How can game designers define their short-term career goals?

Définir ses objectifs va avec définir les étapes pour y arriver. C'est pourquoi il faut commencer par savoir où on en est et ce qu'on peut apporter aujourd'hui comme valeur dans une entreprise. Une fois qu'on sait ce qu'on vaut, on peut définir les domaines dans lesquels on veut s'améliorer pour pouvoir prétendre à tel ou tel poste. Il est aussi également très important de savoir se vendre pouvoir booster ses prétentions.

Game designers strategically shape short-term goals. Prioritizing skill development in areas like 3D modeling and coding, they actively network at events and online, fostering collaborations. Regular portfolio updates showcase evolving expertise, while seeking increased responsibilities in projects contributes to skill diversification. Staying informed on industry trends ensures adaptability in the dynamic gaming landscape. This multifaceted approach empowers designers to navigate their short-term career goals with precision.

Think about your preferred area of focus within game design and your interest in particular genres. Align your skills and interests and stay updated on industry trends. Engaging with games in the genres you're passionate about provides invaluable insights into successful design elements, storytelling techniques, and player experiences. These experiences serve as a catalyst for skill enhancement and setting clear career goals in game design.

Game development is a very competitive industry. It is one of the few industries where there is a form of self expression included as it is an artform and therefore is it highly popular. If you are not passionate you will most likely fall behind. Than after making this decision re-look at your former jobs or hobbies and see what those have in common with: art and problem solving. This is your base of skills you already bring to the table and help you to know what you naturally are good at. After this reflection imagine what you want to do and which hardskills you need to develop to build a well rounded portfolio.

If you're portfolio building, what is the most practical and accessible way for you to accomplish your ideas without burnout, and within a reasonable time? Can you craft a vertical slice quickly, and with strategized polishing to avoid potential scope creep or putting energy into efforts that don't necessarily need your time? Are visual elements even needed during your prototype stage, or is it more important to build the functioning skeleton of your project first? Block out mini deadlines or checkpoints you'd want to have certain things accomplished by. It's not about your magnum opus, it's about your teamwork, finished project and how you communicate it.

Setup SMART goals to be able to define clear goals to improve yourself overtime. SMART goals are always important but especially for game development. Because game development asks the knowledge of a combination of a lot of different skills and you can easily lose direction. When forming Smart and clear bounded goals you can stay motivated and see your growth clearly. A tip to stay motivated is to make small round projects or finish courses so the outcome is also tangible and you can easily see your progress overtime.

Don't overdo it with organization of your goals and journey. Over-management of your progress and career tracking is one of the ways procrastination can manifest. If you are spending same amount of time on management as on actual development you are actually holding yourself back. And if your first thought at reading this is that you should track how much time you spend on it you are absolutely procrastinating. Make a project and set the deadlines and progress for that project. Not for yourself. Managing yourself this way is only going to induce depression and self loathing. If you think what I've said is rubbish and that you are comfy doing it that way - look into the career of a producer. Extremely important and undervalued role.

Mentoring is an excellent pathway to get feedback on your own progress and personal growth, and to help identify where you could focus on next. For that, it is important to find a mentor who is senior to you in your discipline, so that the mentor can guide you fully. Additionally to that, ensure your lead or manager is aware of this, and that they can support this approach and consequently work with you on proper goal setting for you.

You can find mentors and avenues for feedback in game design with online communities like Reddit r/gamedev, Twitter or LinkedIn. These platforms offer spaces where experienced designers share insights and provide feedback. Attending industry events like GDC or local meetups provides networking opportunities to connect with mentors willing to offer guidance. Online mentorship programs such as the IGDA Mentorship Program connects you with industry professionals. Building relationships within the game design community is key to finding reliable mentors who can offer ongoing support and advice.

Engaging with mentors and seeking feedback isn’t merely about receiving instruction, it's about cultivating a learning mindset. Embracing constructive criticism and leveraging mentorship relationships fosters a dynamic learning environment. It's important to find a mentor who has achieved what you aspire to. Their experience is a roadmap to success, helping you avoid pitfalls they've already faced. Shoutout The Design Den Discord!

Mentors can help you to prevent to make common mistakes and sharing their knowledge with you. A mentor saves a lot of time and can help with common pitfalls and provide moral support and help with accountability.

Of course, landing a position as a game designer (or a lead/director role if you're more senior) is the goal, but it can be tough to make that leap. If you are trying to break in/break through, its important to be active and keep your chops up. QA can lead to design opportunities if you give constructive feedback and have great work ethic. Your day must be more than your "day job". Develop a side project or two. Volunteer at game jams. Volunteer as a playtester for active Kickstarter game publishers. Get practical experience everywhere you can. Your resume will reflect a hunger and drive, and the design challenges you solve will provide the confidence and concrete examples that will help you ace interviews.

