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Igrostroy: threshold for entering the industry, specialties and possible income



Game developer is one of the most sought after in IT professions. Firstly, because it is an interesting work, secondly, well-paid, and thirdly ... well, a game developer can show the result of his work, and in most cases even the uninitiated will be able to evaluate it.

Game developers develop games for a wide variety of gaming platforms, including PCs, consoles, smartphones, VR helmets, smart watches, etc. By the way, in spite of the fact that the term “game developer” has long been established, there are different interpretations of it. In some cases, this is exclusively referred to as "game programmers." We will slightly expand the horizon, including here both programmers and game designers and artists. Ilya Afanasyev, dean of the GeekBrains Game Development Faculty , helped to understand this difficult issue .


Game Dev Details


There are much more specializations within this industry than was stated in the introduction. At the same time, the list of skills that are required for work varies depending on the type of games being developed. It can be small browsers, mobile games or AAA-class projects. In any case, even a brief description of only the most common professions will occupy a whole section.
 
The animator. Actually, the name fully reflects the essence. These are animation specialists who know Unity 3D, Maya, 3D Max, Mecanim and other platforms.
 
Game designer.An interesting specialty, which is located somewhere in the middle between artists and engineers. Game design is the science of how a game is “played”. And the task of the game designer is not only to come up with gameplay, but to present the means through which the plot will be told to the player. In addition, game designers are engaged in game balance and are thinking about making the game interesting.
 
UI specialist. This direction can be divided into 3 more components. The first is a UX designer who comes up with where, how and what will be located, the second is a UI-artist who draws the interface, and the third is a UI layout designer who simply puts everything together and makes the interface work as it should.
 
DevOps. We recently published an article on who the devops are . They are also in games.
 
The developers of the engine. They are engaged in SDK integration, development of utilities and software for other areas.
 
Technical artists. Actually, they develop tools for game designers. In addition, they help to write TK for artists, engage in quality control of models, build ways to optimize applications and are actively involved in setting up graphics and shaders in games. 
 
Backend and client developers. The first ones work with the northern part of the game, including parsing, databases, etc., the second ones handle events, create architecture and perform other complex tasks.
 
There are testers, scripters, texture makers, facial animators, level designers, etc. The smaller the company, the wider generalists become game developers. In a relatively small team, the combat system designer is often involved in level design. 


How much does a game developer earn?


Since this is one of the most sought-after professions in the IT market (we take the development of games in general, without dividing them into directions), then the salary is corresponding. An objective picture is shown by the salary calculator of the Habr Career service. According to him, a game developer earns about 170 thousand rubles a month. This is data for the first half of 2020. The same service also shows the most frequent skills that the developers themselves indicate as necessary:




  • Unity 3D;
  • C # or C ++;
  • Unreal Engine
  • Mobile application development;
  • JavaScript
  • Visual Studio

If you specify the specialization and choose the developer of the direction of Unity 3D, you get a slightly different picture. Here the salary is about 120 thousand rubles a month. At Habr Career, you will find vacancies in game development with no less real salaries. 
 





What about the entry threshold?


To get into this area, you need several factors: you need to have a good command of a computer, understand games and not be afraid to learn new things for yourself. But you have to study very diligently. Any of the professions listed in the previous section requires long-term training - at least a year (and this is only the base).
 
Here, for example, a map of skills (and at the same time a development tree) of a client programmer. And here is the same for the server programmer, the backend. Source
 



 




It looks both impressive and frightening, right? In fact, you should not be afraid - all this must be known at the beginning of the path, the development of a specialist, as in any other industry, is gradual. Having examined the infographics better, it becomes clear that at the input from the developer you need to know the game maths and physics. You can study without any problems. Then you need to master the language syntax, algorithms and data structures, plus design patterns. Well, the rest will come in the process of improving their skills and developing professional qualities. 
 
In general, any previous background or experience can be an advantage in game development. Many developers start by creating amateur stories and mods for games. For example, maps for Heroes of Might and Magic or Starcraft.
 
Of course, soft skills are also needed. This is readiness for continuous development, the ability to solve problems, the ability to concentrate and engage in routine work, as well as the ability to work in a team. For a game developer, if he is not a loner who develops indie games for mobile devices, the ability to work in a team is an extremely important skill.

In conclusion, we can say that game dev should not be a job, but the passion of a lifetime. Only in this case can one achieve real success and become famous. This does not mean that a person who works in the gaming industry and simply performs his job duties is a poor specialist. But nevertheless, professionals who are on fire with their business are becoming really popular. True, the same can be said of representatives of any other industries, and not just IT.

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