software is as intended or a bug.
This interaction can help develop an understanding of the design role and the language they use
to describe the game.
In terms of an educational background, there are many schools out there that provide educational
designations on video game design.
These can be helpful in signaling to a potential employer that you have built a base of game
design knowledge, but these programs can be expensive and are by no means necessary to
jumpstart your design career ambitions.
As with many roles in game development, a superior strategy can be to develop an awesome
prototype or game on your own time that demonstrates your creativity and technical abilities.
[Skills & Tools of the trade] Ok so now we know the types of games designers,
and a few paths to becoming one - but what skills should a good games designer have?
Game designers need to have a number of soft skills and hard skills!
A good game designer should be able to communicate his or her ideas effectively, and be able
to influence and motivate a team!
Designers often draft a lot of early visualizations of game features before coders, artists and
animators start the final creation process.
A huge part of a designers job is keeping everyone aligned on the vision for the product.
Knowing how to write compelling design briefs, storyboards, and wireframes can be extremely
useful in this effort.
A good designer should also have a deep understanding of past games and the merits of their different
mechanics and features.
There are very few ‘new’ ideas in game design - so the more you know about existing
products, the better you will be at making something that feels fresh.
On the technical side, a game designer can definitely benefit from being skilled in a
graphics program to be able to better visualize and present their ideas.
Also, knowing a scripting language like LUA is also important for things like designing
levels and events.
[role perks and challenges] Now that you know what a designer does and
the skills they need, what are the perks and challenges with the role?
On the positive side, you get to have a direct impact on the creation of a game - something
we have all wanted to do!
Also, designers are often seen as evangelists for the game - they can get media and conference
opportunities as a result of their close understanding of how the game works.
Similarly, in a large studio the designer can often get lots of exposure to senior leadership
as a result of their ability to speak on behalf of the team.
This said, the designer role is not without its challenges - as a team centrepiece the
designer will often have to put in long hours and support the other team members during
the crunch periods leading up to major milestones.
Designers often have to review and provide feedback on the work of other development
team members, which means that they have to be regularly available.
Also, the lineup of people looking for game design roles is long - so expect to tough
it out while you work your way up the ladder.
[Career Progression] But once you do become an established designer,
where do you go from there?
What is the career path for this discipline?
Typically, a designer can work their way up to a role of design or creative director - this
is a senior design leader who typically manages a team of designers and is responsible for
the overarching product vision.
Once at this level, the managerial expertise gained can often lead to an executive producer
or general manager role in a larger studio.
The best designers have lots of upward mobility and can reach the highest levels in our industry.
[Further reading] If you want to learn more about video game
design - some great books to check out include: Theory of Fun by Raph Koster
The Design of Everyday Things by Don Norman The Laws of Simplicity by John Maeda
And A Book of Lenses by Jesse Schell
We have links of each of these books in the description.
If there’s a game design book that we didn’t mention, let us know in the comments!
Thanks for watching, we are Ask Gamedev, and we make videos on games, the game industry
and more.
If you’d like to see more videos, please subscribe!
What’s a game that you think has really innovate design?
Let us know in the comments!
This is the start of a new series of videos we’re making on different roles in the game
industry.
Check out this playlist for more info on game industry careers.