Is 32 too old to realistically aspire to become a game developer?
Boy did I land on the perfect question.I’m 32 and just got my first gig as a game developer.My background first. 6 years of writing flash code (cookie cutter code, basically web pages click through). 3 years JavaScript and html (same thing, just in tablets now). I took a year off going to film school. Graduated and said ef that. Then applied for the position.I was given a coding test. 1 week. Code tic tac toe.Yea I know…Wtf? Give me an hour right?Well no, actually it’s multiplayer. Has to support matchmaking and profile management. A few other requirements.At the time I was rusty as hell, having done almost no server side coding, it was very hard for me. I spent every waking moment coding this thing. Literally shelled myself in the corner, quit applying for jobs, told my girlfriend not make a peep for a week (don’t cook, don’t vacuum, don’t fuck with me), and let me code. I put every drop of sweat and blood into it. Day before deadline I cleaned all the code up, commented it, and made it simple as cake to install.Submitted it.Waited. And I waited. A week goes by and I actually got a call for an interview. Another week goes by. Another interview. Another week. Job offer. I’m now coding in a language I haven’t used since I was a junior in college 13 years ago and the other language is brand new to me.So yes it’s possible. Even for a jackass like me. How am I doing now? Well I’m learning on the job…a lot. It’s very stressful. But I love it and do what I gotta do.I think the only downside at 32 is just not picking up things quite as fast as everyone else. Or maybe it’s just me, I don’t know. In any case, hope I answered your question. Now go out there and get it!
I'm 32 years old. Is it too late to consider learning game development?
Definitely not! The game industry today is bigger than Hollywood, and while the majority of pro gamers are uber leet 18 year olds with infinite energy, it was our generation (I’m a year older) that really caused gaming to take off. Ya know, grew up on NES/SNES, PSX in late elementary, watched Blizzard become a company, played the early FPS and MMO games, and we’re not yet dinosaurs so we get mobile gaming too.So we’re good there! Now the learning part! It’s a little harder to learn as we’re older, but definitely doable. I didn’t write my first line of code until my mid-late 20’s and I’m great at what I do now.Plus, Game Development now has gotten a lot of help. If you’re married to AAA games, then yeah, there’s some crazy death marches, some ultra low-level optimization that means great physics, linear algebra, etc. skills, and a whole hell of a lot of competition.But then there’s Unity. The game engine and IDE that has had hundreds of ultra successful games (Hearthstone, Lego games, etc.) built in it, that does a lot of the heavy lifting for you. You can absolutely figure that out and go into the field.Who knows, maybe you just find the right rag tag group and make your own little game like those 6 people in Europe did with their little project called Clash of Clans :)
Can 39 year old start a career as a game developer or game designer/animator?
While there is a certain amount of ageism in the game industry, it is possible for someone to start a career as a game developer at the age of 39 if they have a portfolio of work to demonstrate their ability.However, be advised that getting into games is still a risky and unstable career move. Game developers constantly experience lay-offs, no matter how talented or experienced they are. According to one survey, the average game developer has held 4 jobs in a five-year period.As far as the availability of developer jobs go, there are perhaps an equal number of opportunities for programmers as there are for artists and animators, and there are far less opportunities for game designers.
Is it too late for me to learn game development at the age of 30?
I switched careers from Experimental Particle Physicist to Video Game Developer about 9 months ago. I was 31, then. So, no, generally speaking, it’s never too late to switch careers. Just make sure it’s your true passion, or it won’t be worth it.I can’t tell you what’s right for you, but I can tell you about my own journey into the industry.Even though I officially made the switch 9 months ago, I actually flirted with the industry for two years before that. I started by teaming up with other hobbyists, making a puzzle pixel-art game in our spare time. I was a physicist who was so busy that I barely got any sleep… but making games was totally worth it. Plus it became my portfolio when I finally applied for my job.Then, I attended a game developer’s conference in my area (Unite, GCAP and PAX), and connected with a few local game developers, who introduced me to the local monthly meet ups. The conferences were inspiring, and cemented my long held suspicions: that I wanted to be a video game developer. And the indie developer scene in Melbourne is amazing!I turned up to the monthly meet ups and made even more connections in the industry. One day, one of the indie companies advertised for a junior programmer position in the meet up. I jumped at the chance and immediately introduced myself to the people in the company. We chatted about the games that we love. I made a good impression.A month later, and two interviews later, I was hired. Today, 9 months later, I have released a game with weekly updating content, am working on another game for a great local license, and have made a fun rhythm game over 48 hours at Global Game Jam. I’m in heaven. I mean, I barely have any sleep because there’s so much work to do, but I’m having the time of my life. I get to flex both my creative muscles and my programmer muscles every day. I finally get to tell the stories in my head in the medium I love. And I get to work with some of the best people, ever.So yeah, switching careers worked out really well for me. But, I did work for it. If you’re serious about this, perhaps that’s where you should start. Look for people to make a game with, and look for the local meet ups to meet the devs in your area. Good luck!
