CEO of DSK International Campus, Ninad Panse shares the ins and outs of Gaming and detailed insight into pursuing a Career in Video Game Design
A career in video game design is often misunderstood. Many people assume that it leads to a job where one gets to play video games all day long. However, this perception depicts the people’s unawareness of the gaming design industry and its potential. The year 2013 bought with itself more than 500 game title releases with compatibility spread over 21 gaming platforms. Considering that it takes roughly 2 years for a game in its production pipeline, that speaks volumes of the amount of work global game design teams get done. Of the total consumer spend on the Games industry of $20.77 Billion in the year 2012, $14.8 Billion is simply on the content. To summarize, there is no other sector in the world that has experienced the same explosive growth as the video game industry; an opinion shared by reputed industry experts. A career in this highly competitive industry is bound to be challenging but immensely rewarding at the same time.
Creating a game of any level is about as difficult as filming a feature-length movie. While one can make the basic frame for a game without detailed technical knowledge, one will find it very difficult to design the details of the game without a degree in game design and practicing the various other basics associated with it. Storyboard ideation, thorough research, characterization, designing the gaming environment, figuring out the compatible platforms, coding the artificial intelligence, making extensive use of the game-play theory, and designing the right balance between surreal graphics and aesthetics still constitute of only 50% of activities involved in a gaming project.
This followed by continuous upgrades and patch releases to keep the game in sync with the real-world changes makes up for a massively enriching project life cycle. This career is therefore not for those who can only dream and play games throughout the day but is for those who can add astounding amounts of hard work, dedication and acquire design skills to be successful video game designers. Similar to stereotypical professions like Engineering, Medical, and Pharmacy amongst others, video game designing requires one to master the art of dreaming, planning, designing and creating the games for varied audiences. Designing the video games for computers and specific game consoles can then be another choice of specialized skill set on the path to a challenging and rewarding career.
Majority of video games currently available in the market have taken approximately two years for production and launch. The DSK International Campus curriculum follows an Industry renowned process while offering the degree courses to the designers. With specialized degree programs in interactive media and game design, the course consists of comprehensive knowledge of the game play theory.
The course actively promotes and attempts to evoke imaginative and creative thinking as a talent development processes. This gives the designers the chance to work collaboratively in diverse teams as well as use their skills independently during the project sessions. The multi-cultural diversity helps them in getting familiar with international work cultures and global game design trends. A significant focus on good communication and presentation skills continue to add to their abilities. The primary requisites are the emphasis on strong storytelling and narrative development skills with proficiency in maths and programming.
Specializations like Audio, Design, Production, Programming, Visual Arts and Business work together to weave different aspects together to complete a gaming product. As a graduate in the video game design profession, the designer could progress their career in Game Design, Art and Programming verticals.