Creative Development is the section of developers that handles the look and sound of a game, they work together to make a game look visually appealing and immerse the player in the world. The people who work in the creative department are -
Game Designers -
Game designers are people who define how a game feels and the designs/ideas that go into it, they work together with the rest of the team to design a living, breathing world that a player can get lost in and play in. They are the bridge between all the people in the creative department, they take the work that artists, musicians and animators do and stitch it together to check if it all works and fits perfectly, they would then take the parts that don't work out as expected and work with their team to fix it.
An example of a great game designer is Shigeru Miyamoto, this legend is not only one of the most famous and influential people in gaming but his popularity is not undeserved, helping to bring platforming and adventure games into the mainstream audience after the video game crash of '83 when gaming was shunned and almost considered taboo. His brilliant and revolutionary ideas brought about consoles like the Wii and DS that sold countless units. (10 of the 22 best selling game consoles are Nintendo's)
Level Editors -
Level Editors (Also known as "Mappers") are people who work to design a land that a player can explore and play in. The things a mapper does in role playing/adventure games are: place items for the player to find, make sure the player cant glitch out of the map, present challenge in traversing the map (when needed), have interesting and engaging visuals, spread out content in such a way that larger pieces of content are placed far away from each other while using smaller pieces of content to fill in empty space in the map.
On the other hand a level editor working on a platforming game would do things as: create engaging and interesting levels, make challenging but fair level design, spread out and give power ups when needed, slowly rank up challenge as the game progresses, create hidden or hard to reach areas with power ups and lives that reward players for putting in hard work and other things.
A famous level designer is Richard "Levelord" Gray, he is famous for his work in 3D shooters like Duke Nukem 3D and SiN. Not only is he a great level designer with an impressive selection of skills but it is obvious from his work tat he loves his job, if he worked on a game it was a safe bet you'd find some Easter eggs and secrets for those interested in looking. He quit his job to establish his own company which was later brought out by MumboJumbo.
Lead Artists -
A lead artist work on and are responsible for the overall look of the game, they make the decisions on what art style would best fit the game and how the worlds and lands the player explores would feel and look. They act as the manager of all artistic parts of the game, they work together with artists and animators to build a living breathing world that stands out from other game's and is done with the team's budget and schedule.
Technical Artists -
Technical artists are the people that act as a bridge between the designers and the programmers, they work with both and learn the limitations and strengths of both sides and help relay this information so a game can look and play its best. They work closely with the game designers and lead artists to make sure no friction happens between the design department and the programming department.
Artists -
Game artists work together with the lead artist to create the visuals of a game, they don't have much control over the overall look and art style of the game but they work with and influence the lead artist when creating textures, models of characters and objects, scenery and more that come together to make the visuals of a game. In large studios a handful of artists work together so all the work doesn't fall on one person.
Animators work with artists handling models to give objects and characters life and movement, they need to have the skills to make natural movements that look realistic and do not take the player out of the world, they also need to know how to use tools that can motion capture. They are responsible for giving movement to they entire world, from the sway of some grass to the run cycle of the main protagonist. They must not only handle animating character actions like attacking, running or jumping but they must also make transition animations that bridge the gap between the normal animations and create flow for the body parts.
Audio Engineers -
Audio engineers are responsible for working on the audio part of the game, this includes music, sound effects, voice acting and atmospheric sounds. An audio engineer has to have great knowledge of one or more of these topics while maintaining a basic understanding of the rest: composition of music, understanding of new sound related tools and software, have the ability to create saturated and lush audio that gives the game a sense of life, be able to use leitmotifs to your advantage and many other skills.
Credits -
Game Designers-
http://www.gamedesigning.org/career/famous-video-game-designers/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Game_design#Video_games
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nintendo_Entertainment_System
https://www.statista.com/statistics/268966/total-number-of-game-consoles-sold-worldwide-by-console-type/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shigeru_Miyamoto
Level Editors-
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Platform_game
http://creativeskillset.org/job_roles/334_level_editor
http://www.deborahteramischristian.com/gaming/rpg-world-building-pieces1/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Gray_(game_designer)
Lead Artists-
http://creativeskillset.org/job_roles/332_lead_artist_games
http://www.gamasutra.com/view/feature/131524/common_methodologies_for_lead_.php
Technical Artists-
http://creativeskillset.org/job_roles/339_technical_artist_games
http://www.gamasutra.com/view/feature/130074/the_codeart_divide_how_technical_.php
http://careers.ea.com/technical-artist
Artists-
http://creativeskillset.org/job_roles/330_games_artist
http://www.game-artist.net/forums/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Game_artist
Animators-
http://creativeskillset.org/job_roles/325_animator_games
http://blog.digitaltutors.com/how-animation-for-games-is-different-from-animation-for-movies/
http://blog.digitaltutors.com/80s-now-evolution-animation-video-games/
http://www.cgmeetup.net/home/how-to-animate-for-video-games/
Audio Engineers-
http://creativeskillset.org/job_roles/327_audio_engineer
http://www.gameindustrycareerguide.com/video-game-audio-engineer/
http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Leitmotif/VideoGames
{-Technical Development-}
Technical Development is the section of developers that handles the gameplay and features of a game, they work together to make the gameplay fun and immerse the player in the action. The people who work in the technical department are -
Game Programmers -
A game programmer is a person who uses a computer and its software to create/program a video game, these games can be as simple as pong or as complex as an entire living breathing world, the game developer handles the coding of the game by using programming languages and different tools to code features and gameplay for the game. The skills needed to be a game programmer are: know several programming languages, be organised and strategic, have great communication skills, knowledge of efficiency and other skills related to mathematics and problem solving.
