From Player to Creator: Majoring in Game Art and Design

By Kelly Richardson
Career Colleges Columnist

Does your dedication to gaming classify as obsessive? Would you like to be making games instead of just paying them? Game art and design training will teach you how to make the hottest new games from concept to completion. The game art and design field needs experienced players just like you.

Game art and design is fast becoming one of the premiere niches in the technology field with a consistently high demand for game design pros. According to game design consultant Jonathan Blow, while "games have ballooned in complexity…we have a perpetual shortage of qualified people in the industry." That is where you come in. Earn your game art and design training and you could be writing the code to the next blockbuster game. Game art and design involves turning freehand and computer-generated sketches into interactive video games through coding techniques.

Game Art: Designing the Next Media Craze

Storyboards. Training in game art and design will teach you how to create intriguing storyboards that are the basis for your new game.
Animation. The heart of game art and design is how well you can animate your creative concepts.
Playability. Of course, after you complete a new game, you'll have to take it for a test drive before it hits the market.

If you're going to have a career, it might as well be one that you enjoy. And the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reports a bright future for professionals with game art and design experience.

The Game Art and Design Career Profile

Get that Degree. Over 60% of game art and design professionals held a college or higher degree in 2004.
Competitive Market. Employment of game art and design pros is expected to grow more slowly than the average for all occupations through the year 2014.
Opps Abroad. There is a growing market for game and design specialists in foreign markets such as Asia and Europe.

Turn your hobby into a lucrative profession. Check out the opportunities in game art and design today.

About the Author
Kelly Richardson covers the local education and technology scenes in major cities across the country. His articles appear in a variety of respected educational journals, periodicals, and e-zines.

Email this article

All information on the Career Colleges website is copyrighted and intended for informational use only including the Career Assessment and Most Popular Career Colleges section. The school programs offered by the technical schools and trade schools represented in the online college directory are up-to-date.