Motivation will make it!
by Andy "Code" Cook · in General Discussion · 07/20/2001 (1:20 am) · 14 replies
(I am really frustrated right now so I am going to vent!)
Well... to start off with I am 15 years old and I have been a game addict for about 8 years now. Since I was 9 I have had a dream to be aa prgrammer since that was when i read my first BASIC books ( but didn't really understand them). Thats about the same Time I started working with HTML (oo wupping that was fun) up till now I developed my web developement skile (and I must say I can make a wicked website).
At the age of about 12 i decided that being a programmer was not enough. I needed to be a game designer! So that is when I kicked it into high gear. I got many books on the subject of game developing and programming have basic knowledge in 6 diffrent program langauges (but DAMN! still not enough to make a gmae in any of them)
Well I really need to be a game designer! (I decided as of now) My family and friends say that I will never make and I just WON'T EXCEPT. I NEED TO!!!!. errrrrr I haven't believed them yet, but it is really hard when you have no encouragement. (Plus I dont know what to do after highschool (If there is a Clown college why nt GameDev College))
The only reason I get games now is to edit them but it is still not getting me much closer to making my own game. I find myself MODing for T2 now but people keep makijng everything befor I finish it is so enoying. (Especialy when people say I stole the code from somebody else)
I don't really know why i am writing this... maybe a call for help, encouragement, advice , or what-ever. but I would like what ever thoughts that any body has.
good or flames (what ever flams you can come up with I would like to here :)
Well... to start off with I am 15 years old and I have been a game addict for about 8 years now. Since I was 9 I have had a dream to be aa prgrammer since that was when i read my first BASIC books ( but didn't really understand them). Thats about the same Time I started working with HTML (oo wupping that was fun) up till now I developed my web developement skile (and I must say I can make a wicked website).
At the age of about 12 i decided that being a programmer was not enough. I needed to be a game designer! So that is when I kicked it into high gear. I got many books on the subject of game developing and programming have basic knowledge in 6 diffrent program langauges (but DAMN! still not enough to make a gmae in any of them)
Well I really need to be a game designer! (I decided as of now) My family and friends say that I will never make and I just WON'T EXCEPT. I NEED TO!!!!. errrrrr I haven't believed them yet, but it is really hard when you have no encouragement. (Plus I dont know what to do after highschool (If there is a Clown college why nt GameDev College))
The only reason I get games now is to edit them but it is still not getting me much closer to making my own game. I find myself MODing for T2 now but people keep makijng everything befor I finish it is so enoying. (Especialy when people say I stole the code from somebody else)
I don't really know why i am writing this... maybe a call for help, encouragement, advice , or what-ever. but I would like what ever thoughts that any body has.
good or flames (what ever flams you can come up with I would like to here :)
About the author
#2
07/20/2001 (7:15 am)
... stick to one language and learn it. I dont mean read a book and say you know what your doing, becuase you dont. It is usefull to know about more than one language but unless you have really really used it, you wont know "how" to really use it. Also, starting something is Very easy. Finishing that same thing is HARD! If you go to a game company and say "Hey look at all the things I started!" then they will more than likely show you the door. Even the smalest game can be hard to finish. Most times you are close to completion and ... well, you want to move onto something new. The game never gets finished. Basicly what Im saying is for you to start a project, something along the lines of a mod or simple game (2D side scroller?) and finish it to the point of release. Once you have that under your belt, you can start to feel a little more confident and your abilities will have increased 2 fold. The most important thing... Have Fun and enjoy the rewards of a little hard work. 
#3
If you want to silence them do some research into the game industry. Talk to people, get their input on what you should learn, average sallery, etc., this way you will have material to debate back to these people with.
As for your schooling, a big recomendation if you are going to a post-secondary school is to not go to a specific "games school". These schools are a big joke to most games companies. Instead go for a degree that can find you a job not only in the games industry but the computer programming field as well.
You have plenty of years before you really need to worry about getting a job, but knowing what you want to do now will help prepare you for a successful future.
Determination is a good thing, as is being a stubborn SOB :)
Logan
07/20/2001 (7:23 am)
I think its good that you are not letting family and friends ruin your dreams. These people likely do not understand or fully comprehend what you intend to do with your life and are clueless that this is a decent paying career that you can really enjoy and be happy with.If you want to silence them do some research into the game industry. Talk to people, get their input on what you should learn, average sallery, etc., this way you will have material to debate back to these people with.
As for your schooling, a big recomendation if you are going to a post-secondary school is to not go to a specific "games school". These schools are a big joke to most games companies. Instead go for a degree that can find you a job not only in the games industry but the computer programming field as well.
You have plenty of years before you really need to worry about getting a job, but knowing what you want to do now will help prepare you for a successful future.
Determination is a good thing, as is being a stubborn SOB :)
Logan
#4
Keep h4x0ring away.
