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You should know the score when you go into games programming. There is a lot of demand for those jobs, so the employers can push harder than they would otherwi

by jcnnghm 17y ago

You should know the score when you go into games programming. There is a lot of demand for those jobs, so the employers can push harder than they would otherwise. This is kind of like moving next to an airport then complaining about the noise.

gamble 17y ago
You might be surprised by how much leverage games programmers with experience can have. Video games are like the movie industry - hard to break into, but once you're established (shipped titles) you can write your own ticket - particularly if you're willing to locate in areas with a shortage of experienced games programmers.
cabalamat 17y ago
> There is a lot of demand for those jobs Indeed. The problem is that lots of young programmers want ot be game developers, thinking its a really cool job. The games companies know this, and fully exploit it, wringing as much work of of employees as they can, while the employee is still naive and doesn't expect management to be utter cunts. When the employee wises up, there's always the next generation of mugs to exploit. How to fix this? I guess the important thing is to get word out that employers like Rockstar are scum who should be avoided at all costs. (caveat: I've no direct experience with Rockstar, my impression of them is based on a friend who used to work for them).
- gaius 17y ago
  The problem is that lots of young programmers want ot be game developers, thinking its a really cool job There surely must be a limited supply of people who can do the really serious physics modeling or AI stuff. Are they subject to the same conditions? I mean, if you can do that, you can quit and go work for a hedge fund as a quant... Same long hours, 10x the pay, treated like a prize racehorse.
  - NikkiA 17y ago
    "There surely must be a limited supply of people who can do the really serious physics modeling or AI stuff. Are they subject to the same conditions?" Yes, they are, because there are still more available than needed, and 'the best' is rarely a trait that games studios look for in hiring. That said, someone with a SIGGRAPH presentation, or equivalents in AI or physics, WILL be treated with more respect in the industry. But at the end of the day, you'll still be a very disposable cog, that works the hours that management decries, or you're gone.
  - blasdel 17y ago
    Most of the labor on these Hollywood-blockbuster-style games is in art production, modelling, scripting, writing, QA -- the engines are done by much smaller teams, often at third-party companies. It's at the point where many of the better college programs oriented at the "you like playing games, so you'll obviously master making them" adolescents have given up the pretense of teaching CS or programming to their students.

by jcnnghm 17y ago

gamble 17y ago

You might be surprised by how much leverage games programmers with experience can have. Video games are like the movie industry - hard to break into, but once you're established (shipped titles) you can write your own ticket - particularly if you're willing to locate in areas with a shortage of experienced games programmers.

cabalamat 17y ago

> There is a lot of demand for those jobs Indeed. The problem is that lots of young programmers want ot be game developers, thinking its a really cool job. The games companies know this, and fully exploit it, wringing as much work of of employees as they can, while the employee is still naive and doesn't expect management to be utter cunts. When the employee wises up, there's always the next generation of mugs to exploit. How to fix this? I guess the important thing is to get word out that employers like Rockstar are scum who should be avoided at all costs. (caveat: I've no direct experience with Rockstar, my impression of them is based on a friend who used to work for them).

gaius 17y ago
The problem is that lots of young programmers want ot be game developers, thinking its a really cool job There surely must be a limited supply of people who can do the really serious physics modeling or AI stuff. Are they subject to the same conditions? I mean, if you can do that, you can quit and go work for a hedge fund as a quant... Same long hours, 10x the pay, treated like a prize racehorse.
- NikkiA 17y ago
  "There surely must be a limited supply of people who can do the really serious physics modeling or AI stuff. Are they subject to the same conditions?" Yes, they are, because there are still more available than needed, and 'the best' is rarely a trait that games studios look for in hiring. That said, someone with a SIGGRAPH presentation, or equivalents in AI or physics, WILL be treated with more respect in the industry. But at the end of the day, you'll still be a very disposable cog, that works the hours that management decries, or you're gone.
- blasdel 17y ago
  Most of the labor on these Hollywood-blockbuster-style games is in art production, modelling, scripting, writing, QA -- the engines are done by much smaller teams, often at third-party companies. It's at the point where many of the better college programs oriented at the "you like playing games, so you'll obviously master making them" adolescents have given up the pretense of teaching CS or programming to their students.