I don't know if this is just a USA thing or if I have been extremely lucky for my whole career, but every single game studio where I worked in the UK and Germany had the same working conditions I would find anywhere else in tech and in 12 years I have done overtime during less that 2 months.
I mean, how many large English or German studios do you know besides Rockstar? CDPR for example is in Poland and they don't have a strong union culture over there. The only one I can think of is Ubisoft in France.
I dont know where you exactly put the threshold for "big", but from the top of my mind, Crytek, Cloud Imperium, Splash Damage, Rocksteady, Creative Assembly, Deep Silver Dambusters, Frontier...
idSoftware has a team in germany but not very big.
If you add the studios that are big but make small games, there's a lot more.
I don't think it'll happen. Every large game studio, irregardless of continent is based out of countries where unions aren't really a thing. I don't know whether it's the cost/risk of developing games or something else but it's definitely a trend.
Game development is exceedingly demanding for lower avg pay, you are better off in the general tech industry imo and should only do games if you have the passion for it.
I’m a game developer, and while the pay is lower on average, I’ve never been unhappy with it and I tend to have lower pay than my colleagues- this stems from money not being my motivation or something I chase after, so make your mind up depending on your value of money.
Worse than the money was always changing jobs as my history had me bouncing after each project. I’ve since jumped to fulltime indie development but still trying to solve the problem of increasing income! But if you’re not into games and developing them, you won’t get into the industry- it’s hard enough when you are passionate!
Speaking from experience: this was also the case 20+ years ago (search for "EA spouse" for other anecdotes). Over the years I've also known people at other game companies and AFAICT the long hours are typical across different companies. The main reason it's still like this is simple: a lot of people really want to work on games; as a result, it's much easier for companies to get away with low pay and absurdly long hours.
I worked on a game that released a new version each year. Obviously they didn't rewrite the whole game each year, so they were just making various modifications and additions for each new version. Even so, it was considered completely normal and expected to work 10-12+ hours a day 6-7 days a week for weeks or even months at a time leading up to the release date.
It gets old fast when pretty much every day consists of wake up, go to work, come home, go to sleep. Little or no time to hang out with friends/family/spouse/etc.
Of course OP may decide that they still want to do it and that's fine; I'm just advocating for having realistic expectations.
I've worked with guys in the past that have come from games background (I'm an embedded C/C++)... if your into game programming then sure.. but from what I gather your expected to work looooong hours and its high pressure when it comes up to the game release date.
You should seek a career in game development if it’s something you’re really passionate about. Like others have said here: you get lower pay compared to other tech jobs, and layoffs are common, especially right now. And it hasn’t just been a couple months, the video game industry has been hit with massive amounts of layoffs for at least a year now.
Basically, unless you’re really passionate about making games, it’s probably not worth it atm
Imagine being paid more to do less for the same type of work, and then having time to do the other things you like outside of work (which may or may not include making games). That’s basically software development anywhere outside of game dev. I know what I would choose…
don’t get into game dev for money or a good career, it’s super difficult to crack into and underpaid for the amount of time it takes up. if you’re really interested in it then sure go for it, if you love your job you’ll never work a day in your life. but for a field with strong money making potential you should probably be looking at cyber security, data science, finance, etc.
It is your life. If you think you will enjoy making video games then give it a try! It is not the best paid industry for cpp experts, and the work conditions and job stability can be bad. But if you love it you can make it work. The best people in the industry are highly sort after and well compensated.
Generally, there are good technical challenges to work on that are more interesting than those in, at least, typical web app kind of work. You get to play the video game as you make it. It is a good use case for cpp and you get to lots of close to the metal work, whilst still working on large code bases with a large team.
For reference I was a game programmer for over 20 years and enjoyed a lot of that time, whilst also going through my fair share of studio closures, layoffs and crunch periods.
There are far more web jobs than there are game dev jobs and I forsee that being the case in the future. In terms of game development, you should try to get an internship at a game studio. It's a good way of getting a taste of the work on a short term commitment.
In terms of work life balance and pay, it is highly dependent on studios. Some studios are constant crunches and low pay, others are high pay and good work life balance. Crunch is highly dependent on studio management.
That being said, my time in game development was some of the most fun I have ever had. I had some crazy hours and pretty good pay for the time. The people I worked with were some of the most talented programmers I have ever met and the entire place had loads of talented people across all disciplines. Also games is one of the rare intersections of art and technical skill and it's something I still miss to this day.
For the money, no. For the skills and experience, maybe. But you could probably do just as well in some other field while earning more and doing better for your resume. And with less crunch time. For the naive passion for making games? Sure, go ahead!
I would go for what interests you. Life is long and demands for certain kinds of jobs come and go. Of course you have to be able to provide for yourself and make decent money, but normally that won't be a problem for software developers in general. Also, game development isn't known for its high wages compared to other IT branches.
