PRODUCTION DEPARTMENT
Game Publisher
They provide the funds needed for the game once they have agreed on a brief, for the game to be actually made, they work closely beside the game developers to make sure they are doing things as agreed. They also handle all the marketing and and quality testing of the game. Some developers don'y need a publisher because it can easily be published through a digital store.
Game Producer
They are the eyes and ears of game development. They find staff, raise money, and make sure the game is the best it can be. They work with the designer, lead artist and lead programmer to find characters and senarios. They also handle all the interactions with the Game Publisher and if something needs to change they work closely to find an agreement on it.
Assistant Game Producer
Their job is to control what happens throughout the work days and they also archive and store game assests (concept art, videos, photos) They also make sure deadlines are being met. They oversee the changes for the game in other countries that are needed. As the game comes to a close on production and is finished, they might organise events or press visits. Basically have knowledge of almost everything that goes on with the production of the game.
Marketing Executive
They make sure people know that the game is coming and create advertisements for people to see in different ways like social media and events. They coordinate the design of promotional videos, photos (trailers or posters) and even packaging. Marketing is normally done towards the end of the production of a game but for smaller companies they may be involved from the start.
Community Manager
These are the people that are responsible with communicating with the fans like controlling social media accounts, writing newsletters, Set up livestreams and deal with critisism. They speak on behalf of the fans to the designers to make changes that are needed, and sales will increase if they improve the game.
Esports Producer
Their job is to allow people to watch and enjoy the esports events, they plan the livestreams and broadcasts. Esports is a tournament where players compete against each other in a variety of games like Overwatch or Rocket league. They make sure the event is exciting and the staff are good, they also spot people who are good at comentating.
DESIGN DEPARTMENT
Lead Games Designer
They are responsible for how the game looks. They figure out the characters and props with a small team and share the ideas with the rest of the team. They are the ones who decide if changes need to be made and if deadlines and budgets are met. In smaller companies they would take on more jobs like art, programming and marketing, but in bigger companies they have assigned people for that.
Gameplay Designer
They are responsible for how the game actually plays, they design the mechanics, how high they can jump, how fast, gaining points. They plan the games structure, characters, objects, vehicles and rules and different game modes (Multiplayer, Story Mode) If the gameplay is too difficult technically, they will think about how to change it and rewrite the spec accordingly. If there is a new engine, the designer will think of how to integrate all the different elements into the game. Also they train the game testers and make sure they know whats expected of the final product.
Level Designer
They design a protion of the levels, they take the spec from the gameplay designer and get into the detial of the actions, events, objects, and the environmet. They also design the characters and the way they behave. They Sketch in 2d on paper or 2d drawing software, they imagine being the character in the game and map all the possibilities, and think about logic and flow of events, the conditions and challenges.
Writer
They think up a story for the game. They may be given a loose sequence of events and locations and try and make it work. Its a big collaberative process and the story is a result of many people working together with conflicting goals. The story will go though lots of changes and iteration some out of their control. Writing for games is different from films or novels, in games players contribute through interaction. Instead of telling, the player is invited to do so they will understand it easier.
User Experience designer
Their job is to make sure the game is easy to play (not easy to win) so that they don't get frustrated with maybe some difficult controlling, or being badly explained. They create the look and feel of the HUD the overlay on screen showing lives, ammo, levels etc and make it clear.
ART DEPARTMENT
Concept artist
They are responsible for the style and look of a game. They are the first to draw the environments, enemies and player characters. They work with a brief from the producer, their sketches are used to help 3D artists, producers, programmers and publishers understand how the game will look.The drawings are a vital part of the game’s development as they are the starting point of all the artwork and an important part of the marketing plans.
3D Modelling Artist
They are responsible for creating the models for all 3D art assets within the game – characters, weapons, vehicles, furniture, etc. They often start with a brief or 2D drawing from a concept artist and build their 3D models from that. Sometimes 3D modelling artists will specialise in a given area, depending game studio or game project requirements. Then they are called environment artists, character artists or vehicle artists. In other studios 3D modelling artists are responsible for modelling several types of art asset or a whole level.
Environment Artist
They make awesome places in which games can be played. They create fantasy landscapes spooky dungeons and moody wastelands and real world places like offices and playgrounds. They often start with 2D art created by a concept artist and turn it into a believable environment in 3D. Sometimes they use photographs, sometimes their own imagination.
Texturing Artist
They make 3D models believable by mapping textures onto the object’s surfaces. They also add an extra dimension with imperfections like rusting or cracking. They are concerned with making surfaces realistic, to help the player forget that they are in a computer-generated world. They may use a combination of hand painting, photos, digital and 3D art to create unique custom textures.
ANIMATION DEPARTMENT
Animator
They take the objects created by 2D and 3D artists and breathe life into them by making them move. Working from the designer’s storyboard, they create the movements for characters and vehicles. They also add personality. Animators also have a good understanding of programming and game engines. As game animation is often a complicated combination of different types of movement, animators make libraries of the movements, so they can reuse them for each character.
Technical Animator
They make it easier for great animation to happen. There are a lot of technical challenges in creating animation for games. Where movements are complex, for example, they can slow a game down. Or they can take so long to create that the game becomes too expensive to make.