07/20/2001 (9:30 am)
Actual game school just don't have credibility for dishing out high quality game developers simply because they are very new and no one has come out of them yet to show off their skills. By the time you got out of one there should be a standard set as to the quality of game developer that comes out of one of those schools. There used to be a school in Vancouver, Canada but I think it moved to Seattle. Califoria has a couple of universities that offer gaming degrees now and various other Universities in the US have the same. Problem is no real standard has been set between all of them so the education level could very drastically.Keep h4x0ring away.
#5
Don't let your family bring you down. You can accomplish anything you want. You can become a good game programmer and/or designer all on your own. I'm not gonna rehash what's been said allready, because they people above said it much better than I will. Go and make games, and finish them.
As for a Game college, check out www.gameinstitute.com. They're still pretty new, but they have quite a selection of courses. I am actually taking OpenGL game programming, and it's quite interesting, and well worth the money ($95 for a 12 week course).
07/20/2001 (12:28 pm)
Hey,Don't let your family bring you down. You can accomplish anything you want. You can become a good game programmer and/or designer all on your own. I'm not gonna rehash what's been said allready, because they people above said it much better than I will. Go and make games, and finish them.
As for a Game college, check out www.gameinstitute.com. They're still pretty new, but they have quite a selection of courses. I am actually taking OpenGL game programming, and it's quite interesting, and well worth the money ($95 for a 12 week course).
#6
07/20/2001 (12:50 pm)
yes, gameinstitute looks very cool. I am 15 myself, and my dad gets angry at me for not doing anything other than sit in front of my comp working. just get a summer job, make some money, and use it to buy books or for classes you know of. And the thing with porgramming, no one can teach you how to program well. They can only teach you how to program, because every program you make is unique and new.
#7
07/20/2001 (5:58 pm)
What? Nobody has heared of digipen. http://www.digipen.edu/ These guys have been around for a while. They offer courses in both computer animation and game dev! 
#8
07/22/2001 (9:16 pm)
Digipen is the school that used to be in Vancouver that Greg mentioned. I believe it is actually in Redmond not Seattle now though (close enough). This school has been doing game development long enough that it actualy has respectability in the industry. I read in a recent post that the Bungie team hired a recent Digipen grad to do work on Halo.
#9
Anyways, if you're interested, and want a 'formal' education, look into it. If not, learn everything you can, talk with others (this is prob the best place to be right now), and be your own person.
I have a formal Comp. Eng. Tech education, but I'd say that my OWN training, out of school, is by far more valuable than what I learned in school... in MY opinion, an education helps you get that interview, maybe even the job... your SKILLSET holds that job. I've met people with no post-secondary education that are FAR more technically skilled than university grads.
My 2 cents (Canadian) (:
-bw
08/19/2001 (9:08 pm)
Pick up this month's Wired magazine, it has an article on SEVERAL gaming courses offered across the states (I'm not sure if it mentions the Canadian courses... prob not, we Canucks get ignore a lot (: )Anyways, if you're interested, and want a 'formal' education, look into it. If not, learn everything you can, talk with others (this is prob the best place to be right now), and be your own person.
I have a formal Comp. Eng. Tech education, but I'd say that my OWN training, out of school, is by far more valuable than what I learned in school... in MY opinion, an education helps you get that interview, maybe even the job... your SKILLSET holds that job. I've met people with no post-secondary education that are FAR more technically skilled than university grads.
My 2 cents (Canadian) (:
-bw
#10
when i was about 8 i got my first pc, it was an xt. I was pretty keen to learn how to program so i started teaching myself qbasic and stuff like that.
I realised that programming wasnt my thing, so i tried graphics. I read heaps of articles, kept upto date on all the happenings and just kept at it.
If you keep trying you will make it.
08/19/2001 (11:49 pm)
Don't let people put you off your goals andy. when i was about 8 i got my first pc, it was an xt. I was pretty keen to learn how to program so i started teaching myself qbasic and stuff like that.
I realised that programming wasnt my thing, so i tried graphics. I read heaps of articles, kept upto date on all the happenings and just kept at it.
If you keep trying you will make it.
#11
08/21/2001 (8:41 am)
I would say also, don't be afraid to ask for help. These guys around here at Garage Games are very helpful! If you have a question ask it. The least that will happen is no one will answer it, the most is that someone will have the best answer for you and you will be able to move on in your project. Also, if you know someone personally that is learning this stuff, get their help, or get together with them. One of the great things about school and even working with people is that they are amazing resources for information! So ask and see what happens!
#12
Having said that, my advise would be to stick with one programming language at a time. If you feel you still need to learn the concepts of programming, do something like Basic or Pascal. (Sorry, Visual Basic or Delphi *lol*). If you think you have a grasp of general programming concepts, it is time to "have a look at" C++. There are plenty of free compilers: GCC, Borlands Compiler, but you will eventually need an IDE with a good debugger. Visual C++ is the first thing that comes to mind. But, unless you have rich folks you probably won't be able to afford that just yet. Best thing would be to check if they already have it at school. They're also probably gonna have a few good books on C++. You'll need a few of those.
