Programming games

Hardware engineering is very different from software. In a software engineering college curriculum(sp?) you do learn some of the hardware concepts like CPU instruction sets and signals but not on a level where you can build your own electronics. In a hardware only track you might learn about VLSI and microcontroller interfacing but little to nothing about Object Oriented software techniques and efficiently structuring large scale software projects like games. But then again MIT does combine the two into one track and I assume that it's difficult as hell. To me software allows you to be more creative. In short you can have more of an impact, knowing less.

You could always go back to school to learn hardware, but I think that building software is more important. For example we have 2.8Ghz pentiums for $300 a chip but hardly any sofware which justifies the purchase of such a machine. Where is my next Photoshop which fuses 2D and 3D into one very easy to use program with an elegant interface. Seems like the only apps which push the boundaries these days are games, and that's just not enough. Having grown sick of this crap I am engineering my own natural media paint application which will push the boundaries of 2D and 3D not to mention be fun to use and do things that not many have seen before. Along with that I plan to have a very simple yet powerful user interface. Of course it will work on both Windows and Mac.

To answer your question the tools on the PC are more refined just like Mr.Sparkle said, and I would prefer working with them though I don't like M$ new direction with C# and .NET framework, it kills cross platform code which is why I only use C++, and COM instead of .NET. I tried games and didn't find it to be my cup of tea. Although, I do apply physics, scripting, and techniques for real-time 3D rendering in my own apps just like in games. My favorite area of research right now are 2D and 3D Bezier curves and their applications in 3D Free form deformations(organic animation), vector art, control, and subdivision. Many game developers are starting to use curves for having resolution independent 3D models and better flowing animation, and ATI even has a hardware curve renderer built in to Radeons. Ultimately, your career choice really depends on what your end goal is. If you like to be closer to the end product and have a direct impact on people then try software. If you like being the man waay behind the scenes and generally find math like Bessel functions, and electronics more interesting and would not mind getting to the bottom of each. It's either the C++ compiler or a CAD Engineering program for PCB design, either way you'll be sitting in a fairly dark corner of the universe with little immediate gratification from others regarding your work. BTW I only talk more about the computer engineering because I feel that it is being under-represented here, not because I like it more.

In software I even have my own preferences. For example I do not like working with command line tools like GCC, even if it is free. GCC is a UNIX based compiler tool set which is the most widely used one for compiling PS2 programs. There is also a Code Warrior compiler which I believe will get more popular among American and European developers because it offers a GUI and faster workflow.

A surefire way to test if you like hardware or software is to take the required Calculus course for each. If you can put up with the more complex engineering math then that's your ticket, if not try the simpler and more practical software Calculus. Remember, if you don't like your chances in a course early on you can easily transfer to another one. Also, hardware engineers get paid more than software ones, and game engineering salaries are too low by any engineer's standards.


seen

Wow, that was very very informative. I guess I'll have to think about what I'm more interested in and what I'd rather do. It always used to be hardware, but I'm finding that programming looks pretty interesting too. Thanks for the help guys. :)

It's because Texas has a disporotionate amount of idiots in it so the smart ones are REALLY smart. Balances it out a bit :/ Right Lhadatt? :)

Or maybe land in Texas is cheap, and there are established giants there (Origin, ISA and id are the very first to spring to mind) The RPG and FPS originated here. Bet for graphic design, well, maybe it's the (no offence) yuppie factor :/ Cali seems like a good place for it.

About your situation though: Non-pay projects by-and-large don't work unless you've got a solid plan and you initial endevors or not more than you and your group can chew. Me an some friends wanted to make a Cartoon show pilot and market it to cable networks. All I could procure was a hasty script and it was not nearly enough. USA Networks was as close as we got. Basically - it was more than we could handle (or would handle I suppose).

Seen, as always is full of advice from experince. You don't post enough.

ºTracer

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Having grown sick of this crap I am engineering my own natural media paint application which will push the boundaries of 2D and 3D not to mention be fun to use and do things that not many have seen before. Along with that I plan to have a very simple yet powerful user interface.

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I would love you forever. If you ever need a tester... ;)

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Originally posted by TracerBullet
It's because Texas has a disporotionate amount of idiots in it so the smart ones are REALLY smart. Balances it out a bit :/ Right Lhadatt? :)

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Yup. Houston government is a prime example of that -- the smart ones got out years ago.

