The Game Designer : A programmer skilled in the conception and the creation of a video game
The Game designer is before all a programmer who is aiming to imagine and create coherent concepts of video games.
The job of Game Designer has become more and more popular over the years, and it is way more diverse than what we could think.
Being a game designer is about carrying out various tasks that are linked to the creation of a video game, and much more.
Two essential aspects are to remember:
- The game designer is here to enhance a personal experience
- The game designer must abide to the constraints that are imposed upon them.
Game designer : Enhance the experience
In the Game Design branch, the term “experience” will be about considering tasks which the user or the player will have to carry out, and making them coherent, making them have a meaning, making them participate in the awakening of the interest and the satisfaction of the client. Because the Game Designer is aiming to better the pleasure and the attachment of the players.
To do such, you will need to target an audience, the actions and the goals in order to use them in the process of Gamification or Ludification.
You will need to build user profiles, put together prototypes and make numerous tests which will be evaluated to polish little by little the rules that will constitute your thinking.
Game Designer : Being aware of the constraints
Wether the Ludification is done in the context of an enterprise, or in the context of a personal game practice, there will always be constraints. In the first case, it will certainly be constraints of the commercial kind, and in the second case, constraints of the technical type, and even more numerous factors : available skills, place, time limit, return on investment... etc
All of these details must be taken into account by the Game Designer who presides as the head chief, and who will have to work in teams to organize the process of the game.
Even though we may often think about video game or programming when we hear about Game Designers, we could add numerous other elements to the list of skills they must master :
- Atmosphere management (sounds, reunions…)
- Appreciation (badges, scores, gifts…)
- Curiosity and attentiveness
- A lot of Culture
- Organization
- Making choices and being able to justify them
How to become a Game Designer
These last few years, the video-game has become more and more of an industry, and it has started to interest a lot of schools.
ActivDesign has been one of these schools since 2013, and is now considered a pioneer in the field of the education about video-games.
It is to note that some differences still exist in these diverse courses :
- Some are purely orientated towards design, and often boardgames
- Some are oriented towards graphism and art
- Some are oriented towards the use of software like Unity or Unreal.
If it belongs to the student to make their choice, it is important to ask the good questions about the content and the goals of the courses. Because a Game Designer is neither a programmer, nor an artist. Even if they must have serious notions in these domains to run a team of and anticipate the constraints they’ll have to face.
The future of Game Designers
Numerous domains are recruiting Game Designers: The video-game industry obviously, but also big enterprises in collaboration with human resources, in touristic places and festivals to prepare actions destined for visitors... All of these posts are in expansion, so Game Designers still have a bright future ahead of them.
Jobs associated : Level designer, screenwriter, Game project manager, Numeric project manager