Now to the games programming bit. Get your self a nice games design book. I recomend Game Architecture and design, by Andrew Rollings and Dave Morris. Its a good book that covers a lot from puting your initial idea to paper, to building a team and then some other game development concepts. Then, if you want to do 3D programming, theres Eberly's 3D Game Engine Design. But, you gotta be competent with your maths to open that book!
The thing about the games development industry is that most companies look for either of two types of people. Fresh young graduates (cheep), or the Seasoned Expert (Know it all). I mean, when carmack was looking for abrash, he knew he was looking for abrash, as opposed to codemasters (am i allowed to name names?) offering me a below average graduate startup. But once you get in there, you can get places. apparantlly. The best thing is, it is gonna be more enjoyable than a mundane IT job.
I'm working in a regular IT company, the money is good but I do wanna make a game or two. You could probably do the same. If you cant find a good games position when your looking for jobs, you can just get a regular it job, and then see what you want to do. The commercial programming experience could help you better your chances.
08/23/2001 (4:45 pm)
Stay in school, study hard. You are young yet, so don't let this Game developer dream get in the way. But keep the ambition, the stuff you learn at school just might come in handy when you need to go to uni.Having said that, my advise would be to stick with one programming language at a time. If you feel you still need to learn the concepts of programming, do something like Basic or Pascal. (Sorry, Visual Basic or Delphi *lol*). If you think you have a grasp of general programming concepts, it is time to "have a look at" C++. There are plenty of free compilers: GCC, Borlands Compiler, but you will eventually need an IDE with a good debugger. Visual C++ is the first thing that comes to mind. But, unless you have rich folks you probably won't be able to afford that just yet. Best thing would be to check if they already have it at school. They're also probably gonna have a few good books on C++. You'll need a few of those.
Now to the games programming bit. Get your self a nice games design book. I recomend Game Architecture and design, by Andrew Rollings and Dave Morris. Its a good book that covers a lot from puting your initial idea to paper, to building a team and then some other game development concepts. Then, if you want to do 3D programming, theres Eberly's 3D Game Engine Design. But, you gotta be competent with your maths to open that book!
The thing about the games development industry is that most companies look for either of two types of people. Fresh young graduates (cheep), or the Seasoned Expert (Know it all). I mean, when carmack was looking for abrash, he knew he was looking for abrash, as opposed to codemasters (am i allowed to name names?) offering me a below average graduate startup. But once you get in there, you can get places. apparantlly. The best thing is, it is gonna be more enjoyable than a mundane IT job.
I'm working in a regular IT company, the money is good but I do wanna make a game or two. You could probably do the same. If you cant find a good games position when your looking for jobs, you can just get a regular it job, and then see what you want to do. The commercial programming experience could help you better your chances.
#13
09/02/2001 (2:09 am)
I dont really wanna rehash whats been said, but i still want to throw in my $.02... I was once in exactly your position... early teens, wanting to make video games, unable to spell very well (all true) AND was discouraged from computer useage. 'go outside and play baseball or something' was all i ever heard... but i played every game i could get my hands on... learned what was good, what wasnt. Then, because i was smart in math, the allowed me to take AP computer Science my juinor year in HS. I absolutly loved the course. I learned my first language (C) and learned everything i could about it. That summer I scanned the net for MFC tutorials and took that upon myself, which was a lot of fun but a LOT of work. Then, after high school, I went to college and took a class in networking, where i learned all about UNIX, Java, and all the copper and fiber that connects us. That said, like you, I also took up web dev (HTML is a markup language, not a programming language, per se) And now Admin the web servers here on campus. Im currently taking graphics and computer hardware classes, and starting to work on a video game with a few friends of mine. I'd say the lesson you can learn from me is, using your computer is like a sport or any hobby. nobody should get angry you go to football pratice every day, so why should they get angry when you use your computer... you are preparing just as much (imho, more so) than the jocks out there. Keep your eyes on the prize an you'll get there... just know it takes a LOT of work...
#14
Doing this plus during your course using the extra time to make and finish a game demo will make you life heaps easier when trying to get a job in the industry.
09/02/2001 (3:50 am)
For a future education you should really think about doing something like a computer science degree. If you look at games company jobs most of them require it for all there entry level programmers. This is because a computer science degree teaches you how to program in with good style and how to use boring as hell things like data structures. You can also make you degree mostly aimmed at programming so you get lots of experience and feedback from your lecturers. Doing this plus during your course using the extra time to make and finish a game demo will make you life heaps easier when trying to get a job in the industry.
Frederick
Best advice I can suggest is put your nose in the books and keep trying to produce demos and, when possible, games. dont worry about being original or unique at this point, just get it done.
once you have something to show, a company will be far more receptive to hiring you and paying for your ideas.
Saying you want to make games is like saying you want to go into space. and just like with the space program, the world measures things in what it can see and touch.
start making things "they" can see.