I'm 23 and just got a business degree, but applying for my master made me realize that it's not what I want to do. Is it too late for me to take up medicine?
I’m 54 and yet only three years ago I couldn��t play any musical instruments. Now I have a name for my band, I play drums, bass and guitar more proficiently than I imagined I ever could, and I mix and upload my own rock music. This is always a learning curve and a wonderful pastime. If I’d left it another decade it still wouldn’t be too late to do it.It’s never too late to take up medicine. Or do anything else for that matter.
Am I too old to become a video game composer?
To be honest, you're possibly wrong to think it's more realistic getting into games than film. Getting into big games could be as hard as breaking into Hollywood now, and the quality of music required is also really high. There are smaller games you could work on, but there are also smaller films as well (a lot unpaid). So I don't think games are in any way the easy option there. If you look about, a lot of successful composers in games are freelance ones. In the UK you have only about 5 to 10 names that ever seem to come up with big games. Richard Jacques,James Hannigan,Nitin Sawney, Bob and Barn etc. I don't think things like qualifications and CVs really come into how they get projects. It's a case of what they've done before or what they can prove they can do, I guess. When you buy a CD of film music, pop music or whatever, would you check out the CV of the artists first or just go on the music, marketing, word of mouth? Most people would go with the latter and I don't think game companies are any different there. No-one's going to stop buying a Coldplay CD just because they don't approve of a band member's education or lack of. It's not exactly a job you apply for, making music. So your reel could be important and perhaps having a few credits to show what you can do with your music in context. On the age front, I don't think you're ever too old. All the composers I mentioned I think must be at least in their 40s. A lot of film composers are in their 60s, 70s and even 80s. On the 15 mins of music... that is a tiny amount of music. A lot of games need 1, 2, 3 hours of music each. Perhaps that is something you could work on expanding? Good luck!
Am I too old to start programming?
Programming is something I've been interested in for a little while now, but with so much going on recently I haven't had the time to really look into it. I'm 23 years old. I haven't really done anything to further myself in life for the last 4 years, stuck in a dead end retail job. When I tell people I would like to start learning to be a programmer but feel I'm maybe too old and 'missed the boat' they look at me like I'm crazy... which In a way I understand. Its the way I feel about most things really. That I've wasted a good 4-5yrs of time that could of been spent in education and now I feel like that opportunity has passed. I'm in the UK so going back to college would be expensive at my age and its money I don't have. Everyone I know that programs in some form or another seems like they got started when they were 12-14 in the 80's messing around on 16bit consoles or w/e. I found myself watching a 1hr 26min talk by John Carmack at Quakecon yesterday, and while I didn't understand 90% of the tools he mentioned, I got the gist of most of it from being a gamer. I thought to myself again that if I'm able to sit and watch an hr and a half of someone talking about stuff I don't really understand right now but still couldn't stop watching... I should probably look into starting to teaching myself. I'm just worried if with enough drive and commitment could I make a career in programming when I start at 23? If I found I really enjoyed it then courses are definitely something I would start looking into... but did I need to be 14 when I started looking into this?
I am 23, I have no college degree and I want to learn Unity game development, is it too late?
Some people would be more inspirational here, with quotes and examples and sources.I can't really be arsed to. So here goes:No matter how old you are you can learn something and pursue it. Even if you're shit at it, even if other people tell you to be serious and become a doctor and make more money in a boring profession. Please do not fall for the sunken cost fallacy. Do what makes you happy, even if for 10 years you prepared for something else.
I am 16 years old and considering my future. What should I do now if I want to build a career in game design?
I guess I’ll start by mentioning the two major ways people get into in game design. One way is to take courses and get degrees and certification from a credited school that has game design courses. The other way is to just start doing it, learn as you go, and keep making and designing games and get better and better, building a portfolio to show employers or investors.Which road you should take depends on you and how far you want to take it. If you don’t care if your games are ‘smaller-scale’ and you think you have tons of great ideas for games and you have natural programming skill and artistic talent, then maybe go it alone. If you would rather work for a AAA company and maybe work on other people’s ideas instead, then get certification and credentials.One thing I should mention that ‘game design’ is different from ‘game development’. I’ve had friends that were game-designers, but they did not do any programming (coding). Their job was to design game-frameworks, art themes for games, level design and even marketing plans for the game’s release. A ‘game developer’ usually works in the actual building of the game. If you are wanting to be a game-designer and not a programmer, then study things like art, music, 3D modelling. graphics and game-dynamics, and you are going to want to learn more about marketing than a programmer would have to, to design games that generate as high of a profit as possible.Of course getting a proper education and certification is great (and expensive), but there’s been a lot of people who became a success just being self-taught and working out of their basement, just because they had ideas, talent and motivation.Either way you choose, it is good to get experience, so start right away with making some small games on your own. If you don’t have any coding experience, use a game engine like Unity or some other easy game-creation software (like GameMaker).Oh yeah, and make sure to play a lot of different games, to learn about games, graphics and gameplay.