A famous game programmer is Sid Meier, his most popular game series is his "Civilization" games, a micro managing game that focuses on the real world and the different ways history could have played out. He stared out making games on his own and slowly acquired a team as his popularity grew, when more game programmers were introduced to his team he upgraded to lead game programmer. Now with the 6th Civilization game coming out this October his fame doesn't seem like it'll fade for many years.
Lead Game Programmers -
The lead game programmer works with the other programmers to make sure that everything is going according to schedule and that nobody's coding is lagging behind. (both physically and metaphorically) The lead game programmer must have excellent knowledge of many different coding languages and incredible skill at problem solving, the leader must also be approachable and helpful towards the other game programmers. As the lead of the programming department they would need to have an excellent set of verbal and communicatory skills that help when needing to present their ideas to their department and that of the designers. The lives of lead programmers is tough, they get put through lots of pressure and stress, if they don't have the skills to remain calm and work efficiently under stress then they might not make enough of a profit to counteract the investments put into the project in the first place.
Credits -
Game Programmers-
http://creativeskillset.org/job_roles/336_game_programmer
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Game_programmer
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Game_programming
http://www.wikihow.com/Become-a-Video-Game-Programmer
http://steamcommunity.com/games/289070/announcements/detail/892100538370620761
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sid_Meier
Lead Game Programmers-
http://creativeskillset.org/job_roles/333_lead_programmer_games
http://www.projectpixelpress.com/work-with-us-lead-game-developer/
http://www.pixeltoys.com/senior-lead-game-programmer/
{-Project Implementation-}
Project implementation is the stage of game creation where ideas and plans get to be realized. The planning and sketches are going to be turned into actual gameplay and visuals, this stage requires planning of release dates, budgets and teams. The people responsible for working on these decisions are -
Project Managers/Producers -
the project manager is the individual in general charge of the arranging and execution of a specific task, in this case a video game. Their main responsibility is making sure a game gets released on time and within budget. To do this they have to constantly check on the development team and make sure everyone on the team has no problems that may lead to less work being done. They need to have may skills like: having good knowledge of the gaming industry, knowledge on relevant health and safety regulations, passion for micromanaging and problem solving, management skills on schedules, budgets, requirements, meetings and many other things.
A famous project manager is Steve McConnell, starting off as a software engineer, his work earned himself enough fame and money to put together a team of software engineers, start writing books on coding and teaching classes. With a master's degree in software engineering from Seattle University and a Bachelor's degree from Whitman College his work earns him quite the small fortune.
Assistant Producers -
Assistant Producers tend to have the same core skills and understanding as the lead manager but tend to not be as experienced, their job is the help and accompany the lead project manager, they are there to take some of the burden that falls onto the project manager and help them do their job. A person working as an assistant is normally doing it for work experience and is trying to get a job as a project manager. Their requirements are very similar to the ones of a project manager, they just lack the experience.
External Producers -
An external producer (also known as an executive producer) is a producer normally supplied by the publishing company that has invested money into the game, their job is to make sure the developers are doing work and not putting money to waste, they are identical to a project manager but they work externally from the team and watch progress from afar.
Creative Directors -
Creative Directors are people who handle the same problems and difficulties as normal project managers but they work mainly with the creative department and the people responsible for advertisements and trailers. They also work together with the lead artist to design the overall look of the game and its art style. They need to be there for artists when they fell uncreative, they must understand artistry and have great knowledge in digital art and the software used to create it.
