Why Video Game Design Will Be a Leading Career Path in the Future

Whether you are college-aged or simply seeking to change careers, the increased prevalence of video games has likely caught your eye. One common misconception about pursuing a career related to video games, however, is that you need to be able to code to land a job in the field. There are many career options to consider regarding video games, with video game design being one of the most prominent.

What Does Game Design Mean?

Often, when people think of video games as a career, they either think of playing it professionally or writing the code that becomes the game itself. However, designing the game is an often-overlooked career path. While game development refers to the code created to bring the game into existence, game design refers to the creation of the creative elements associated with a game.

Tasks game designers are given range from creating the game's overall storyline, along with any characters and missions, to even drawing out and providing descriptions for how certain things in the game should look.

How Large is the Video Game Design Market?

Believe it or not, the video game design market is one of the largest fields associated with video games. Overall, the video game market has a forecasted revenue of $583.7 billion by 2030, with the field expected to grow at around 12%. More specifically, the video game animation and design sector is expected to grow faster at about 16% throughout the next 10 years. This means thousands of new job opportunities will emerge for those interested in the field.

Factors Influencing the Growth of Video Game Design

In the past, the video game field was viewed as a hobby rather than a career. Nowadays, however, many successful individuals have emerged from video game design. Some of the factors that have influenced this change include:

- The development of new technology, such as virtual reality
- Increased education opportunities for the field
- Increased level of pay in the field
- Increased career opportunities in the field
- Development of game design itself

Prominent Career Paths in Video Game Design

For those who are interested in seeking a career within the video game design industry, there are several different paths to consider:

1. Video Game Designer

As mentioned, learning to become a video game designer can be one of the best choices for this field. With lucrative pay starting at around $75,000 off the bat and flexible working hours, becoming a game designer is a great choice for anybody with a creative mind.

2. Video Game Tester

Believe it or not, beta testing games is a career path in and of itself. Video game testers are given trial versions of a game, typically one that is not fully developed yet, to see how it runs at a certain point. They then write a test report outlining any bugs they run into. This process repeats until a full working game is ready to be released.

3. Graphic Designer

Like game designers, graphic designers will create artwork for a video game implemented after the code is created. They are responsible for making a game visually appealing and engaging to an audience, and they may have little programming knowledge to help the developers. 

4. Computer Programmer

Becoming a computer programmer is the most complex career path in video game design. In this role, a programmer relies on coding to take the original design of a game provided by the designer, which they then develop into an actual tangible game. Naturally, this role requires high programming skills in multiple languages, which can be learned from coding boot camps.

5. 3D Artist

In between the game designers and game developers are the 3D artists. These professionals create 3D models for all the game characters, items, scenery, and more in a game by using the descriptions provided by game designers. These 3D models are then taken by computer programmers and coded into reality.

Create a career with video games

Whether you have always had a creative eye or are simply looking for a more intellectually stimulating role, video game design can offer what you're looking for. Even if designing isn't what you're interested in, there are several different career options to consider that may pique your interest. Take up an online course for game design or jump into a coding boot camp to develop the skills you need to secure your dream job.