Do You Need College to Be a Game Designer?

The gaming industry is booming and has been for many years— what’s more, it doesn’t look like it will be slowing down for quite sometime. Thanks to this boom, the industry is set to gross more than $2.14 trillion according to research in the entertainment market. This includes the surge in online gaming, taking the form of social gaming as well as pay-to-play massively multiplayer gaming and free-to-play games.

For people looking to get into the game design industry, there are a multitude of avenues into the field. From coming up with your own revamp of an already-established game to gaining a degree in computer programming, you can easily dedicate your time to learning a specialty skillset that will be sought by gaming companies and startups. But the question comes down to this: do you need college to get into game design? And if not, how should you make your way into the industry?

Enrolling in a College Program: Some Benefits and Drawbacks

If you are considering a college program in game design, there is a range of benefits to receiving a degree. College programs will not only allow you to study the industry in-depth and learn about the potential projections for the gaming market, but it will also provide you with an established network of like-minded individuals and people within the field. Plus, if you want to hone a certain specialty, like animation, you can attend a specific animation school in the U.S. that’s program will be designed to give you all of the skills you need to become an expert.

Getting a degree in game design will ultimately only help your chances at finding an employer down the line. However, one drawback to attending a college program is that it is obviously costly, and it may not be worth the investment. Also, it is a huge time commitment, as most programs will take four years to complete that you could otherwise be getting right into the industry on your own volition.

Teaching Yourself How to Be a Top-Rated Game Designer

Enrolling in a college program may not be everyone’s best idea into game design, and if you are someone who does not want to go the degree route, you can also teach yourself the needed skills.

One of the most appealing benefits of teaching yourself how to be a game designer is that you can give all of your attention to one element of the industry. If you are interested in exploring next gen entertainment, you can devote your time to learning everything about that particular aspect and master it.

If you decide to make your own way into the industry without college, it is essential to develop your design portfolio to its most impressive capacity. It may be worthwhile, too, to research different certificates in game design that can enhance your skillset and give you certain professional qualifications. With an expert skillset and an remarkable portfolio, you can still manage to impress potential employers and launch your own career path.

Knowing the differences in these two career paths, you can determine whether it makes more sense for you to enroll in a college program or teach yourself the needed skills to get into game design.
A sponsored guest post by games journalist JACKIE EDWARDS