Credits -
Project Manager/Producers-
http://creativeskillset.org/job_roles/337_project_manager_producer_games
http://jobs.gamasutra.com/job/project-manager-producer-games-san-francisco-california-27553
http://www.creativeheads.net/job/12961/video-game-project-manager-producer-in-toronto
http://www.stevemcconnell.com/bio.htm
Assistant Producers-
http://creativeskillset.org/job_roles/326_assistant_producer_games
https://app.hiive.co.uk/job-roles/games/production/assistant-producer-games/
http://www.creativeheads.net/job/17313/assistant-producer-temp-in-chicago
External Producers -
http://creativeskillset.org/job_roles/329_external_producer
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Executive_producer#Video_games
http://www.media-match.com/usa/media/jobtypes/executive-producer-jobs-405700.php
Creative Directors -
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Creative_director
http://creativeskillset.org/job_roles/328_creative_director_games
http://creativeskillset.org/job_roles/4272_creative_director
http://www.creativebloq.com/career/how-become-creative-director-11121363
{-Quality Assurance-}
Quality Assurance (QA for short) is the stage of game design where the beta work done by the developers and artists is given to a team of testers to check for faults and errors. Without the QA games would end up released with many more glitches and oversights.
QA Testers -
A QA Tester's job is to spent time playing through a game and looking for any errors that have been missed by the developers, they also need to suggest ways to fix them. They must have great knowledge of many game genres along with understanding what makes them fun. To be a QA tester you need to have sertain skills, these being: a close attention to detail, have great patience, be persistent, be able to play for hours, have a great interest and respect for video games and other simmilar skills.
Credits -
QA Testers-
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quality_assurance
http://www.qaa.ac.uk/en
http://searchsoftwarequality.techtarget.com/definition/quality-assurance
http://creativeskillset.org/job_roles/338_qa_tester
https://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/lt12r/ive_been_video_game_quality_assurance_for_ten/
https://www.activision.com/careers/teams-and-roles/quality-assurance
{-Business Development-}
Business Development helps to raise the value of a company by investing in long term relationships with customers, markets and other businesses. Without Business Development a company would fade into obscurity. By building relationships the company gets more fans, better deals with publishers and also more opportunities to work with famous game developers to earn more money.
Public Relation Managers -
A public relation manager is responsible for the communications between the public and the game developers, they work to bring the public information that gets them interested, they are the people who hold events and decide what things need to be hidden or shown to the people. This job requires skills like: bachelor's degree in marketing and communication, knowledge o several common languages, great knowledge and understanding of the company you are going to work for.
A famous public relation worker is Guto Harri, he was appointed communications director to the mayor of London in 2008. After working with to bring information to the public he quit his job on 2012 because of the re-election of Johnson as mayor. Born on 1966, he begun his studies at Tonyrefail and Bryntaf schools, he went to the Ysgol Gyfun Llanhari and the Queen's College in Oxford where he studied Politics, philosophy and economics which he used to earn his job as a broadcaster and then later on a Communications Director.
Product Managers -
A product manager should be there to aid in the implementation of marketing campaigns that can help raise the sales of games and maximize the profit. To get this job the most important part you'll need is experience along with a stiff and calculative personality. The skills needed for this job are: having strong nerves, being able to work great under stress, great knowledge of marketing and the economy, great communication skills.
Marketing Executives -
Marketing executives take care of the market research, promotions and advertisements by working with marketing managers, they analyse data to help in advertisements and also work on growing the popularity of a game or company. They require skills like: Great understanding of audiences, an orderly mind and the power to quickly and efficiently relay information.
Marketing Managers -
Marketing managers like assistants to the marketing executive, they do the same work as the executive but their rank is lower meaning they get told what work to prioritize. The skills they need to work this job are identical to the executive's, the only thing stopping them from getting a job as one is experience, again like an assistant.
Credits -
Public Relation Managers-
http://www.truity.com/career-profile/public-relations-manager
http://www.gamesindustry.biz/jobs/by-category/public-relations
http://www.riotgames.com/careers/94099
http://www.indeed.com/q-Game-PR-jobs.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guto_Harri
Product Managers-
http://www.aha.io/roadmapping/guide/product-management/what-is-the-role-of-a-product-manager
http://www.mindtheproduct.com/2011/10/what-exactly-is-a-product-manager/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Product_manager
http://creativeskillset.org/job_roles/335_product_manager
Marketing Executives-
http://jobview.monster.co.uk/v2/job/View?JobID=172436259&WT.mc_n=olm_sk_feed_indeed_UK
http://www.totaljobs.com/job/affiliate-executive/red-recruitment-job66735299?entryUrl=%2Fjobs%2Fmarketing-executive%2366735299
https://targetjobs.co.uk/careers-advice/job-descriptions/276073-marketing-executive-job-description
Marketing Managers-
https://nationalcareersservice.direct.gov.uk/advice/planning/jobprofiles/Pages/Marketingmanager.aspx
http://www.indeed.co.uk/viewjob?jk=6835b52adb340b79&q=Gaming+Marketing+Manager&tk=1atqqslor9u5f8mu&from=web
http://www.gamesindustry.biz/jobs/datascope/uk-and-europe/senior-marketing-manager-paris-amazing-role-id87560