They say: “How can we solve those problems?”By acting as a bridge between the programmers and the animation team, they work out how the tools and game engine can be developed to overcome the challenges.
TECHNICAL ART DEPARTMENT
Technical Artist
make the work of the artists easier. They develop the games engines, so they work as well as possible for the people making the art. If an artist wants to create something complex, TAs will say if it’s possible from a technical point of view and think of the best way of doing it. They act as a bridge between the artists and the programmers.
Visual Effects Artist
They add the wham, bam, crash and wallop to games. They create anything that moves that isn’t a character or an object. They create dust, water, explosions and superpowers. VFX artists use digital art software, alongside tradition art insights to create realistic effects that are stunning, like a tornado, or subtle, like slow moving clouds
Graphics Programmer
They are dedicated to ensuring the game looks as good as it possibly can. They want fire to look like fire, water to look like water and skin to look like skin. This means making the graphics as detailed as possible without impacting on the speed and playability of the game.The job is all about maths, rendering and optimisation.
AUDIO DEPARTMENT
Music Composer
They add mood and excitement to a game.They write the game’s theme tune. They add depth and colour by composing the music which signals impending danger, celebrates the end of a stage or indicates that a certain character is approaching. As well as being good musicians, music composers understand gameplay. They have to ‘spot’ a game, which means going through a game noting the points at which music will enhance the experience of the player.
Sound Designer
They create the soundtrack for a game. This includes the music and foley - sound effects like gunshots, footsteps, crashes, cheers, heavy rain. They make it exciting by adding mood. Sometimes they are involved in the game’s development right at the start – working from a brief to design what a player is going to hear. their job is to add the sounds to the animation.
Audio Programmer
write the code that makes games sound awesome. The sound of a game, both the sound effects and music, are integral to the gameplay experience. Audio programmers write the script that determines functions like volume and makes it possible for effects like gunshot or footsteps to be triggered by the player’s actions. They are also responsible for developing the software which integrates the audio files into the game.
PROGRAMMING DEPARTMENT
Generalist Programmer
Programmers work at the heart of the game development process. They write the code that controls the game, incorporating and adapting any ready-made code libraries and writing custom code as needed. They test the code and fix bugs.
Gameplay Programmer
They write the code for the interactions that make a game fun to play. While lead designers decide on the combat, gameplay programmers make it happen.
Physics Programmer
They create software that forms the basis of crashes, collisions and other things that move. When, for example, a car drives through water or bursts into flames, the effect needs to be similar to what would happen in real life. Physics programmers write the code, based on the laws of physics, to make this happen. It requires high-level knowledge of both physics and programming.
Artificial Intelligence Programmer
They create the brains of the game. The non-playable characters (NPCs - the ones that are not controlled by a player) need to make decisions and behave in ways that are believable, exciting and present the player with varying degrees of challenge. The role of the AI programmer is to write the code that outlines the way these characters operate. This gives the impression that NPCs have thought and emotion.
Virtual Reality Programmer
They write the code for cutting-edge game development. VR, in which a player puts on a headset or goggles and had the sensation of actually stepping into another world, offers a deeper sense of immersion than video games. But for all its immersive potential, VR programmers have significant challenges to overcome to make the most of the technological possibilities.
VR games can cause motion sickness for a variety of reasons. Lag between the player’s movements and the game’s response is one of the most common causes of motion sickness, maintaining a high, stable frame rate is critical in VR games. VR programmers are also responsible for researching and implementing a range of other motion sickness-reducing mechanisms.
Tools Engineer
They make the life of games designers, artists and programmers easier by giving them the best tools for the job.Some of the time the tools (software programs) used by games developers are bought off-the-shelf but it’s also necessary to have purpose-built software designed specifically for the creation of a particular game. Tools engineers are responsible for creating and maintaining those tools whether they be for the game engine itself or the 3D art suite.
Engine Programmer
They develop the game engine from which the game runs. They create new functionality in the engine and rewrite the existing systems to make them as efficient as possible. When a new game is being devised, the engine programmer will figure out how to create the best engine for that particular game. They also fix bugs and deal with any technical glitches along the way.
Network Programmer
They make it possible for gamers to play with each other. They develop the code behind online multiplayer games so that everything that happens in a game gets transmitted from one machine to another. This means the same things are displayed on each machine at more or less the same time which makes playing a game with people on other consoles and devices possible. Its also one of the most complex
QUALITY ASSURANCE DEPARTMENT
Games Tester
They don’t get paid just to play games all day, despite popular belief. They test specific aspects of a game, write detailed reports of each bug they find and then re-test when the development team has fixed it. They look for program bugs, spelling mistakes, graphical or audio glitches and even copyright issues.
Quality Assurance Build Engineer
Games need to be continually updated, improved and kept free from errors. A build engineer's primary role is to make sure an up-to-date build of the game can be created when needed as quickly as possible. This involves automating and optimising processes, maintaining software and hardware systems, creating tests and helpful tools, and communicating with every member of the game team.
CAREER MAP
There are a few roles that seem appealing to me, either a Generalist Programmer, an Environment artist, or a VFX artist. I feel like my skill levels at programming is mediocre, same with animating, so to make sure I stronger my skill at both I will practice my art skills and find new techniques and with programming I will need to understand the meanings and all the different coding software.
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