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Or maybe land in Texas is cheap, and there are established giants there (Origin, ISA and id are the very first to spring to mind) The RPG and FPS originated here. Bet for graphic design, well, maybe it's the (no offence) yuppie factor :/ Cali seems like a good place for it.

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Austin's got a good tech sector. Sure, games helped, but tech companies getting chased out of Silicon Valley helped alot too. ^_^

I just want to point out that getting a programming job in the industry is still very hard, even after you have experience.

Programming openings these days are met with piles of resumes since so many programmers, in all fields, are out of work. That is magnified in the gaming industry since gaming is currently "cool" and so many people have developed a sudden interest in the field. Combine that with the volatile nature of the industry, and there are always a lot of qualified candidates looking for a job.

When a studio goes out of business, it's employees spread out and populate other companies, or start their own studio. This builds a buddy network, where people flock from one place to another as their current opportunity dries up. While that is great for those in the network, it makes getting in extremely difficult. Game openings get flooded with hordes of resumes. If your resume has the same amount of experience as another guy, but someone can recommend that guy from previous work; you lose everytime. The phrase "It's a small world" has never been more appropriate than in the gaming industry.

Right now there is nothing tougher than being mid-level. Not enough experience to compete for senior level positions, yet too much (and too expensive) to be considered for the lower level positions. It's hard to make yourself stick out in this situation, as you don't fit either criterea. It's the old catch-22 of the experience game. All of the passion and love of the industry in the world can't match up against the money game. This is why someone with programming credits in multiple shipped titles can be left out in the cold.

^Sux.

One thing which I remember Stephen Anderson, the CTO of EA saying me is that he thought that the video game business in North Ametrica was still kinda small.

And it's more popular than ever. Gettin in isn't as easy as it once was. Maybe 3 or 4 years ago you could get away with not having done any animation programming, or having a solid 3D algorithm knowledge in your resume. Today you're expected to have shipped a commercial title already and also be prepared to read and understand the latest Siggraph papers so that you can use it in your code. As well as know various assemblers and optimizations like MMX. Being able to write multi-platform code is a huge plus to everyone I ever dealt with.

I think that at some point in the near future regular utility apps will become more graphical and begin to feature some video game elements. At this point the two genres will somewhat converge and we should see some more variety in the kind of people that are involved as well as the opening of more diverse positions.

I always thought that art should be fun to create, so that's why I'm building my software with many ideas found in video games and like state machines, interactive 3D and real time 2D effects like bump mapping, and particles.

Thanks for the compliment Tracer.
MechDeus: I am currently in the final stages of developing algorithms and general design. I have already coded some parts of it, mostly from my other projects. One thing is for sure, it will not look like Photoshop or Painter. I have many features which I want to implement, and their inclusion depends their overall role in the structure of the system as well as the art process which I would like to convey. I could keep talking about this thing for hours, there's just that many features in it. If I need any testers, you'll be the first one I will notify.


seen

Heh...talking about jobs and employment in general is depressing these days....

Programming is, to me, akin to working between the 4th and 5th circles of Hell. Its an evil, evil profession, and game programming isn't much better. Next Generation used to run a lot of articles about game development, and they constantly pointed to the horrible horrible hours that programmers have to work especially near the deadline. 100 hour weeks are common, and you end up eating horrible California pizza for every meal (been here since September and I cant stomach the stuff yet).

And yes, if you wanna program 3D you gotta know 3D like the back of your hand. And 3D math sucks. Trust me on that.

Level design and all that is more of an art than a science and it takes a ton of practice just to learn how to use the cumbersome tools , and then more practice to be able to churn out decent levels. Im convinced that to pump out good levels you need some sort of knack for it. Since more and more companies now adays are using licensed graphics/physics engines, then more emphasis will be shifted to game/level design. But this, by itself, is pretty hard too.

I started college studying Computer Science but I ditched it because, well, programming is hell. It is a seriously sucky job and for what these companies pay you can get a better job elsewhere. I was all set to go to college, get a degree, move to California, and work on cutting edge titles, but I ditched it when I realized how shitty programming is and how the game industry is generally somewhat rotten these days.

Ultimately, though, getting a job in the game industry is really no more difficult than getting a job in any industry. You still need to make connections, get crappy internship jobs during the summer, and study and work hard and prove you know your stuff. It takes dedication and a bit of luck, just like any other job. It may seem more difficult, but thats only because you narrow yourself down - instead of *any* field, you're specifically looking for one in *games*.