Forums » Everything else » Video-game programmer = Anything programmer?

It is my opinion that if you can program complex video games, you can program just about anything else. I think this because some of the most complex programs are video games, and video games are very much one of the great driving forces behind the development high performance computers.

That said, maybe I'm wrong. I've lately been applying for work as a programmer to web design firms, and using my games as work examples. I think it shows what I can do, but maybe they won't see it this way... So I'm curious what you guys think.

If you were a web firm would you even appreciate if somebody were to submit video games to you, or would you want and expect applicants work examples to be websites and not video games?

I'm not so sure. Lots of guys who can program have weak artwork.

Programming is the ultimate analytique experience. Logic, structure, systems, math = left brain.

Design is visual, difficult to automate, intuitive yet based on vague principles such as contrast, dominant image, but most of all, communication. Very right brain.

To find someone who excels in both is rare.

This is why you hear web designers say, "can you do it without coding?"

And coders who look for someone else to do their art.


Good luck

Is that to say, stahlmanDesign, that places expect that their programmers be designers as well? It seems logical to me that a firm may have programmers for code, and designers for the graphics...

Logic is to business what oil is to vinegar. It depends on temperature...

It's certainly been my experience that places that advertise for a 'web designer' want someone who can make it pretty and at least make it work, if not necessarily make it the cleanest it could be.

It's also why I've been describing myself for years as a web developer, and careful to emphasise that I'm not a designer. I make it work and work well, I don't necessarily make it pretty. I have to say, that has worked out pretty well for me over the years.

I like to think I'm pretty good at both. Guess I'm rare. ;)

Somehow this thread went sideways (my fault really)... It's not so much about whether a programmer should also be a designer...

I'm curious if showing people video games I've made could be considered a clear indication that I'm capable of programming other things (for example, working for a web firm).

I've heard from some sources that even if you want to make games, you often don't start out doing that, you start out with regular software. So does a portfolio of games help with that?

As an indie entrepreneur who is not making ends meet but has enough savings to breathe--deep, slow breaths--for the next while, I can tell you that I am, worries aside, as happy as a pig in gravy (or was that something else?).

As a potential hirer, I look for people with a similar attitude. So far, I have found none, understandably. But what I've learned, working with a few others, is that:
- a portfolio is not a strong indicator of ability
- a portfolio is a strong indicator of career mindedness

In the past year, as I hired, I met a range of applicants. Some brought nothing to the table, while others brought a portfolio, references, sample work, and a crisp white shirt.

Guess which ones disappointed me the most, and which ones I swear I will take with me to the ends of the earth? Again, guess how I now approach portfolios?

Kind of OT I know but this question about portfolios is a great one. Thanks for shaking the tree. :)

Slightly relevant article on Smashing Mag today... http://coding.smashingmagazine.com/2012/05/28/develop-a-one-of-a-kind-cssjs-based-game-portfolio/

Conclusion

As you can see, developing a 2-D Web-based game is fun and not too complicated a task at all. But before rushing to develop your own game portfolio, consider that it doesn’t suit everyone. If your users don’t have any idea what HTML5 is or why IE 5.5 isn’t the “best browser ever,” then your effort will be a waste of time, and perhaps this kind of portfolio would alienate them. Which is bad.

Quote from alexandre
a portfolio is not a strong indicator of ability
...
Guess which ones disappointed me the most, and which ones I swear I will take with me to the ends of the earth? Again, guess how I now approach portfolios?

At first my guess was that you were disappointed in those with portfolios, and that you'd take the 'nothings' to the ends of the earth...

Then I thought, but why?... since you never explained that.

Or maybe I just read into your post completely wrong! You have my guess, so what's the answer? :P

Quote from Graphikos
Slightly relevant article on Smashing Mag today...

That's a good point Graphikos. I suppose its important that people you show your portfolio to are capable of appreciating the work that's gone in to it.

Just because you can program a game, doesn't necessarily mean you can program 'anything'.

That being said the job market is changing drastically (I'm referencing the US in this post, other countries may differ).

The most important thing today is not what you know, or how much experience you have but: what you can learn.

What you can learn, combined with tenacity will get you far. Many people my age are also incredibly entitled, FOR NO REASON. They think that because they went to College and dicked around for a few year they should start out making 6-figure salaries.

Find what you are passionate about. Breathe it, read it, write about it. Start a blog, a website to showcase your work, contribute to open-source. Show people that you love what you do, you would do it for yourself because you love it, and that you are constantly learning. Get exposed to a community through twitter, etc. Meet people in your industry. Get a job with-in it, and they show them the above.

Its not about, 'Hi I'm John Doe here is my resume'. That doesn't work anymore. You have to leverage this great 'World Wide Web' and make it work for you. Not put a piece of paper in a pile hoping you will get a job.

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