Advice wanted, enquire within.

Ewaf

Ewaf

Ewaf

Soldato
Joined
22 May 2007
Posts
3,905
Hi chaps,

I'm after a bit of advice for people in the same/similar field. I have just finished my BSc Computer Games Technology degree at Portsmouth university with a 2:1 and with chance of getting a 1st as I'm still waiting for my dissertation result. Just before Christmas, I secured a position at a games studio here in Portsmouth working part time doing QA for (at the time) a smallish team. They specialise in Facebook games, trying to 'do a Zynga' and make it big. Now I have finished Uni, I have started working full-time doing QA but pushed them about perhaps doing something else.

They knew I was focussed on the art side of things during my degree, and have offered me an entry/graduate position moving to art when we move to a bigger office in early July. The problem is, I am a 3D artist and have built up a competent level in packages such as 3D Studio Max and Mudbox, and their main game uses flash. I asked my boss what I can do in the mean time to try and get to grips with creating art for flash based games but I didn't get too much information.

I am not the best drawer in the world, like I said I specialise in 3D work creating assets, environments and weapons etc. and was wondering if anyone could perhaps point me in the right direction?

Alternatively, does anyone know of a forum that might be a good place to start?

Thanks in advance.
 
Humm I don't really want to leave here, I fit in well and am moving into a new house here at end of the month.


I am going to try and teach myself C# as it seems to be quite a sought after language, does anyone know of any good beginner books for learning it?
 
Ewaf said:
I am going to try and teach myself C# as it seems to be quite a sought after language, does anyone know of any good beginner books for learning it?
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Are you naturally a programmer? If you aren't, and it sounds like you aren't then all you are going to do is dilute your skills and end up in tools programming.

The games industry is a small and incestuous business at best, if you really want to make it then as a fresh graduate I'm afraid you are going to have to move around to find good career positions - at the very least throughout the UK and more likely around the world.

Go down to the Library, pull out every back issue of Edge magazine for the last 5 years and look at their area spotlights. Game companies tend to cluster, the nearest cluster to you I think is Brighton.

To be frank when I was your age I wanted to work in the industry too, and did for a couple of years. The crap money, awful management & egos and bad hours all combined to drive me out of it. It may be better these days.
 
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What do you do these days sldsmkd?

I wouldn't know if I was a natural programmer as I have never properly sat down and done some. In my first year I had a couple of c++ exams/coursework but it was basic stuff like making a rock paper scissors game, noughts and crosses game etc (all text based).

Out of boredom I've started making my own flash game using actionscript and my own art.

I really don't know what I want to do... uni has just given be a wide variety of skills as opposed to being good at specific ones (I am good at 3d modelling thats about it).

In regards to moving around the country thats ok, my girlfriend lives in Reading and I've been looking for jobs around there, and thats where I found an abundance of c# jobs etc. Also C# is the chosen language for windows phone 7 apps and games (XNA) and is something I really want to get into. I heard C# is easier to learn than other languages.

Cheers for the help
 
I graduated from your course in 09, only touched on flash for the ripro unit but I had previous experience, flash art is 2d vector art, so get hold of illustrator and see how you get on with the format, im not sure on how flash development is handled these days but I did most of my artwork within flash.
 
Xink said:
I graduated from your course in 09, only touched on flash for the ripro unit but I had previous experience, flash art is 2d vector art, so get hold of illustrator and see how you get on with the format, im not sure on how flash development is handled these days but I did most of my artwork within flash.
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Ah cool! What you up to now?

Yea they use vector graphics here, however they don't use illustrator or inkscape, they seem to create everything in directly in flash?
 
Ewaf said:
What do you do these days sldsmkd?

I wouldn't know if I was a natural programmer as I have never properly sat down and done some. In my first year I had a couple of c++ exams/coursework but it was basic stuff like making a rock paper scissors game, noughts and crosses game etc (all text based).

Out of boredom I've started making my own flash game using actionscript and my own art.

I really don't know what I want to do... uni has just given be a wide variety of skills as opposed to being good at specific ones (I am good at 3d modelling thats about it).

In regards to moving around the country thats ok, my girlfriend lives in Reading and I've been looking for jobs around there, and thats where I found an abundance of c# jobs etc. Also C# is the chosen language for windows phone 7 apps and games (XNA) and is something I really want to get into. I heard C# is easier to learn than other languages.

Cheers for the help
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Reading is pretty good for work, there's a big cluster of IT companies between there and London because of Heathrow. It also used to be that there were a bunch of game studios in that neck of the woods, and of course it's close to Guildford.

C# is an okay language, don't have much experience of it myself. Windows phone hasn't exactly set the world on fire, and and I doubt much beyond tools and indie games gets made in it. Game programming is at the tougher end of programming, you do need a good understanding of Maths & Comp Science to be good at it.
 
Ewaf said:
Ah cool! What you up to now?

Yea they use vector graphics here, however they don't use illustrator or inkscape, they seem to create everything in directly in flash?
Click to expand...

You will find that it becomes increasingly common place to use Illustrator and Flash simultaneously to create animations. A lot of complex animations are done this way as Illustrator is basically put better than Flash, and the 2 are designed to go hand in hand.

My advice: Get used to illustrator!
 
Thanks for the advice guys.

I am just gonna see what happens in july when they move me to this new position, its a graduate position so surely they understand I'm not going to know everything or be good at everything.

I want to learn C# on the side however, just something I want to do. Got quite a few app ideas for WP7 (which is catching up with android/iphone!!), and it will be a good time filler. Gonna go for this book, seems to get rave reviews.
 
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