Game developer is a modern and in-demand specialty. It attracts those who love games in all manifestations, and those who want to develop in a field that has not lost relevance for 20 years. The secret of the specialty is that there are no pure developers, but there are many directions that one person perfectly combines.
Those who are far from the world of IT may think that this direction is suitable for studying experienced programmers, and beginners have nothing to do in it. In fact, this is far from being true. In our article we will tell you what a game developer should know and be able to do, how easy it is to access the profession and what will help you quickly learn the necessary minimum for work.
What game developers do and what kind of game developers there are
Game development is a powerful industry focused on the production of new games for different engines and platforms, in the form of applications for PC, smartphone or social network. A game developer is a person engaged in this field. However, this is a general concept that includes a lot of narrow specializations. Let’s give a brief description of the types of game developers:
- Gameplay developer thinks over the general concept and mechanics in close contact with 3D animators and game designers.
- Engine developer works on creating special templates – utilities and tools, thanks to which other specialists quickly solve their tasks.
- Animation developer is responsible for the visual side of a new game. He creates backgrounds, landscapes, costumes and appearance of characters, tools and weapons.
- DevOps developer ensures the comfort of users using third-party services for the game, such as Battle.net and Ubisoft.
- UI and Client developers deal with all elements outside the game world – splash screen, menus, transitions between sections. The first impression of the game depends on them, as well as the convenience of gamers in the process of passing it.
- Graphics programmer is responsible for making sure that the application does not make too high demands on devices and thanks to this it was as accessible as possible.
- Back-end developer realizes the internal structure – servers, parsing, data retrieval. The performance of the game largely depends on this specialist.
As you can see, game development involves many different professionals, and an applicant for each specialty must meet certain requirements.
A common set of responsibilities for a game developer
The work of a game developer involves solving a number of related tasks, and it happens that several professionals work simultaneously on one complex component of the game. The main directions in game development are:
- Programming;
- creation of characters and elaboration of scenarios of their interaction;
- selection and integration of visual and sound effects;
- development of game functionality;
- implementation of plug-ins and SDKs for advertising, analytics, rule enforcement, etc.;
- optimization of codes in terms of speed of operation and demandingness.
A developer in the process of creating a game uses ready-made program builds. The five most popular ones include Unity, Unreal Engine, GameSalad, CryEngine, HeroEngine. A mandatory requirement for a game developer is proficiency in programming languages (C++, Jawa, Python, etc.). In addition, he/she needs to be easily oriented in optimization software, which is created in large quantities specifically for the game industry.
Advantages and disadvantages of the game development profession
There are many convincing arguments in favor of mastering this specialty:
- Creating game software pays well, so a capable creative developer can count on a stable high income.
- Well-known companies in this industry are interested in talented developers and are ready to provide them with excellent conditions for productive activity.
- You can create a reputation of a high-class specialist, remaining a freelancer, and choose the most interesting tasks from the customers’ proposals.
- The market of game software due to the demand for promoted products attracts investors.
- Different platforms – OS, IOS/Android, etc. – can be used to realize their ideas.
- The knowledge and skills that a game developer possesses by virtue of his professional duties allow him, if desired, to find a job in any field where programming, 3D modeling, and the basics of creating mobile applications are in demand.
To the negative points can be attributed:
- The need to be primarily guided by the customer’s wishes, rather than their own ambitions.
- Constant improvement of professional skills due to the active development of the industry and the regular appearance of new tools and programs.
Money and salaries in gamemade
In terms of financial performance, the game industry today is comparable to Hollywood blockbusters: the budgets of top games are measured in hundreds of millions of dollars, but the profit they bring to the creators is impressive. For example, the most money in this industry was spent on the development of Grand Theft Auto 5 – 265 million U.S. dollars, involved the labor of more than 1000 different specialists. Investments have paid off more than enough: rights holders have sold more than 90 million copies for 6 billion dollars.
If we talk about a more modest scale, it is worth mentioning Minecraft, on which only one person worked for two years. Later, two more people joined him, and after only a few years they managed to sell 54 million copies.
The App2Top portal offers a lot of up-to-date information about the current state of affairs in the game industry in Russia and other post-Soviet countries. For example, Mail.ru Group, one of the largest domestic developers, said that from April to June 2020 its profit amounted to 11 billion rubles. The main revenue came from the sale of Warface, as well as the mobile games War Robots and Hustle Castle.
A year earlier, in early 2019, Wargaming, a major publisher from Belarus, posted data according to which the Russian computer games market ranks sixth in the world. In 2018, the turnover grew by 9% compared to the previous year and reached 736 million US dollars. More than half of this impressive amount ($ 456 million) provided Free To Play games, which are free for users, but gamers can purchase cosmetic items if they wish.
As for the earnings of specialists in the game industry, their size is influenced by such indicators as proficiency in programming languages, the level of knowledge and experience, as well as the engines they use. Let’s look at an example of how much game developers earn on Unity.
