Video game designers are creative persons who are responsible for the design and layout of a video game. They are the ones who create the storylines, characters, levels, scenarios, etc. of a certain game.

Let’s look at the revenue generated by the gaming industry in 2019:

  • PC gaming: $29.6 billion
  • Mobile gaming: $64.4 billion
  • VR and AR gaming: $6.3 billion
  • Console gaming: $15.4 billion
  • Game-related videos: $6.5 billion

Video Game Design vs. Game Development

Video game designers are creative persons who are responsible for the design and layout of a video game. They are the ones who create the storylines, characters, levels, scenarios, etc. of a certain game.A video game developer, on the other hand, brings the designers’ ideas, objectives, and vision to life using computer code.

Pay Scale/Salary of Game Designer

Job ProfileStarting Level SalaryMedium Level SalarySenior Level Salary
Game AnimatorINR 2,28,000INR 3,60,000INR 16,00,000
Game Audio EngineerINR 1,18,000INR 3,63,927INR 18,00,000
Game DesignerINR 2,00,000INR 5,03,628INR 10,00,000
Game ProgrammerINR 3,50,000INR 4,25,000INR 24,00,000
Creative Game DirectorINR 1,20,000INR 9,00,000INR 30,62,000
Game ArtistINR 3,00,000INR 5,50,000INR 9,00,000
Game Marketer/PRINR 4,00,000INR 7,87,500INR 11,30,000
QA Game TesterINR 2,55,663INR 5,00,000INR 10,00,000
Game System DesignerINR 3,50,000INR 5,00,000INR 10,00,000

Skills Required

  • A passion for video games
  • Creativity
  • Technical ability in software technologies and programming languages, such as C# and C++
  • Excellent verbal and written communication skills
  • The ability to work in teams and collaborate with others
  • A passion for gaming
  • An innovative approach and the ability to come up with new ideas
  • Adept problem-solving skills
  • A flexible work approach to tailor your ideas and meet deadlines
  • The willingness and aptitude to learn
  • Mathematical and analytical understanding
  • Ability to express and pitch your ideas

Top Video Game Designers of All Time

Hideo Kojima

Games: Metal Gear, Snatcher, Policenauts, Zone of the Enders, Death Stranding

Net-Worth: $30 million

Sid Meier

Games: MicroProse, Firaxis Games, Civilization series

Net-Worth: $30 million

Sakaguchi

Games: Final Fantasy, Rad Racer, Blue Dragon, Terra Battle

Net-Worth: $30 million

Educational paths for video game designers

Video game designers can pursue multiple educational paths to learn the fundamentals of the field. Here are some common paths for becoming a game designer:

  • High school diploma
  • Bachelor’s degree
  • Master’s degree
  • Boot camp
  • Self-guidance

List of Tools and Software

Unity: Unity is an exceptional tool, especially if you have some coding experience. You can download the personal addition for free and design both 2D and 3D games. The software comes with compelling design elements, and is a fantastic tool to build a game you can profit from! It’s a great platform to hone your coding skills and practice your game-building skills.

Construct 2: This is the all-in-one tool to build a powerful 2D game and publish it through HTML5. The best part is to make the magic happen – you don’t need to know to code!

Unreal Engine: One of the most professional tools, through which users can create and develop a game with or without coding.

Game Maker: Another easy-to-use software for those who don’t know how to code. A dash of knowledge of the C programming language will help further customize the game you have in mind.

Mudbox: Mudbox is a 3D sculpting tool that’s used to create highly detailed 3D characters. It uses an intuitive set of digital tools based on real sculpting techniques.

Types of Job Roles Game Designer

Game Animator: They are the multimedia maestro. The responsibility of a game animator is to combine technology with art and imagination to create interactive animated images.

Game Audio Engineer: The role of a game audio engineer is to comprehend the essence of the game and blend dynamic audio to bring life to the world of games. They work on mixing ambient sounds with dynamic sound effects and background music for the game.

Game Designer: The duty of a game designer is to build levels, characters, puzzles, animation, and art. You are expected to bring ideas to the table, create interactive narration, build prototypes and develop the mechanism of the game.

Game Programmer: Often considered a computer scientist and a brilliant software engineer, a game programmer uses codes to create the program that smartphones, computers,s or video games systems can read. They pick out the coding language that best suits the gaming platform. 

Creative Game Director: Often the creator of the game concept, a creative game director needs to ensure that the video game project looks perfect in all aspects. They are in charge of the overall vision of the project.

Game Artist: A game artist is responsible for all the aspects of game development that require visual art. They create 2D or 3D art forms for the visual elements of the game.

Game Marketer/PR: A game marketer/PR has a pivotal role in the process. They have the duty of delivering the developer’s message and making sure that it has been taken well by the public.

QA Game Tester: Once the final submission has been done, approval is required by the QA game tester. They have to make sure that all the bugs and mistakes are getting fixed and the game is working properly.

Game System Designer: A game system designer works hand in hand with producers, programmers, and other domains within the game design to develop game functions.

Employment Sector/Industry for Game Designer

Games are the best medium of recreation. With time, gaming industries are developing and are gaining popularity. At present, games are being wildly used across a broad range of industries including fitness, education, and healthcare. Captured below are the sectors where you can find employment Opportunities for a game designer.

  • Broadcasting companies
  • Creative agencies
  • Advertising firms
  • Computing and electronics organisations
  • Esports associations
  • Education providers and education resource suppliers
  • Hardware and software distributors
  • Event organisers
  • PR, communications and marketing firms
  • Hardware and software distributors
  • Trade and retail organisations.
  • Software developers

Top Recruiting Agencies for a Game Designer

  • 2 Pi Interactive, Hyderabad
  • Apar Games, Mumbai
  • 99Games, Karnataka
  • CreatioSoft, Noida
  • Games2win, Mumbai
  • Dhruva Interactive, Bangalore
  • GSN Games, India
  • Geek Mentor Studios, Noida

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