How to become a gamer?

[uMMan]

Hi guys, I have been thinking a lot to become a gamer or at least to do something related to gaming for my entire life. I just could not give up for the things that I have been doing or could not start as a whole different path. But when I think about becoming a game developer, I really get excited which I never felt the things I did for a living. I am not sure if I should do it for a living or for a hobby. I was thinking to study computer science but is it required to study CS to become a gamer? I know that there are really different titles under the name "gamer" such as scripture writing, coding, 3D developing, voice acting and things like that. I am not sure for which title I got the talent but I would love to produce games from scratch and do this for a living. From this point of view could you answer these questions:

 

1. Is it required to study CS or any other field to become a gamer?

2. How should I test my skills for revealing which title is for me?

3. What tools should I search or use for understanding to make a game from scratch. I mean to understand the process of making a video game. (this might also help for answering the second question)

4. Would you set aside what you have been doing for your entire life and go for the things you love. (this is probably due to choosing a wrong career I guess.)

 

Thanks for your answers and guidance.

[BTGBullseye]

Actually, 'gamer' is really just someone who plays games...

 

Being part of the game development process would mean you would be a developer.

[Blightmare]

As someone in the game design industry I can tell you it's very different than what you see in videos and such. The problem I see happening a lot is that too many people think that game design is gonna be all fun and games, when it honestly isn't. Game design is a LOT of work. Often so much so that you spend more time working on them and very little time playing them. That's not to say it can't be fun, you just have to enjoy what it is you do; creating.

 

To answer some of your questions,

 

1. No, it's not required. It helps to know enough around computers that you can navigate and find files easily but that's really it.

2. and 3. See below.

4. Yes I would. If I discovered something that held my interest more than GD, I would pursue it. I wouldn't ever stop GD completely but if, say, I decided I wanted to play music more than I would start learning that.

 

now, for questions 2 and 3, I'll answer them both together.

 

To test your skills, you have to play around a bit. If you want to be a level designer, I suggest playing around in UDK. You can download the engine for free but you couldn't publish anything until you bought a license; a great way to learn the engine without a money commitment.

 

Scripting is essentially handled by the level designers anyways because it's very light coding, and in the cases of Engines like UDK and CryEngine, it's handled almost completely by flowcharting style (Kismet for UDK, Flowgraph for CE. Both come included with the software)

 

Kismet example:

 

 

Flowgraph:

 

 

 

Programming is a different beast entirely and requires a lot of self study. I taught myself almost everything I know about programming through google searches, and a great engine to try that out in is the Unity3D engine. This is another free to try engine. This is the pickiest of all the game design positions since it's so easy for things to break even when the logic makes sense but arguably one of the most desired due to how important the position is.

 

One of the more prominent positions is 3D modelling. Level designers, character designers, riggers(sets up the characters bone structures) and and sort of physical modelers will need to be very well versed in these softwares. Industry standards are Autodesk 3DS Max, Autodesk Maya, and ZBrush. There's a lot of other programs used to help but these are the ones you'll find used the most. Unfortunately there's no free-to-try other than the 30 day trials for these. You could always try Blender as that's free, but I don't know that program so I couldn't help you there.

 

Things like voice acting aren't strictly game design and requires a whole different collection of software. I would suggest Pro Tools for recording software, though it's very expensive. Hardware I'm afraid you'd have to ask someone else.

 

Unity: http://unity3d.com/unity/download

UDK: https://www.unrealengine.com/news/february-2014-unreal-development-kit-udk-available-for-download

 

It's also highly suggested you verse yourself in photoshop as it get's a lot of use as well.

 

Beyond this, the most I can say is start researching. Play around where you can and see what it is that interests you the most, and just start researching and studying. Those are the biggest thing's you'll end up doing in game design. I've been doing this for years and I STILL find myself studying more than doing in most cases.

 

The great thing about this field is that while it's difficult, it's incredibly well documented and there's tutorials for almost everything. Just gotta look.

[uMMan]

BTGBullseye sorry about choosing the wrong word, I meant game developer or game designer.

 

Rarity, I appreciate for your answer. This helps a lot. I am thinking it would probably be fun to be in a position that you design games but really I don't rely on only playing part of it. As you said, designing and creating would be much fun for me than playing.

 

Thanks a lot for the softwares and other information. I will definitely test them and try to find out which skills I have more talent for. I was always thinking that to be a game designer, you have to know some programming that's why I thought to study CS would make more sense. However, as you said it could be possible to learn the required skills through internet.

 

I think it is great that you can find tutorials and tips which makes the learning part easier or at least reachable. I wasn't experiencing the same thing in my field. Again thanks a lot man. One more question are there any other forum sites that I can follow and improve my knowledge about game designing?

[Jeb_CC]

I'm technically a game developer. X3 An Amateur Java game developer. You don't need to use CS no. I've longed to work with Java for eons now and I finally have the power to do whatever I want, code whatever I want. I just need the motivation. Developing a game is hard work. You really need to get your head into the project to succeed.

[Blightmare]

One more question are there any other forum sites that I can follow and improve my knowledge about game designing?

 

I'm not sure about many overall game design sites since I went to college for it but World of Level Design has a LOT of good stuff on it. http://worldofleveldesign.com/

 

Unity has it's own pages for learning the engine as well and UDK has it's own forums.

 

http://unity3d.com/learn

https://forums.epicgames.com/forums/366-UDK

 

Not sure about modelling and such though. A lot of what I learned for that was via classes and things me and my own friends discovered just practicing. Software like that is popular enough that there should be some relatively easy to find and well populated forums.

 

All the sites I linked I've used plenty of times if it helps any.

[K4_Kydure]

I think it is great that you can find tutorials and tips which makes the learning part easier or at least reachable. I wasn't experiencing the same thing in my field. Again thanks a lot man. One more question are there any other forum sites that I can follow and improve my knowledge about game designing?

You can also watch Extra Credits. While they don't provide detailed guides on how to make games I think they're great for aspiring game devs like yourself.

[uMMan]

Thanks a lot for your answers, these'll absolutely keep me busy to explore.

[Blightmare]

You're welcome, and good luck.