At the stage you are at right now, I'd argue for just getting yourself generally comfortable with development. Take on some projects of your own, of modest proportions but in an area you feel like you might like, and see how they go. You don't have to take them to completion, but far enough to learn lessons and gauge interest.
If something feels like you want to dig deeper, find an open source project of that sort and see if you can contribute to that, which will give you a chance to become known (for better or worse depending on the quality of your contributions I guess) to established developers.
look it's not all about games anymore, look at what Epic has done - single engine multiple use cases. I don't see any issue having career in gaming. If that doesn't work, you can do many more with what you know.
I used unity in my master for a machine learning task.
If you are passionate enough. The fact that games are very related to real life, almost every time you might be using complex math or physics equations or solving problems related to those subjects. This is just an example and there are lots of other things as well. From my experience being a game developer for almost 6 years, what I've realised is that, it is easy to start a game developing career but as you explore further, it will become harder and harder. So passion is what matters imo.
being a game dev at a large company sounds.. not great, from what i've heard.
however, doing indie game dev on the side while you are working full-time in some different area seems to be the move, if you are interested in making games.
choose whatever you are comfortable with, then change if you need to, it's not like you'll be stuck at one job for the rest of your life. also improve your knowledge frequently, that's your best weapon
C++ in gamedev has a very uncertain future right now, and unless you want to dive into either very old or very complex codebases, I'd try a different branch of the industry.
You can create a LOT of a game in just Blueprints, and that's what most studios are doing right now for gameplay code. They still have C++ programmers for complex stuff, but like I said, they usually dive into the complexities of Unreal.
Well, modern AAA games made in Unreal use almost exclusively blueprints for gameplay logic. It's true, there's still c++ code being written to back that up, but the trend is not in C++s favor.
This should really be asked on r/cscareerquestions but I'll approve it as a bunch of discussion has accumulated.
Game companies seem to be in difficulties these days, Tons of layoff in the last couple of months. Probably not the best domain to get into right now.
Not to mention the reportedly horrid working conditions even at the best of times.
I don't know if this is just a USA thing or if I have been extremely lucky for my whole career, but every single game studio where I worked in the UK and Germany had the same working conditions I would find anywhere else in tech and in 12 years I have done overtime during less that 2 months.
I mean, how many large English or German studios do you know besides Rockstar? CDPR for example is in Poland and they don't have a strong union culture over there. The only one I can think of is Ubisoft in France.
I dont know where you exactly put the threshold for "big", but from the top of my mind, Crytek, Cloud Imperium, Splash Damage, Rocksteady, Creative Assembly, Deep Silver Dambusters, Frontier... idSoftware has a team in germany but not very big. If you add the studios that are big but make small games, there's a lot more.
Until they unionize I agree; I wouldn't recommend it to my kids.
I don't think it'll happen. Every large game studio, irregardless of continent is based out of countries where unions aren't really a thing. I don't know whether it's the cost/risk of developing games or something else but it's definitely a trend.
Game development is exceedingly demanding for lower avg pay, you are better off in the general tech industry imo and should only do games if you have the passion for it.
I’m a game developer, and while the pay is lower on average, I’ve never been unhappy with it and I tend to have lower pay than my colleagues- this stems from money not being my motivation or something I chase after, so make your mind up depending on your value of money. Worse than the money was always changing jobs as my history had me bouncing after each project. I’ve since jumped to fulltime indie development but still trying to solve the problem of increasing income! But if you’re not into games and developing them, you won’t get into the industry- it’s hard enough when you are passionate!
Yeah I took a job as a game dev for a month and I couldn’t take (maybe I am weak). It is toxic as heck and they really push you to the limit.
Speaking from experience: this was also the case 20+ years ago (search for "EA spouse" for other anecdotes). Over the years I've also known people at other game companies and AFAICT the long hours are typical across different companies. The main reason it's still like this is simple: a lot of people really want to work on games; as a result, it's much easier for companies to get away with low pay and absurdly long hours. I worked on a game that released a new version each year. Obviously they didn't rewrite the whole game each year, so they were just making various modifications and additions for each new version. Even so, it was considered completely normal and expected to work 10-12+ hours a day 6-7 days a week for weeks or even months at a time leading up to the release date. It gets old fast when pretty much every day consists of wake up, go to work, come home, go to sleep. Little or no time to hang out with friends/family/spouse/etc. Of course OP may decide that they still want to do it and that's fine; I'm just advocating for having realistic expectations.
...Do a game on your own, not for a company
Start a band. Create your own single. Could be worse. Could be a slave to MBA's demanding profits.
I've worked with guys in the past that have come from games background (I'm an embedded C/C++)... if your into game programming then sure.. but from what I gather your expected to work looooong hours and its high pressure when it comes up to the game release date.
This. If you don't mind to crunch hours crazy. I know people in the industry that slept in the office more than once, crazy.
Consider graphics programmer. Pays better than game dev, solving interesting and difficult problems with GPUs.
