Major in Game Design

[the cow says moo]

I'm considering majoring in Game Design, but I don't really know of any good colleges that have this major. I'm not sure yet if I want to be a programmer or an artist, but I've taken a lot of Math classes (taking AP Computer Science now, which I enjoy a lot) as well as a few art classes. I ****ed around during my freshman year and first semester of my sophomore year, so I have a 2.9 GPA. This is my junior year and I got a 3.75 GPA last semester and will probably do about the same this semester, if not better; I'm hoping trends will save my ass. My school has different grade standards, so that all grades are lower on the GPA scale (an A is about a 3.7). I took princeton review for ACT, and just took the test this month, so I'm hoping to get between a 2.8-3.0. If not, I can always try again next time. There's also a good chance that I'll get a captain position next year for my Crew team (that's rowing for all you dunces that don't know).

So what colleges would you recommend? I'd prefer one in the eastern/central time zones, but it doesn't have to be. Post links if you have them.


Help me halflife2.net, you're my only hope

...besides google

 

[63]

I'm not sure yet if I want to be a programmer or an artist

Should probably figure that one out first... Big impact on schools.

 

[Krynn72]

You should probably decide which aspect you want to go for first. Design/programming, or art, and then go to a school that specializes. You could go to Full Sail like I did, they have both courses and both are pretty good (design/programming is quite respected I hear, art one not as much), but its kinda expensive. If you go for art, I'd recommend the Gnomon School of Visual Effects. Its not accredited, but in this industry nobody gives a damn about degrees, and if you graduate from Gnomon, you're pretty much guaranteed a job. Many studios hire from there. Can't say much about design/programming schools though, since I never dealt with them. The only good one I can think of off the top of my head is Digipen, where Iced_Eagle recently graduated from.

 

[DEATHMASTER]

Gnomon

That is all.

 

[theotherguy]

There aren't a lot of schools that offer Game Design, but that isn't to say you can't create your own major.

In general, people will get a major that is applicable to a wide variety of fields in the undergraduate level, and then specialize into a particular field in the graduate level. However, if you want to make your own specialized track and major, there is no problem with that. Just realize that if you decide that the gaming industry is not for you, your "Game Design" degree will mean nothing to you.

I'll tell you the story of two of my friends who are going into game design.

One of my friends decided before he went to college that he wanted to get into the game industry, specifically doing design. He was a very creative fellow who enjoyed writing, modeling, animating, etc. He didn't have a lot of experience in programming, and wasn't sure which track to take. He came into Carnegie Mellon with an undeclared major, and expressed to his adviser that whatever classes he would take, it would be classes focused on game design. He took a bunch of classes in electronic media art, learning modeling, animation, film, writing, etc. He also took a few programming courses, but he didn't declare his major for a few years. His adviser got sort of impatient with him, and told him that he should declare some kind of major. He decided to create his own major called "Digital Media Creation." He has gone on to work at the Entertainment Technology Center and has headed several successful projects.

Another one of my friends made a similar decision. He was not at all experienced in technical fields, but was an enthusiast in many forms of art, writing, music, etc. He decided that he wanted to design video games for a living, so he applied to every single school and major in the university with the essay and tag line "whichever school I get into, I will use what I learn to make video games." He ended up getting into the school of computer science (the hardest school to get into) and learned programming from scratch. He is now one of the best programmers and computer scientists I know, and has gone on to intern in the game industry, and host several important gaming projects here on campus.

My only advice is to not set your sights too narrow, and to pick a school that has both a strong technical and strong artistic bent. Take what you want to take from these schools, and use it to develop your own path into the gaming industry.

EDIT: Oh, don't want to push you, but CMU is really into the whole crew thing.

 

[Emporius]

Pretty much every major Canadian University offers some sort of Game Development stream now, as well as most colleges.

 

[Kaptain H]

Recently graduated game design student here.

If you haven't firmly decided on what path you'd like to take for your major (I switched mine like 4 times D, it may not be the best advice in the world to drop yourself into an expensive program, unless you're sure that the school offers whatever it is you might end up wanting to focus on.

I went to The Guildhall at SMU after finishing my 4 year degree in fine arts.
It's a masters/certificate program where students focus on one of the three main disciplines of game design: art, level design, and programming (though I hear they're doing more with producing these days). It's a very team-oriented program, and you're always involved in mod projects with other students and learning the implementation and best practices of game design, as well as theory and technical skills. Though it's a graduate level program, they have recently started an undergraduate game design major at SMU which leads into the Guildhall, though I don't know many details about it.

One thing that is very important, and I suggest you look into this for whichever schools you are considering, is that the faculty are experienced game development professionals who have actually worked in the field. You'll learn so much from their experiences in the industry, and their connections are very valuable. Getting a game development job often very dependent on connections. Another big plus for the school you choose is that it is located in an area with a a lot of game studios.

My cohort (graduated in December) has really felt the impact of the poor economy and placement hasn't been stellar compared to students in the past, though many of my lucky friends have gone to studios like Bioware (level designers and programmers, they outsource artists), Volition (level designers again), id (again, LDs), and I know artists at Red Fly and Blizzard. All but one of our six programmers have already been hired, about half of our LDs have, and only two artists (both technical artists.) It does pay to be a programmer! Myself, I worked for three weeks at Halliburton at $50 an hour, and decided I hated it, want to make games, and resigned. Hopefully this art test I got today from an interested studio goes well.

Gnomon is an excellent school and produces great artists, but from what I understand, it is geared somewhat toward experienced industry professionals who want to take some extra classes to better their skills. One of my former professors has been considering taking some courses there, and it looks awesome. Though I wonder how ideal it would be for someone at the freshman-college level.

http://guildhall.smu.edu/

Good luck with your search.

 

[Vegeta897]

-snip-

That is all.

Why is the scout in that sandvich.

 

[Yorick]

Gnomon School of Visual Effects

More like the Nomnom School of Edible Effects.

Lived with a buddy of mine when he went to Full Sail down near Orlando, and sat in on a few lessons. It's certainly not without problems, but it's at least worth looking into.