At the very beginning of a programmer’s career, he or she can expect to earn 60,000 roubles with subsequent growth. After 2-3 years, a specialist who has reached the Middle level receives 100-120 thousand rubles, and a specialist who meets the requirements of the Senior level – from 150 to 200 thousand rubles. The maximum income of game-developers on Unity is 300-350 thousand roubles a month.
Freelancers successfully cooperate with Western publishers, finding employers through foreign exchanges. For example, on Upwork, the minimum rate per hour of work is $15-20, and the earnings of an experienced specialist range from $50 to $80 per hour. Individual professionals estimate their services at $100 per hour. Thus, with an average rate of $35-50, the monthly income can reach $3500-5000.
Essential basic skills of a successful game developer
- Math and Physics
Realistic movement of objects and movement of characters in the game is impossible to implement without understanding mathematical and physical laws. There are ready-made templates of game mechanics in the engines, but they are not enough to create a unique and exciting virtual space.
A game developer should know math at the level of a first-year student at a technical university, i.e. have an understanding of linear algebra, discrete mathematics, analytical geometry, trigonometry and matanalysis. All these disciplines provide the developer with programming tools.
Physics is necessary to implement the laws of the game universe. Knowledge of the laws of classical mechanics, optics, kinematics and fluid mechanics will help to reliably reflect in virtual reality the destruction of buildings, the movement of mechanisms and people, the flight of arrows and explosions of projectiles.
- Algorithms and data structures
In the game world everything is subordinated to a given sequence of actions, where each step entails one or another reaction of characters. A good developer must understand the essence of algorithms and be able to work with data structures.
Without this, it is impossible to manage a large amount of information of different types. Game creators have to analyze a huge number of different components so that the virtual space was realistic, objects looked authentic, and locations were loaded in a timely manner and corresponded to the general concept of a strategy or shooter.
- English language
Despite the success of domestic developers, the main source of up-to-date information in the sphere of game development is foreign forums, articles, and descriptions of new technologies. To keep abreast of the latest achievements in the game industry, it is useful to speak English at a sufficient level to freely perceive technical texts.
- Git & GitHub
Git is the most popular version control system among video game developers, thanks to which you can save all variations of a project and have access to each of them. The place where projects are stored is GitHub, an online hosting service.
These tools have another function: here developers can get acquainted with the findings of their colleagues, present their own achievements to the community and thus determine the current vector of development of the game industry.
- A share of healthy gamer fanaticism
The peculiarity of this sphere of activity is that it is not enough to be just a good programmer, you need to love games, be able to endure a long absence of the desired result and continue to work despite obvious failures.
Game development is creativity, based on the desire to create a project that will realize all the most daring ideas of developers to captivate millions of followers. To do this is possible only to those people who are truly captured by the idea, sparing no effort and time for its realization and as a result achieve the intended result.
Choosing an engine to learn for an aspiring game developer
At the beginning of the journey, every game developer has to look for a platform that is most convenient for the realization of his ideas. The choice of engines is great – from the simplest to the most professional. The most popular are Unity and UE, but CryEngine, Godot, Creation Engine, and Construct are also worthy of attention.
Besides, nobody prevents you from creating your own engine. This option guarantees a lot of advantages, while the disadvantage is only one, but essential: without sufficient knowledge about graphics and system load, it will not be possible to make a truly effective engine with the potential for further improvement.
The easiest thing to do is to choose one of the ready-made options, so that you don’t waste time creating your own, and concentrate on working on the game right away. Experienced developers advise you to start with proven and most popular engines, one of them will surely be to your liking.
Unity does not need a very powerful computer, 4 GB of RAM and 1 GB of video card are enough. Of course, you won’t be able to realize a large-scale AAA project, but you can realize the idea of a simple toy.
The programming language is C#, because JS was written out of the engine. Fans of JavaScript can work with the early version, and those who prefer Python will need external plugins.
The engine itself is suitable for AAA projects and for ordinary 2D platformers that will run on Android, PC, IOS, tvOS. The main condition is a reliable powerful hardware for your PC.
Unreal Engine is more demanding on your computer – you will need at least 8GB of RAM. With the help of this engine you can create both AAA, 2D and 2D with AAA elements. Of course, all the components of the computer must be appropriate, an ancient machine inherited from daddy will not pull it. Here you will have to program in C++ and BluePrint (visual scripting for less advanced developers).
Both engines have resource stores that offer various scripts, textures and models for download. There are even ready-made game fragments that you can adapt to your own ideas and continue to realize them.
Threshold of entry into the game development profession
Many people think that it is almost impossible to get into the sphere of game development, that it is the domain of absolute geniuses, and that an ordinary person should not even try to become one of these demigods.
Of course, this point of view has nothing to do with reality. There would be a desire, and a very strong, and willingness to devote a lot of time to creating games.
