Education experience of a video game designer

What is video game design training like?
There are a large number of technical schools and career colleges that offer Associate degree programs for video game design. In addition, many traditional colleges offer Bachelor's degree programs for video game design or related fields. Some career colleges provide you the option of taking online programs which allow you to move at your own pace. As a result, the length of your video game design program will depend on how often you can attend class. Many video game design programs offer great flexibility and professional instructors.

What type of video game design programs should I take?
When considering your path for video game design, it is important to consider a focus for your video game design career. There are many sub-fields within video game design and programming:

• Game Physics programmer
• Artificial intelligence programmer
• Graphics programmer
• Gameplay programmer
• Network programmer
• Game tools programmer
• Character design and art

Some colleges focus more on the programming side while others focus more on the art and design side. You should decide where you would like to focus, and research which program meets those goals.

Do video game design schools add anything to my training?
It is next to impossible to crack into the competitive world of video game design and programming without proper training. A degree from a trusted video game training program can result in much needed experience and help to get your foot in the door and give your dream a pulse.

Common coursework includes

• C++ programming
• Video game console design
• Graphics programming with Direct X9
• Artificial intelligence
• Game mathematics
• Physics for game developers