What is a Video Game Designer?
Video Game Designer Job Description Design core features of video games. Specify innovative game and role-play mechanics, story lines, and character biographies. Create and maintain design documentation. Guide and collaborate with production staff to produce games as designed.
Daily Life Of a Video Game Designer
- Collaborate with artists to achieve appropriate visual style.
- Create gameplay prototypes for presentation to creative and technical staff and management.
- Prepare and revise initial game sketches using two- and three-dimensional graphical design software.
- Create core game features including storylines, role-play mechanics, and character biographies for a new video game or game franchise.
- Create and manage documentation, production schedules, prototyping goals, and communication plans in collaboration with production staff.
- Guide design discussions between development teams.
Featured schools near , edit
Qualities of a Video Game Designer
Below is a list of the skills most Video Game Designers say are important on the job.
Programming: Writing computer programs for various purposes.
Active Listening: Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
Complex Problem Solving: Identifying complex problems and reviewing related information to develop and evaluate options and implement solutions.
Critical Thinking: Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.
Reading Comprehension: Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.
Active Learning: Understanding the implications of new information for both current and future problem-solving and decision-making.
Types of Video Game Designer
- Game Engineer
- World Designer
- Mobile Game Engineer
- Interactive Multimedia Designer
- Video Game Engineer
Video Game Designer Employment Estimates
In the United States, there were 287,200 jobs for Video Game Designer in 2016. New jobs are being produced at a rate of 9.3% which is above the national average. The Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts 26,600 new jobs for Video Game Designer by 2026. There will be an estimated 22,400 positions for Video Game Designer per year.
The states with the most job growth for Video Game Designer are Washington, Utah, and Nevada. Watch out if you plan on working in Alaska, Maryland, or Mississippi. These states have the worst job growth for this type of profession.
Average Video Game Designers Salary
The typical yearly salary for Video Game Designers is somewhere between $47,350 and $144,820.
Video Game Designers who work in District of Columbia, Maryland, or New Hampshire, make the highest salaries.
Below is a list of the median annual salaries for Video Game Designers in different U.S. states.
| State | Annual Mean Salary |
|---|---|
| Alabama | $87,060 |
| Alaska | $98,830 |
| Arizona | $85,010 |
| Arkansas | $73,670 |
| California | $103,270 |
| Colorado | $102,470 |
| Connecticut | $100,340 |
| District of Columbia | $117,540 |
| Florida | $78,900 |
| Georgia | $90,140 |
| Hawaii | $89,960 |
| Idaho | $80,610 |
| Indiana | $79,310 |
| Iowa | $78,810 |
| Kansas | $79,300 |
| Kentucky | $79,420 |
| Louisiana | $66,600 |
| Maine | $79,790 |
| Maryland | $113,330 |
| Massachusetts | $92,110 |
| Michigan | $76,400 |
| Minnesota | $81,650 |
| Mississippi | $81,280 |
| Missouri | $82,610 |
| Montana | $68,430 |
| Nebraska | $86,230 |
| Nevada | $72,610 |
| New Hampshire | $112,440 |
| New Jersey | $99,210 |
| New Mexico | $79,540 |
| New York | $90,750 |
| North Carolina | $88,650 |
| North Dakota | $70,730 |
| Ohio | $82,440 |
| Oklahoma | $78,490 |
| Oregon | $79,610 |
| Pennsylvania | $87,040 |
| Rhode Island | $81,290 |
| South Carolina | $92,100 |
| South Dakota | $81,250 |
| Tennessee | $74,000 |
| Texas | $90,290 |
| Utah | $76,890 |
| Vermont | $72,220 |
| Virginia | $105,270 |
| Washington | $91,620 |
| West Virginia | $83,660 |
| Wisconsin | $74,600 |
| Wyoming | $75,780 |
Tools & Technologies Used by Video Game Designers
Below is a list of the types of tools and technologies that Video Game Designers may use on a daily basis:
- Microsoft Excel
- Microsoft Word
- Microsoft Office
- Hypertext markup language HTML
- JavaScript
- Microsoft PowerPoint
- Microsoft Outlook
- Python
- MySQL
- Microsoft Project
- Microsoft Visio
- Adobe Systems Adobe Photoshop
- Structured query language SQL
- Linux
- Adobe Systems Adobe Illustrator
- Extensible markup language XML
- PHP: Hypertext Preprocessor
- C
- Practical extraction and reporting language Perl
- Blackboard
How to Become a Video Game Designer
Are there Video Game Designers education requirements?
How Long Does it Take to Become a Video Game Designer?
Video Game Designers Sector
Below are examples of industries where Video Game Designers work:
References:
Image Credit: Intel Free Press via Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic
More about our data sources and methodologies.
Featured Schools
Request Info
|
Southern New Hampshire University You have goals. Southern New Hampshire University can help you get there. Whether you need a bachelor's degree to get into a career or want a master's degree to move up in your current career, SNHU has an online program for you. Find your degree from over 200 online programs. Learn More > |
Course Advisor provides higher-education, college and university, degree, program, career, salary, and other helpful information to students, faculty, institutions, and other internet audiences. Presented information and data are subject to change. Inclusion on this website does not imply or represent a direct relationship with the company, school, or brand. Information, though believed correct at time of publication, may not be correct, and no warranty is provided. Contact the schools to verify any information before relying on it. Financial aid may be available for those who qualify. The displayed options may include sponsored or recommended results, not necessarily based on your preferences.
© Course Advisor – All Rights Reserved.