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About Games Design

Game design is a subset of game development and is the process of designing the content and rules of a game.

Who is a Game Designer?

FIFA. Counter-Strike. Fortnite. Among Us. Call of Duty. 

These were some of the most-played video games played in 2021. 

The gaming design industry was worth $200 billion in 2021. In 2020, the game design industry grew by 23%. One of the only few industries that grew amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. 

By 2030, it is projected to grow by 13% every year! 

Who is driving all this growth? Game Designers.

Game designers are responsible for designing the game play, environment, storyline, and characters. These games are usually played on computers or they come as applications for mobile phones.

Game designers cater to the 2.5 billion people in the world who play video games. They deal with the conceptual side of game building. From the initial vision for a game, to the core concepts, aesthetics, characters, levels, and narratives of a game, all of these are the responsibility of a designer.

By using various computer programs, Game Designers create digital representations of the characters. Along with characters, storyboards are created that outline the main plot and dialogue of the game. Then comes the animation and character actions. 

"As a game designer, you first and foremost need to be a master of HOW to make a game or level FUN, interesting, compelling, and something a player would want to play." - Tony Dunniway - Award Winning Game Designer.

Now that you have a fair idea what Game Designers do, let’s take a look at how they achieve this. Game designers are required to drive the technical needs of the game using industry-standard computer software and the platforms that support them.

Game designers need to have knowledge of multiple softwares such as - 

  • Game Engines - Unity 3D, Unreal Engine, etc.
  • Art Editing Software - Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator
  • Jira and Bug Tracking Software
  • Scripting Languages and Tools - Python, LUA, C#, Unreal Script, Blueprints
  • Programming Softwares - C++ and Python

Seems overwhelming? Even though this is a highly practical-oriented career, you can learn the basics at colleges all over the world! 

Related Departments

Computer Graphics & Animation 4606 Students Shortlisted

Top Colleges

India

Duration: 4 Years

Fee per course/annum: Rs.50,000 - Rs.1 Lakh Per Annum

USA

Duration: 4 Years

Fee per course/annum: Rs.20 - 30 Lakh Per Annum

UK

Duration: 4 Years

Fee per course/annum: Rs.39 - Rs.45 Lakh Per Annum

Canada

Duration: 4 Years

Fee per course/annum: Rs.12 - Rs.15 Lakh Per Annum

Career Prospects

Lead Designers 

A game is like a movie. It takes several people to design a game. 

For that, someone has to take charge of the entire team and supervise. Not just that, they also take care of proper communication between the whole team, creating reports, managing deadlines. A lead designer also pitches about new game ideas and structural inputs. 

Level Designers

Every game has several levels. Who is in charge of creating these levels?

A level designer is responsible for the creation of several levels, stages, or missions in a game. They use level editor tools or the game’s built-in level editor program to do so. A level designer works on every level that is designed from pre-production to the final completion of the level.

Next time you are finding a level too difficult to cross? You know whom to blame. 

Content Designers

Any text that you see during the gameplay, a Content Designer is responsible for that. 

The job of a content designer to make sure that the gameplay is made according to the vision. Frome working with various elements such as text, pictures, and videos, to communicating with the team, a content designer is crucial in the process of game designing.

Game Writers

Every character of a game has a story. Writers are the creators and tellers of the stories.

Like we mentioned before, all video games have a plot just like any film or show. The job of the game writer is to write the plot and dialogues of the game. A game writer is responsible for building the entire story for the video game. Game writers come in during the pre-production process of the game. From creating characters to describing their individual stories, and creating narratives of a video game, a game writer does them all.

System Designers

The job of a system designer is to take care of the implementation as well as the balancing features of the game. Right from the beginning to the very end of the game, a system designer balances it all. From developing a comprehensive plan to providing instructions that can be given to game programmers, system designers provide a structure to the entire process of game design. 

Technical Designers

A technical designer plays an integral part in the game designing team. They create and deal with the complex technical designs and include the system design elements in the game. They work closely with the entire design team to understand all the aspects of the game so that they can include it in the technical design of the game as well.

