What is a Video Game Designer?
Position 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.
A Day in the Life of a Video Game Designer
- Create core game features including storylines, role-play mechanics, and character biographies for a new video game or game franchise.
- Devise missions, challenges, or puzzles to be encountered in game play.
- Present new game design concepts to management and technical colleagues, including artists, animators, and programmers.
- Collaborate with artists to achieve appropriate visual style.
- Write or supervise the writing of game text and dialogue.
- Consult with multiple stakeholders to define requirements and implement online features.
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What Every Video Game Designer Should Know
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
- Designer/Writer
- Video Game Developer
- Lead Level Designer
- Mid Level Game Designer
- Interactive Multimedia Designer
Are There Job Opportunities for Video Game Designers?
There were about 287,200 jobs for Video Game Designer in 2016 (in the United States). 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. Due to new job openings and attrition, there will be an average of 22,400 job openings in this field each 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.
Salary for a Video Game Designer
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.
How much do Video Game Designers make in each U.S. state?
| 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 |
What Tools & Technology do Video Game Designers Use?
Although they’re not necessarily needed for all jobs, the following technologies are used by many Video Game Designers:
- 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
What education or degrees do I need to become a Video Game Designer?
How Long Does it Take to Become a Video Game Designer?
Who Employs Video Game Designers?
The table below shows the approximate number of Video Game Designers employed by various industries.
References:
Image Credit: Intel Free Press via Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic
More about our data sources and methodologies.
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