For those who don’t want to get caught up in the basic coding of a video game, never witnessing the visual interpretation of their work, the game designer role might be a better fit for you. While programmers are directly involved with the core code and game engines and artists are in charge of bringing all the visuals to life, the game designer is a mix of everything and one of the biggest roles in the industry. of video games.

Your job as a video game designer will be to come up with the basic concepts of the game. Often, you’ll need to have a degree in writing or a similar field and a lot of experience in doing so. Many game designers graduated with degrees in English and worked in journalism, magazines, or fiction before turning to video games. However, in the video game industry, versatility is key. If you can also have a background in programming and visual design, you’ll be a lock for a great job in game design.

The job itself involves charting the course of the game. A game designer will often work on the basics, writing how a game will play, how it will work, and what will happen over the course of a game. One of the most famous game designers of all time is Shigeru Miyamoto, the creator of Mario and Zelda. His education was in the arts and most of his work was creating characters and game concepts, detailing in detail how he wanted his game to work.

Those details are then passed on to the programmers and artists who will start creating the engines to do what the game designer envisions and the characters to do it. A game designer is somewhat like a director of a major movie. Your job could include just about anything on that set, and you better be able to do it, because you’re the most important person involved.

However, the job is probably the most fun you can have in the video game industry. As a game designer, you have the opportunity to launch, develop and write your game concepts into reality, turning those amazing ideas you had on the basement couch with your friends into the next great video game. Your job duties are immensely varied, from writing to programming to visual design, and you’ll be involved in most aspects of game design.

Strong leadership skills and the ability to keep track of multiple tasks will do you well in this position and a golden creative streak. The video game industry is always looking for the next great game designer and it very well could be you.

But if you’re looking for a position that isn’t at the top of the ladder, or doesn’t involve as many tasks, there are plenty more to choose from. You can be a born math whiz and find programming as your niche, or a born artist, just interested in helping create video game characters. There are many different aspects of the video game industry for you to investigate.