In this industry is your portolio your most important asset. In a portfolio you share your best work (less is more, Recruiters judge you on your worst work and dont have a lot of time so sbow your best work first). Try to show a combination of individual work and group projects, in the best case you combine these. For all group projects explain your role well as this shows how well you can preform in group projects. Cather your portfolio to the role you like to preform a portfolio for a programmer doesn't look the same as a portfolio for a game artist. Show in both disciplines that you understand the Universal pipeline well.

Your portfolio and resume are living documents that evolve with your career. Remember, continuous improvement is key. As you gain new skills, complete projects, or take on challenging roles, update your portfolio and resume accordingly.

Participate in everything you can. There are usually local indie game Discords you can join, with regular game jams. Making connections is vital.

Getting a full time job in gaming isn't easy without a strong portfolio. Joining game jams and exploring various genres can be an incredible way to hone skills and uncover passions in game design. Game jams are fantastic for fostering creativity, pushing boundaries, and learning through hands-on experience.

To become a better game developer you should make games so join projects to make games and participate in game jams. For jobs react on job-offers but also be active in the game developings community as you will have a lot more chances with a well established network. Some roles like a level designer or game narrative designer are more difficult to get into. Don't get to discouraged and see if you can also apply to less specialized roles like game designer or Q&A. Being active in the industry helps your resumee and increases your chances to get to your dream job.

Even if you are highly dedicated to your current studio or company, reviewing job posts and reading their requirements can be really effective. Your company's structure and your responsibilities may not always align with the skills that the industry expects from a game designer. Try your best to stay up to date with the trends and the industry!

I have applied for jobs that I am no where near qualified for, doing this allows me to keep a hold of connections in case of future openings. It allows me to build up a bank of potential career paths. Perhaps a company might one day say "hey, we still have your CV, you still looking?". Unlikely but it doesn't hurt to try regardless.

For goals I usually find it useful to do quarterly checkins/quarterly goals with some clear indicators if I am on the right track. Make sure that your goals are built in a way that even if you don't reach 100 percent of your goal, you still made improvements and progression where you want to be. Shoot for a landing on Mars but be happy when you land on the moon. It is important to remember in revisions of goals that these are steps to take you to your long term career path.

The further you get along in your journey, you'll realize what goals are realistic, and which ones are better saved for future endeavors. Feedback should always be your best friend, but you are also your biggest critic. Be kind to yourself and others in all matters of the equation-- as you adapt, fail, grow and improve.

If you are struggling to choose a game genre to start working on, or if you are confused where you shall start, close your eyes, and imagine how your dream game looks like. By doing this, you allow yourself to envision some parts of your desired game, allowing you to get a better idea about which genre and type you want to end up working with. By doing that multiple times, brainstorming what you imagine, getting inspirations, and repeating the whole cycle multiple time, you will be able to write down multiple ideas that can be a good starting point to you. If you can imagine something, you can do it.

After you have found your goals and what you love to do, always remember that no matter how good you are, how ambitious are your goals and how much you love this career, your personal and mental health are your highest priority. We often forget how much our state of mind can affect our work and our results, and we often strive for the best no matter what we need to sacrifice for it. If we are always pushing ourselves to the limit, there will come a time when no matter how hard we push, we won't be able to move, and our limit will only go down. Be realistic about your goals and your needs, this is the secret to, not only achieve your goals, but to keep achieving more and more goals in the future and keep evolving a bit more every day.

Elevator pitches are your best friend. If you can't convey your idea in 30 seconds-- or really even 5 seconds, you may need to go back to the drawing table. But this is a great way to practice building your portfolio with small projects-- what is the absolute smallest scope you can work to complete a vertical slice or skeleton project? Practice team building with gamejams, or look up quick prompts and challenge yourself to create small scale games based on simple ideas. You may find it's easier to both have fun with your creation when you challenge yourself to create for the sake of it. The heart you put into any project will shine through.

If you are a designer, you probably have some Grand Design - your opus magnum somewhere in your head. It has been there for years and you are adding to it every time you find some new angle, technology or idea. Well, it's a big thing. You wouldn't want it to fail would you? So test it - start with small, tiny elements and make games around them to get more experience of how it translates to reality. That is a good way to get you started and decide what to do next. Have all your experience be a step in the puzzle that is your Grand Design. Whether it's a small card game about haggling or actually working in a physical shop selling board games. Everything is a step forward. Don't be afraid to make it.