In addition, you will need such qualities as perseverance, the ability not to pass up in the face of difficulties, methodically work out the blunders and achieve their goals. Even if at first modest, daily, but eventually leading to success.
And don’t believe those who say that real developers should be completely focused on games, that they have no extraneous hobbies, that they don’t care about family and friends. Yes, in any industry there are fans of their work, but in general in game development there are normal people, excellent specialists who enjoy their work, try to do it as best as possible, but at the same time they are not strangers to other aspects of life.
Another misconception is related to the fact that many people associate computer games with a pleasant pastime, but not with a serious occupation capable of providing a high level of income. The only way out is to learn how to distinguish between work and hobby, to give your best, solving problems related to the current project, and enjoy immersing yourself in the world of your favorite strategy.
Starting a career as a game developer
Most often the ranks of developers are filled with avid gamers who do not want to be satisfied with ready-made products of the game industry and seek to bring something of their own to it. The first step may be to modify the game they are passionate about, then the idea of their own project appears. To implement it, the missing knowledge and skills are accumulated, and over time the favorite occupation becomes no less favorite work.
Beginning developers can take different paths. Some understand the specialty on their own, go Indie and realize their own projects. Others create a portfolio with which they start looking for an employer.
Practice shows that most often in game-development successfully realize their abilities representatives of the three groups:
- Graduates of technical universities who have never been involved in game development before.
- Experienced developers without knowledge of engine features.
- Beginning programmers with experience of working with the engine.
The easiest way to become a member of the game-development team is to work for a while in other departments of the publishing company.
This allows newcomers to gain experience in performing routine operations and solving simple tasks. If you want, you can try your hand in different directions: start as a tester, then learn the basics of game design. A good developer at least in general terms understands all the components of such a difficult project as the creation of a new computer game.
When implementing large projects, the fulfillment of tasks on a particular profile is assigned to the relevant specialists, while small studios prefer not to divide responsibilities between their employees, who usually possess the necessary skills in all areas of game development.
If a person has a desire to focus on a narrow specialization, for example, only coding or game analytics, it is better to look for vacancies in large companies.
Важный навык, помогающий грамотно откликнуться на вакансию и тем самым повысить свои шансы – умение оформлять резюме и составлять сопроводительные письма. Благодаря такому письму соискатель подчеркивает индивидуальность обращения, свое желание трудиться именно в этой компании. Такой подход ценится потенциальным работодателем гораздо выше, чем массовая рассылка резюме.
As a rule, the candidate is offered a test task, which will clearly demonstrate the professional level and the degree of mastery of the skills required for the position. It is possible that the applicant will be asked questions about the programming language and engine. Even if you don’t get the position the first time, you will gain invaluable experience: you will be pointed out the gaps in your knowledge, which you can eliminate and try to pass the interview after some time.
Job search locations for a game developer
Attempts of novice developers to handle a project alone rarely end successfully. Such freelancers lack knowledge and experience, and although they charge a low price for their services, which attracts clients, the result rarely satisfies a demanding customer. The optimal option for starting a career in this industry is to participate in project implementation under the guidance of experienced developers.
You can find such teams of professionals in studios. You can start learning the wisdom of game development from the position of a trainee or junior level specialist. To find vacancies, use HeadHunter or LinkedIn, study ads in thematic communities of social networks, attend exhibitions and seminars where programmers and representatives of game industry companies gather.
This is a good way to establish direct contacts with potential employers, create a favorable impression of yourself and get an invitation to an internship.
Game Developer Training
Game development is a fascinating field that allows you to combine your love of games with your professional achievements as a specialist directly involved in their creation. How to become a game developer? To choose the IT direction in which you can achieve career heights, GeekBrains with the participation of Skillbox offers a program “Developer”.
This product summarizes the experience of our leading experts and methodologists, combines fundamental knowledge and skills, applied tools for narrow specialties, and an accessible presentation of theoretical and practical material. We know very well what skills game developers should possess and where to study to become true IT professionals.
Having mastered the basic scope of knowledge, you will be able to decide on a narrow specialization, consciously choosing the direction that will become your personal road to success in game development.
Upon completion of the course, you will be able to boldly respond to the vacancies of publishing companies to take part in the realization of projects and earn money while enjoying your work.
The program ends with final tests, successful completion of which entitles you to receive a document confirming your professional level. This is either a retraining diploma, if you have mastered a new specialty, or a certificate of advanced training, if you have reached new heights in your field.
You also have the opportunity to participate in a gas pedal for three months after graduation to develop, test and promote business ideas.
The “Developer” educational route involves continuous improvement in your specialization. Purchasing the program entitles you to use its materials for life. Recordings of all lectures and seminars, a personal account and the support of our teachers – all this is yours forever.
Once you become our student, you will get lifetime access to future updates, new broadcasts, program blocks online. Real professionals study all their lives, and we believe that you will be able to become just such a game developer – not indifferent, constantly striving to reach new heights.