First of all, I want to say hi to all the guys here .. HI ;-) Hmm .. I read some topics here and I think, here are just game developer experts ! 1. How old are you ? 2. How long must I code games, before getting a job in the game industry?

1. Twenty-nine years old.

2. It all depends.

To elaborate on #2, I''ll say that I''ve been programming games as a profession for nearly three years now, with no prior game development experience.

To get a job in the game industry is really the same as any industry: prove your worth to a potential employer, and you will get employed.

To some, this means having coded a demo or two under your belt that you can show to prospective employers. It means that it''s your code, that it''s coded well, that you understand what you coded and can explain it. It might have some semblance of a game, but probably does not need to be complete nor be graphics buzzword-enabled. (Although a few buzzwords might help

To others, you might be able to show you have decent design skills. Talk to employers about games, what you liked, what didn''t you like, and WHY. The last is important; it''s easy to say "this game sucks" but not so easy to detail the problems, such as "this game sucks because the lag between control and visual response is too great." You must play lots of games, but not just to play, but to constructively critique, to know what makes a game good or bad. And designing your own levels or mods for games can help.

Contacts in the industry are always good, but not automatic. I have friends who''d love to use me to get in, but there''s no way I''ll recommend them when they make no attempt to work on their coding skills. My personal entrance to the industry was through a friend of mine who''d been working for a game company for 3 years prior. The interesting thing is that I''d already proven my value as a solid (non-games) programmer years ago by the mere evidence that _he called me_, and not the other way around. I learned what I needed to know about game dev as I went.

I''m not trying to gloat, just saying that the games industry is not really different than any other; you just need to jump in and prove you can do it. Then come to me and we''ll hire ya.


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Blue programmer needs food badly. Blue programmer is about to die!

Oh, couple more points.

Be confident of your skills. This means really get to know what you need to know, but also understand those things you don''t. Don''t try to fake out employers on the latter; they''ll catch you. You wouldn''t believe how many hyped up resumes we see with people claiming to know two dozen programming languages, operatings systems, graphics APIs and what-not.

And also, if talking to game developers/employers about game design and why certain games are good and others are bad, talk about at least one of theirs. Make sure you play it a lot, and form detailed critiques, whether it be good points or bad. It''s a big win in any industry to discuss not only what you know, but also what they know. Don''t be afraid to debate or even to be corrected. But diving in is the only way to go.


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Blue programmer needs food badly. Blue programmer is about to die!

1. ~16 years
2. I wish I knew, since no one will hire me because until I''m 18 (though they admit my skill is good enough...).

"Finger to spiritual emptiness underlying everything." -- How a C manual referred to a "pointer to void." --Things People Said

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