The video games industry has evolved a lot over the years to become one of the hottest industries for recruiters. A sector that was once open to two career paths—game author and game publisher, has split into a plethora of jobs for games enthusiasts.
Today, the video games industry has created employment opportunities to over 1 million people worldwide and is considered one of the fastest-growing industries. With the help of established franchises such as Mario, Pokémon, and Call of Duty, the industry is now more profitable than the film and music industries combined.
GlobalData projects the industry will be worth $300 billion by 2025. With this in mind, there is no better time than now to pursue a career in the gaming industry. Here’s a list of the top jobs in the gaming industry that you might find interesting.
1. Game Designer
At the top of dream jobs for many gamers is the game designer. This is a senior role that involves coming up with the original game ideas, bringing the ideas to life, and overseeing the development process to fruition.
As a game designer, you’ll describe characters, environment, and storyline then guide the development team as they work their magic. Game designers work with other members of the development team, including programmers, artists, and composers.
Game design is becoming increasingly complex; you’ll need at least a degree in computing or any creative field. It’s a profession that requires a mix of technical and creative skills and it pays handsomely if you can master the skills.
2. Game Developer
The game developer role is like the Hail Mary of the industry. Search Google for the best video game jobs and game developers will pop up first in the SERPs. It’s one of the top-paying jobs in the software development field and requires advanced programming skills.
These skilled personnel are responsible for programming all the animations, sound, and visual ideas into the actual game. Due to the complex nature of the game development process, some companies require their developers to specialize in specific areas of game development, including interface development, architecture development, etc.
3. The Tester
Here comes the easy and fun part of the game development process. Testing the game! Many people see this as a dream job. I can play games for 8 hours a day. Sign me up!
However, to be a videogame tester, you must be able to play all kinds of games—from simulations and role-playing games to real-time strategy games, racing games, adventure games to casino games.
That’s right! Casino games aren’t excluded. You may need mastery of odds, payouts, simulations, and strategy tables—an experience you can gain at an online casino site such as Casumo. In addition to that, you must demonstrate outstanding attention to details and the ability to identify flaws for developers to fix them before titles are released.
4. The Artist
Every production house needs an artist to bring the designer’s ideas to life by creating characters and a vivid environment for the game.
Game artists are also responsible for creating designs, storyboards, and creative arts for packaging and marketing materials. That said, the artist’s role is a bit technical and you’ll need working knowledge of specialist software tools such as Photoshop, ZBrush, etc.
5. The Composer/Musician
This is one of the less technical roles in the gaming industry. Media companies will always need music in combination with visuals, and the gaming industry is no exception.
Most video games today include fully orchestrated soundtracks and A-list celebrity character roles. Within a production house, various roles exist in the music department, including the composer who writes, the musician who performs the music, and the audio engineer who adds the sound effects. If you’re musically inclined, the video game composer role might just be perfect for you.
To Sum Up
The gaming industry offers employment opportunities for all people regardless of age or skill level. While the top career opportunities are for the technical personnel, the industry also offers a ton of non-technical jobs, including translators, writers, composers, and producers.