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What does a video game designer do?

Game designers are the visionaries of the video game industry. They work with creative leads and production teams to bring their visions to life. They must understand how each aspect of a game works, whether it’s the UI, the gameplay, the art style, or the narrative in order to build the most engaging game possible.

There is a wide scope in the kind of tasks a game designer is expected to do, but as their role is so influential in video game development, they will typically have a hand in almost every aspect of a video game under development. This includes brainstorming concepts, creating prototypes, taking responsibility for deliverables, and working with the team until the final build. Due to the variety of tasks within the discipline and the fast-paced nature of the industry, game designers are constantly learning and improving their skills to stay current with the latest innovations and technology within the field.

What skills do I need to become a game designer?

Despite being a multibillion-dollar industry, video games are still relatively new, and there are not many standardized certifications available for game designers. Some universities offer bachelor’s degree and master’s degree courses in game design, which may help prospective game designers, but very often game designers rely on portfolio pieces to demonstrate their skill and experience.

Many game developers and designers opt to create their own prototypes to showcase their ideas and skills. These portfolio pieces are important, and it’s highly recommended that prospective game designers learn how to use a game engine to create demonstrable prototypes of ideas they have for games. The games do not have to be complete, be free of bugs, or look good. What’s important is to demonstrate unique ideas and concepts in a working demo.

Game designers must have an eye for detail and a very thorough understanding of video game systems and programming languages. They must understand how to devise gameplay systems in a logical fashion that is both challenging and fun for the player. For example, if the game designer is working on a competitive multiplayer game, then making sure that the game is balanced is critical. This will typically involve analyzing gameplay results, listening to player feedback, and using statistical models to determine balance and the most appropriate direction to fix any imbalances.

What are the core game designer job responsibilities?

A video game designer is expected to create rules, guidelines, and systems in a game world that players can interact with. The responsibilities a game designer may be expected to undertake are quite broad and depend heavily on both the individual project and the team building it. Game designers usually work as part of a team and engage directly with both artists and developers in order to bring their vision to life and work it to fit in with team ability and project deadlines.

As an example, when developing a competitive card-based game such as Hearthstone or Gwent, a game designer would be expected to create the rule set by which players play the game. This includes designing actions for each specific card, designing rules for how players may interact with each other, and defining win and lose conditions for the game.

Within this system, there are many more intricacies for the game designer to tackle: How do players obtain cards? Are some cards rarer than others, and what effect does that have on the game? What reward systems outside of the main gameplay loop are in place to keep players coming back? Game designers must think these questions through and develop workable systems that are both fun for players and implementable by the rest of the team.

How do game designers fit into a team?

With some exceptions, creating a video game is a team effort. Many disciplines must come together to produce a high-quality video game. This means that game designers must have excellent social and communication skills because their concepts and ideas must be translated into a working video game by a team of programmers, artists, testers, and plenty others.

Systems must be described in a logical way that can be implemented by others. Game designers must also be able to adapt to fit their ideas into the confines of what can realistically be produced by the team within the timeframe and budget provided.

Depending on the size of the team, game designers may be expected to take on multiple roles. This typically applies only to smaller teams, but a game designer who can also bring other relevant skills to the table will be more valuable. These additional skills could include programming, music production, level design, character creation, making art assets, or any other skill that is required to make a video game.