Ultimate Game Design : Building game worlds

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THIS
appendix includes useful reference information in several categories
to help you research the game industry. It is by no means an
exhaustive listing of the many possibilities you can explore in the game industry.
New opportunities become available every day in this dynamic field. Each of the listings
mentioned here is intended to try to help point you toward some supporting information
for much of the material covered.
E DUCATION
Many schools, colleges, and universities have begun to offer courses related to game
development. In many cases, these are relatively new course offerings that are just
starting to get their footing. Nothing will substitute for experience gained building
games on a development team (even if you begin by gathering your friends and putting
one together!), but you should explore every educational possibility available to you.
I encourage you to try to balance your game education by getting some experience
with a game developer if possible. Remember that coming up through the QA department
is still one of the best ways to begin. For part-time game education opportunities,
you can always check with the extension department at your local university campus
or search online.
Keep in mind that the common education track toward game programming is a
B.S. degree in computer science or mathematics focusing on 3-D graphics programming,
while the common track toward art and design is a B.A. or B.F.A. in traditional
art and/or design (illustration, industrial design, and so forth).
My advice is to finish a solid B.A. or B.S. degree in a subject of your choosing. It
will help build a foundation for everything you do in game development, and will
demonstrate that you can start a project, face several forms of challenges, and, most
importantly, complete a project! There are successful game designers with backgrounds
in marine biology, anthropology, aeronautical engineering, and theatre set
design, too.
Several online-oriented game education classes and opportunities are starting to
appear also. Here are a few of the options for game-design-specific education:
� DigiPen Institute of Technology (www.digipen.edu) One of the first
institutions to offer actual degree programs in game development.