[casual_games] the content problem from a casual gameperspective.

[Jónas Björgvin Antonsson]

Don't flame me.

 

I feel like education is taking a beating here. I don't think going to school is a bad thing. Education is positive because, if it is done right, it helps people understand the most fundamental aspects of their trade and how they can leverage that knowledge. That can be quite valuable. So if a person that has drive, imagination and skill decides to go through university I think that is a good thing for everyone. Of course you will always get graduates that can't "cut it" in the real world but that is a common problem no matter what vocation we're focusing on. From lawyers to doctors. But the market eventually sorts them out and so it should. 

 

A good hiring philosophy should also be able to spare you the grief of "bad apples" - but no matter what, people need to get experience from somewhere and this industry (games) is very tough when it comes to that. I often wonder how many people out there could fit the industry perfectly but we're not getting them because "they didn't have what it takes to make it on their own". I have a couple of excellent programmers that would probably never be able to self-publish anything but they are both brilliant as part of a team.

 

Ultimately, making games (with everything that entails) is a job - even though it takes quite a bit of creativity and (even) artistry to do some of the work (not all of it, though). I find it valuable, for example, to hire great programmers that have finished university. Even if they have no previous experience in the game industry, having only worked at the business side of software for a number of years. There you can find people who have a solid understanding of fundamentals like design patterns, communication protocols, structured code, etc. - all skills that can be directly applied to the "dark side of game making" - work. And most programmers that are any good are also very creative. One might argue that programming is an artform all on its own... 

 

J#

 

From: casual_games-bounces at igda.org [mailto:casual_games-bounces at igda.org] On Behalf Of Robert Headley
Sent: 19. september 2007 03:46
To: casual_games at igda.org
Subject: [casual_games] the content problem from a casual gameperspective.

 

That's the point though,
Yes, they may be pricey. I just meant that these schools make it out to seem that anyone can work on videogames.

People feel that since they paid their often pricey tuition, then they are owed a game job that pays 60k + a year 
So they think they have it set.

When in reality, being able to model something in 3ds max does not qualify you to work on games. You have to have drive and imagination, and actually design skill. These schools are turning out bucketloads of "artists" that have technical ability and no soul. 

Sorry for the rant. 

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