UI Designers

A UI designer works in order to create an easy and efficient user interface for the game. They aim at maximizing the utility of the game as well as enhance the user experience. 

Why are games like Mario, Counter Strike, FIFA, etc. evergreen games?

Because the UI Designers made the interface creative, intuitive, and aesthetically pleasing. All of this, with easy gaming elements. This is where a UI Designer works their magic.

Senior Designers

As a Senior Game Designer, you will be responsible for developing the game systems. From controlling the interfaces along with the other interactive elements of your project, you will bring the vision of the lead designer and creative director into the experience. Apart from this, you will coordinate with the entire team in order to deliver their work efficiently and on time.

Software Developer

Software developers develop applications that allow individuals on a computer or other device to do specific tasks. Not only so, they also build the underlying structures that manage the equipment or control networks.

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Jobs & Salary

With the Game Design industry worth more than a billion dollars, the scope of jobs has seen an exponential rise since the past few years. What’s better? It’s only set to soar higher! 

As the exploration in the digital space has been picking up pace, game design and its scope has reached to the far edges of its own industry. 

As multiple games are being launched for different platforms such as Desktop, Mobile, Playstation, and Xbox, many game studios have broken into the Metaverse as well! 

Gaming studios have adapted and explored the Metaverse far earlier than other industries were able to, in order to unlock its full potential. Game designers have been creating NFTs, player avatars, AR and VR modulations, and more! 

It’s a whole new world, and the scope is UNREAL! (Get it?)

Here are some of the top companies that hire Game Designers - 

  • Electronic Arts
  • Walt Disney Company
  • Blizzard Entertainment
  • Microsoft
  • Riot Games
  • Ubisoft
  • Valve Studios

Game Design is an industry where high starting salaries are common, unlike other industries. Due to its rising popularity and scope, salaries are high as well. The average salary of a Game Designer is Rs.6.5 lakh per annum. 

The salary is directly proportional to the experience level of a designer. Hence, the longer you work as a designer, the higher your salary gets.

Pros & Cons

Pros
  • Highly creative field
  • Measurable results
  • High scope for part time opportunities
Cons
  • Highly competitive
  • Variable pay
  • Physically demanding

Famous Personalities

Hideo Kojima

The ‘Picasso’ of the Game Design world, Hideo Kojima has been a revolutionary when it comes to designing games. He has been a part of the industry for more than 20 years and has created the Metal Gear Solid Series. It was considered to be one of the best-designed games ever made. Hideo Kojima has now adapted to the trends in the world now, and has shifted towards mobile gaming.

Gabe Newell

A ‘Microsoft Millionaire’, Gabe Newell co-founded and currently is the Managing Director of Valve Corporation. Newell founded Valve and went on to release a constant string of highly acclaimed titles, including Half-Life and Half-Life 2. Gabe Newell and his company is also famous for the creation of great titles like Portal, Counter-Strike, Day of Defeat, Left 4 Dead, and more.

Shigeru Miyamoto

Miyamoto is without question the most innovative and influential game designer of all time for providing games that all others try to measure up to. Getting his start with Nintendo, Miyamoto immediately proved his brilliance as a game designer by helping to create games that would end up becoming massive franchises. This includes Mario Bros., The Legend of Zelda, Star Fox, Mario Kart, and F-Zero, to name a few. What set him apart was his ability to deliver fresh, unique ideas across games of varying genres.

Timeline

1961 First Interactive game - Spacewars, created for mainframe computers.

1977 Atari, the first video game console was released.

1980 The first 3-D game, Battlzone is released.

1985 Tetris is launched.

1989 The Gameboy by Nintendo hits the market.

1995 Sony releases the PlayStation. 20 million units sold by 1997.

2004 Nintendo launches the Nintendo DS - A Portable gaming console.

2020 Gaming Industry crosses $37 billion in revenue.

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