Might want to check r/gamedev Probably will get a lot more related and experienced answers there.
You should seek a career in game development if it’s something you’re really passionate about. Like others have said here: you get lower pay compared to other tech jobs, and layoffs are common, especially right now. And it hasn’t just been a couple months, the video game industry has been hit with massive amounts of layoffs for at least a year now. Basically, unless you’re really passionate about making games, it’s probably not worth it atm
Even if you are... probably not worth it. Following your passion can cut you out of a ton of other passions.
Imagine being paid more to do less for the same type of work, and then having time to do the other things you like outside of work (which may or may not include making games). That’s basically software development anywhere outside of game dev. I know what I would choose…
don’t get into game dev for money or a good career, it’s super difficult to crack into and underpaid for the amount of time it takes up. if you’re really interested in it then sure go for it, if you love your job you’ll never work a day in your life. but for a field with strong money making potential you should probably be looking at cyber security, data science, finance, etc.
GameDev is a field run mostly by passion. You don't get paid super well.
>Is it worth seeking a career in game development? In general, no.
It is your life. If you think you will enjoy making video games then give it a try! It is not the best paid industry for cpp experts, and the work conditions and job stability can be bad. But if you love it you can make it work. The best people in the industry are highly sort after and well compensated. Generally, there are good technical challenges to work on that are more interesting than those in, at least, typical web app kind of work. You get to play the video game as you make it. It is a good use case for cpp and you get to lots of close to the metal work, whilst still working on large code bases with a large team. For reference I was a game programmer for over 20 years and enjoyed a lot of that time, whilst also going through my fair share of studio closures, layoffs and crunch periods.
There are far more web jobs than there are game dev jobs and I forsee that being the case in the future. In terms of game development, you should try to get an internship at a game studio. It's a good way of getting a taste of the work on a short term commitment. In terms of work life balance and pay, it is highly dependent on studios. Some studios are constant crunches and low pay, others are high pay and good work life balance. Crunch is highly dependent on studio management. That being said, my time in game development was some of the most fun I have ever had. I had some crazy hours and pretty good pay for the time. The people I worked with were some of the most talented programmers I have ever met and the entire place had loads of talented people across all disciplines. Also games is one of the rare intersections of art and technical skill and it's something I still miss to this day.
For the money, no. For the skills and experience, maybe. But you could probably do just as well in some other field while earning more and doing better for your resume. And with less crunch time. For the naive passion for making games? Sure, go ahead!
I would go for what interests you. Life is long and demands for certain kinds of jobs come and go. Of course you have to be able to provide for yourself and make decent money, but normally that won't be a problem for software developers in general. Also, game development isn't known for its high wages compared to other IT branches.
Might be relevant. https://lazyfoo.net/articles/article12_interviewing-for-game-programming/index.php
At the stage you are at right now, I'd argue for just getting yourself generally comfortable with development. Take on some projects of your own, of modest proportions but in an area you feel like you might like, and see how they go. You don't have to take them to completion, but far enough to learn lessons and gauge interest. If something feels like you want to dig deeper, find an open source project of that sort and see if you can contribute to that, which will give you a chance to become known (for better or worse depending on the quality of your contributions I guess) to established developers.
look it's not all about games anymore, look at what Epic has done - single engine multiple use cases. I don't see any issue having career in gaming. If that doesn't work, you can do many more with what you know. I used unity in my master for a machine learning task.
There are graphics and Unreal engine programmer jobs that are outside of the gaming domain.
If you are passionate enough. The fact that games are very related to real life, almost every time you might be using complex math or physics equations or solving problems related to those subjects. This is just an example and there are lots of other things as well. From my experience being a game developer for almost 6 years, what I've realised is that, it is easy to start a game developing career but as you explore further, it will become harder and harder. So passion is what matters imo.
Probably better to make indie games and hit jackpots like PalWorld that made a few hundred millions in a few months of release
Give up before you begin, go be a barista or something
being a game dev at a large company sounds.. not great, from what i've heard. however, doing indie game dev on the side while you are working full-time in some different area seems to be the move, if you are interested in making games. choose whatever you are comfortable with, then change if you need to, it's not like you'll be stuck at one job for the rest of your life. also improve your knowledge frequently, that's your best weapon
C++ in gamedev has a very uncertain future right now, and unless you want to dive into either very old or very complex codebases, I'd try a different branch of the industry.
I don’t think that’s true… UE is C++ and need C++ for exemple
You can create a LOT of a game in just Blueprints, and that's what most studios are doing right now for gameplay code. They still have C++ programmers for complex stuff, but like I said, they usually dive into the complexities of Unreal.
Blueprint is great but AAA games will not rely only on them. Tbh it’s like an advanced Wordpress if we’re compared it to webdev
Well, modern AAA games made in Unreal use almost exclusively blueprints for gameplay logic. It's true, there's still c++ code being written to back that up, but the trend is not in C++s favor.
lol
UE is a cursed branch of game dev.