Interested in Game development

[Shinanigans]

Hi guys, just wondering if anyone here is actually part of a development team/studio?

[estOohKazoo]

i was just starting to look at 3d animation and stuff...but then noticed the hefty tafe fee if i wanna do it maybe when we got some equity on the house :p

this would be a very stresfull job i reckon...

[André Axe'm]

Vaguely...

[=beast=]

Im very interested....except it takes some pretty epic brain power to understand 3d animation programs

3DS max, it hurts

theeenn you gotta get that animation fluid and life like....more pain

[//Rapid]

Hi guys, just wondering if anyone here is actually part of a development team/studio?

I was, until it was closed down

hefty tafe fee

Not worth it really, at least for art, imho

it takes some pretty epic brain power to understand 3d animation programs

Not really... but yes, animation, especially real time, is tough

And GL getting a job in Australia any time in the forseeable future

[TheMeadow]

I am part of a student team or 3

Due to the nature of the Games Design course I am studying, many of us come up with ideas that we want to run with.. and usually bounce them off some others get some art work in and just have a play.

However this year I am looking into getting something made for myself, hopefully something else for GCAP and now I am looking into the XNA competition as well...
Not to mention my studies

Also I am looking to set up like a monthly idea throw around with designers around brisbane.. just to test and expand brainstorming sessions

[Shinanigans]

Ah ok, good so there are a few of you here

Basically what i'm after is some feedback on how the industry works, what type of roles there any within the industry and whether or not it's a feasible industry to get into.

I find myself quite often tinkering with games, anything from console cvars to full blown mods. I'm not experienced with any major coding, only fiddled with a very small amount of LUA but have had a fair bit of time in XML files, editing properties of objects to get them to act differently in game (have some preview/progress footage up on youtube if you're interested).

My own personal aim is towards game balancing, optimisation and idea creation. So i'm probably more of a whiteboard type guy than a coding type guy. Last year i was working on a mod for Crysis which basically took most of the stupid/unrealistic features/problems within the game, turned them around and made them act more appropriately. Currently i'm working on map optimisation for the standard Crysis maps and getting them to run a heap better.

My question is; is there a role for me in game development or do i just leave it as a hobby?

[André Axe'm]

I have no idea. I just do it as a hobby.

Maybe do some good stuff, make it publically available and see if anyone approaches you?

[Abyssus]

I am.
Putting together a show reel for production/design

[TheMeadow]

My question is; is there a role for me in game development or do i just leave it as a hobby?

Yes. That is what game designers are for

BUT during this time in the industry in Australia there is basically only 2 good ways to get into it.
1. Work QA and meet the contacts, express where you want to go and wait for an opportunity to jump.
2. Make a game/mod/prototypes. This proves to companies you have the ideas and dedication to work for their company.

Another BUT is that most big companies these days aren't doing their own thing... ie Krome has Tai and Transformers 2, THQ is working on Avatar etc etc
Luckily for you places like Infinite Interactive (Melbourne, Puzzle Quest guys) and Halfbrick (Brisbane, DS/XBLA titles) do have days you can show your own ideas to the group... then if people like them, run it past the boss and possible put it into production.

I have friends all through Halfbrick and they enjoy the chance for anyone in the company to put forward and idea.

So basically, yes Shin, you are useful. I would possible suggest looking into Games Design courses or any Seminars you can get yourself into. They are real eye openers and you will find your white board tactics useful in other areas.

For now.. join me and we shall make an awesome game and get awesome jobs.

[Shinanigans]

Much appreciated

I've also got this discussion going over at OCAU and they're pretty much said the same thing as well. Get a portfolio up and ready and just start waving it around.

I don't expect this to be an overnight thing and am kinda glad it works out that way because i like to have time to prepare for big things. I'm in no rush to get into the industry as i currently have a supportive job, but it's not something i want to do for the rest of my life by a long shot.

I'll just keep chomping away at my little projects, put it all together and see what i come up with. It was also suggested over on OCAU that i should find someone who can code, pair up and see what we can come up with. Thought that was a pretty good idea too

What do you do Beanie?

[TheMeadow]

What do you do Beanie?

I study games design
But recently I have been getting into more Project Management (cause I like control ) haha.

I did a spell of QA work and got a nice eye into the industry (apart from the one I already have) but I love coming up with game concepts and ideas... and then I usually prototype them into a scripting language and get others involve... hunt around uni for an artist who likes it and can grasp the style.

[Abyssus]

Most startup game development teams result in epic fail, because the members often don't have professional backgrounds, and don't conduct themselves professionally.

Its a big worry, but not really a surprise.

Finding people with talent, motivation, who are down to earth, and have a team focus is essential.

But my experience has been, most people who want to get into games design/development have big dreams (great for motivation) no discipline (bad for success) and don't work well in teams (bad for success)

[<SI> Josh]

Haha, I'm a coder looking for ideas. >_>

I've got a couple of ideas, but nothing really suitable for want I want to do right now, which is make a game for the DS so I can learn it's API (preferably single player, so I don't have to learn the networking code as well. )

So, if you have an idea that you think would work, message me, although, be warned, unless the idea is rather simple, it won't be finished by year's end. I'm currently working on another game at uni, as well as usual uni workload and such. :/

[Shinanigans]

Hey Josh,

When i read your post i started thinking about what ideas i could come up with. At first, the fear of not being able to come up with anything clouded my thoughts for a while then i started pondering a few ideas. But the main question that kept coming back to mind was although i may have ideas, i'm uncertain of what's actually feasable/possible within a small project.

Admittedly i've not really looked too far into small team dev projects but i notice most are fairly simple designs, moreso resembling tech demos than anything. That sounds very judgemental, but i don't intend for it to be like that at all, but as i said, i keep coming back to the question of whther or not X is possible.

So i guess i'll just suck it up and throw an idea out there which may be snickered at for either a) it's creativity or b) it's feasability, but hey, the only dumb question is the one you don't ask

I think it's fairly safe to assume that it's a far simpler project to create a mod based off an already existing engine than it is to create from scratch, so with that in mind, just trying to gauge the size of a project with something like:

* Modern-ish FPS engine (ala, Q3/UT2/CryEngine) mod;
* New HUD/UI & Menu;
* New single player map;
* Maybe implement a new weapon/s if the models/textures are readily available;

Keeping things like the original sound files and textures, etc. Whether or not AI implementation is a big job i assume depends on the engine and tools available? I guess the map design is where the majority of creation would come from on a smaller project as developing larger things like a mass of weapons, tricky scripts and whatnot are for a larger project.

Or am i going about this totally the wrong way and should be starting with scratch ideas than to start off with mods or even total conversions of current engines?

Feel free to poke at any points, as i said, i'm just spitballing assumptions here.