Hello everyone. I got a couple questions...

I have always had an interest in this career field but never knew where to start. Everytime I asked someone they said to look online -.-...that only goes so far. I am in the military so they don't generally have academic counselors for this sort of thing. I need some info on where to start really. My interest is in Game Design so I know I need some programming experience but don't know which language to start with. I tried taking a class on it but my teacher was a s***head and pretty much said here's a book have fun. I found it difficult at first but started to get the hang of it until and of course I ran into some difficult areas of the subject. He did not help me so I had a very difficult time. I seem to catch on fast but have no one to look for help when I run into hiccups. Is there a program online that assists you with these things or can help me get my foot in the door so when I get outta the military I can have a portfolio started. I am currently lookin at schools to attend that can help me as well...any suggestions?

My interest is in Game Design so I know I need some programming experience

Designers don't need to know how to program, they need to know how to write documents, and understand what mechanics make for good fun/play.

but don't know which language to start with.[/quote]If you want to start programming, most people will probably recommend either Python or C#, as they're pretty easy to learn and there are basic game toolkits for those languages.

Thank you for the info Hodge, much appreciated. I understand that designers don't "need" to know the basics of programming but it seems to be essential in most of the job openings I have been looking at. Is there anyone out there that is currently a designer,or anyone who knows a designer, that can give me some info or advice on this?

Thank you for the info Hodge, much appreciated. I understand that designers don't "need" to know the basics of programming but it seems to be essential in most of the job openings I have been looking at. Is there anyone out there that is currently a designer,or anyone who knows a designer, that can give me some info or advice on this?

Designers. What kind of designer? Game designer? Level designer?
If it's the former; those positions hardly exist and takes many years of experience to acquire (and lots of trust; the kind of trust that gives any person the keys to the entire game's design). Game designers are (generally) from a programming background with many years of experience, successful AAA titles under their belt and, hey, why not add generally good buddy-buddy with the boss
Level designers are varied. Usually they are either from a Q&A background, which means they worked their way up and eventually were promoted to level design, or they might have gotten recruited from a modding community or by doing what any entry level employee does - sending around their resume. That resume varies, but generally includes a number of completed levels, some 3D work and it's a major plus if you know scripting in whatever language they are seeking - some minor form of tweaking of the scripts is quite common in level design; being able to do it yourself raises your multitasking ability + your value = higher chance for employment.

You have an dramatically better chance of getting the latter instead of the former. Good to note is also that level designers, much like 3D artists, are required to not only design the level but also implement it using rudimentary placeholder assets, which means that a varied experience in many different major industry editors is huge boon to you resume. Being able to model is pretty much required to some degree, being able to model well is a major plus (saves the artists from having to clean up your asswork )

Hope that answered some of your questions!

EDIT: I re-read your original post. It seems you want to be a designer, but know little of the game biz and haven't done much design work - correct? In that case, I recommend instead you find out what your actual goal is and work your way backwards from that. You might find design work rather tedious and boring, and you might find programming interesting - who knows? Point being: shop around, see what figurative shoe fits, and then decide which job you really really want.
As for your goal. Do you want to work at a specific company? Make your own startup? Just work in the biz as a <whateverthatgoeshere>?
Just as an example, if you wanted to work for Blizzard I would've recommended you...
1) Read up on what Blizzard demands of it's employees for a specific job (which can be read here).
2) Read up on the Blizzard Career FAQ (which can be read here)
3) Read Tom Sloper's FAQ (which can be read here)
4) By the time you finished the above, you should have a good idea on what you need. From that point onwards, either you

A ) ...have everything it takes - congrats! Now send in that job application and await as you are swarmed by offers
or...
B ) In which case, you either go to school or brush up on whatever needs learning yourself. Books, dvds, tutorials, teachers - use it! Make whatever you can out of your education, self-taught or otherwise, and GET THAT JOB!

Thanks Dark. That did answer some of my questions. So pretty much you have to know someone in order to get a decent position and definitely need to have a wide range of computer skills to be a designer. If anyone has any other info for me don't be afraid to post, i need all the help I can get

I need some info on where to start really. My interest is in Game Design so I know I need some programming experience but don't know which language to start with.

The game engine, core functionality, and (usually also) the client applications in virtually all professional games are written in C++ (combined with various languages for specific purposes, like NVIDIA Cg for graphics-related programming and visual effects). Even though this language takes some time to learn (and a really long time to master) I would recommend you go ahead and start with that since you will have to learn it sooner or later. Try looking at Amazon for introductory books on C++, you can even find books that aim to teach you the language from a game programmer's perspective, though I don't know if they are any good (read the reviews). Don't buy Bjarne Stroustrup's book on the topic; he invented the language but his book is definitely not the one you want to start with.

[quote name='Grim O.o' timestamp='1301022789' post='4790225']
My interest is in Game Design so I know I need some programming experience

Designers don't need to know how to program, they need to know how to write documents, and understand what mechanics make for good fun/play.
[/quote]
They might need to know how to script though.

Crosspost. Closing this thread, since the live topic is properly in Breaking In now.
[Edit] On second thought, leaving this one open and closing the other one. Grim-O, please do not crosspost. And please do read the FAQs.