Game developers embody the dream of many gamers – they create game worlds, mechanics and complex interesting levels. Unity and C# teacher Vasily Gorelkin talks about who indie developers are, why the games market has grown by 35%, and what it takes to make fictional universes a reality.
What do game developers do?
When games were simple, programmers wrote them themselves. For example, the Snake game was developed by Finnish programmer Taneli Armanto, and Klondike Solitaire was developed by Microsoft intern Wes Cherry.
Over time, games have become more complex, and many different specialists are now involved in their development: game designers, 2D-3D artists, artists and designers, composers and sound designers, screenwriters and others. But it is programmers who create from individual assets (models, sounds, animations, scenarios, etc.) a whole world with their own rules and laws. They do this with the help of a game engine and programming language: the most popular are Unity (C#) and Unreal Engine ( C++ ).
Where are they needed?
Game developers work in studios that create, sell and promote games. Studios, as a rule, specialize in types and genres of games. So, the American company Bethesda creates three-dimensional games for computers and consoles, such as Fallout and Doom. The Finnish company Rovio only makes 2D games for smartphones and tablets, such as Angry Birds and Bad Piggies.
Large game companies have many developers and game designers, so everyone has a specialization. For example, a game developer may only be involved in programming the 3D graphics of the game world, or only creating game levels, for example, the mechanics of a hero fight with a boss.
Small studios – they are also called the indie segment (from the English independent, – independent) publish only a few games. There are also individual developers who create the game themselves from start to finish.
The indie segment has limited resources, so the developer can simultaneously perform other roles that are not related to writing code. For example, to deal with graphics and sound.
What should a game developer know and be able to do?
- There are ready-made assets on the Internet, but the code that implements the mechanics is written independently. That is why to create your game, first of all, learn programming. Computer game programmers need to be proficient in C#. Sometimes C++ , Java and Ajax are used. To program game data exchange with the server, you will need SQL and MySQL.
- It’s good to understand how computers and networks work – games use many different resources, such as sound and video cards, servers.
- Know the math: what the game elements and mechanics look like, everything is based on algorithms and models.
- Work in one of the platforms for creating games – most often in Unity or Unreal Engine.
- Know English to quickly master the capabilities of the platforms.
- Understand other specializations at a basic level. For example, how to animate a character and add sound effects.
- Present the structure of projects and tasks and organize your work.
Beginners often underestimate the complexity of the game creation process. After a few Unity lessons, they want to make big games like Skyrim or Dota 2. In practice, this can’t be done, even if you put together a whole team. As they study the engine and the industry, it becomes clear to them that making small games is even more interesting. The main thing in the profession is not the scale of the games, but their technical uniqueness.
How much do game developers get paid?
At the start of a career after training, you can become a junior with a median salary of 30 to 60 thousand rubles. depending on specialization. Novice game logic programmers can earn up to 80 thousand rubles.
The median earnings of the middle is 110 thousand rubles. Seniors become with experience of five years, on average, their salary is above 200 thousand rubles. Judging by the ratings , 300 thousand rubles are also received in this profession. per month.
Freelancers are less frequently used in game development than in other areas. It is more convenient for companies to order additional work from their own employees. But some tasks can be done freelance . For example, on KWork they receive about 40 thousand rubles for the development of a game.
How do game developers build their careers?
Juniors usually work on bugs and small tasks given by senior developers. After about 2 years, the specialist becomes a middle and deals with simple closed systems within the game, such as interfaces or character movement mechanics.
After another two years, specialists move to the senior level. They assemble a working game from the created systems and program complex game logic.
With at least three years of experience, you can become a team leader or technical leader: manage a team or organize the entire process of creating games. In the course of their careers, game developers specialize in certain stages of development, types and genres of games. Sometimes they go into related areas – game design, 3D design or design of narratives (scenarios).
Pros and cons of the profession
pros
- Interesting creative tasks – creating characters, mechanics and entire game worlds.
- Low entry threshold – C # on Unity is relatively easy to learn, there are training materials and ready-made game code elements (assets).
- Opportunities for horizontal development – there are various professions in the industry that you can go into if programming becomes boring, for example, you can get experience in 3D design or creating game scenarios.
- Global market – you can find a job in a representative office of a Western company in Russia, and then move abroad.
Minuses
- There are a limited number of large companies that create large-scale games like Dota 2 or FIFA, and you won’t be able to get a job right away. Most of all on the market are medium and small studios that create simple mobile games of the same type.
- High competition – due to the low entry threshold and the large volume of the games market, there are many applicants for vacancies.
Where to look for a job?
- Job search sites HH.ru and with many vacancies in game development.
- Vacancies on the Habr.Career website .
- Page with vacancies in game development on Talents in Games website .
- Freelance exchange Kwork , where you can find freelance in game development.
Where to begin?
You become a game developer if:
- love to play games, know the gaming industry well and want to create something of their own;
- know how to program and want to learn a new language and move into the gaming industry;
- work in game studios, such as game designers or narrative creators, and want to learn C# and Unity;
- want to start a career in IT in a promising gaming industry.