66 replies to this topic

[True Valhalla]

I'm certainly not saying what I'm trying to do is for everyone. I know it's not, and I've worked very hard to establish what I've got here at an optimal point in my life - that is entirely on purpose. I'm not saying to drop everything and make games with GM for a year...we all know it's not that simple. But if you're smart about it, it's not such a far-off dream.

My key point with all of this is, why is everyone (esp. young people) so quick to settle on the typical "high school, uni/college, job" path when there are so many unique opportunities available?

[chance]

...why is everyone (esp. young people) so quick to settle on the typical "high school, uni/college, job" path when there are so many unique opportunities available?

Because most people can't stay at home while they develop their game career. It's great if you can do that... but most families can't support it. So kids leave -- and the reality of paying monthly rent, utilities, food bills, and insurance means they need a steady job.

Hopefully, aspiring game developers can work toward their goal in their spare time. But the realities of life come first.

[True Valhalla]

...why is everyone (esp. young people) so quick to settle on the typical "high school, uni/college, job" path when there are so many unique opportunities available?

Because most people can't stay at home while they develop their game career. It's great if you can do that... but most families can't support it. So kids leave -- and the reality of paying monthly rent, utilities, food bills, and insurance means they need a steady job.

Hopefully, aspiring game developers can work toward their goal in their spare time. But the realities of life come first.

And yet one in three men and one in six women aged 20-34 still live at home in the UK due to high costs of living.

My comment was particularly applicable to people that are in well-off situations like I am, where they have the option to go to uni/college or stay at home for a few years. That isn't particularly uncommon.

If I was a 30-something with a family and kids to support, and a mortgage and bills to pay...well obviously this route is not so enticing. I completely understand the requirement for a full-time job in certain scenarios.

[chance]

And yet one in three men and one in six women aged 20-34 still live at home in the UK due to high costs of living.

My comment was particularly applicable to people that are in well-off situations like I am, where they have the option to go to uni/college or stay at home for a few years. That isn't particularly uncommon.

I understand. But this is precisely the time in your life you should be establishing independence. Most people that age are moving into careers.

$10,000 - $15,000 per year may seem like a lot... but it's barely above the poverty level when you consider rent, food, transportation, insurance, etc.. And many indie developers are lucky to earn that. Of course, if you can earn much more, that's great -- but it's rare.

I'm not trying to discourage indie developers -- it's a great career. I just want people to think carefully about their choices.

[True Valhalla]

I understand. But this is precisely the time in your life you should be establishing independence. Most people that age are moving into careers.

$10,000 - $15,000 per year may seem like a lot... but it's barely above the poverty level when you consider rent, food, transportation, insurance, etc.. And many indie developers are lucky to earn that. Of course, if you can earn much more, that's great -- but it's rare.

I definitely don't think that's a lot, and if that was all I was planning to earn I would not be on this path. The whole point of doing this is to establish my independence...not just independence from parents, but from employers as well. It's about becoming entirely self-reliant.

Most people around me that are my age are not moving into careers yet. They are working bad jobs while going to university (putting themselves in huge debt as they do). I'm pretty certain none of them made $5000 this month.

I know we will probably argue about this forever and a day but I really do understand where you're coming from. It's just not for me, and I want others to know that they don't have to take the path most traveled either. People should know their options and make a decision based on their own situation.

Just like self-employment isn't for everyone, neither is a 9-5.

[Chris_Devl]

It's always good to have dreams. But it's never good to rely on them coming true.

Reaching for your dreams in life comes with a risk. Don't take the risk unless you can afford the cost of failure.

Settle for a safe and reliable education and job path first. Give that the priority. After that's set up, then by all means go ahead and pursue your dreams. But always have a backup plan, and never assume the future.



I'm not one with much life experience, but I've been living life so far by this, and it seems the most efficient way to do things for me.

What Valhalla did is great. He had a dream, went for it, and is starting to succeed. But in addition to the timesinks and hardships I'm sure he's had to endure, a lot of the time there's just pure luck involved. He could do everything the exact same way, but in a slightly different universe, he may have met utter failure. It's a risk, just don't assume to succeed, and always be prepared to fail. But whichever way it goes, you can always readjust and try again/advance further.



Oh, and good story, OP. Glad to know YYG and Game Maker is working out for you.

[True Valhalla]

...But in addition to the timesinks and hardships I'm sure he's had to endure, a lot of the time there's just pure luck involved...

I'm not a huge fan of people assuming that luck played a large part in what I've achieved, because it really didn't. I feel like that just devalues what was involved in getting to this point.

The main contributing factors have been hard work and attention to detail.

[Chris_Devl]

...But in addition to the timesinks and hardships I'm sure he's had to endure, a lot of the time there's just pure luck involved...

I'm not a huge fan of people assuming that luck played a large part in what I've achieved, because it really didn't. I feel like that just devalues what was involved in getting to this point.

The main contributing factors have been hard work and attention to detail.

Yeah I could've worded that better.. I would've said unluck but that doesn't sound right.. But you know what I mean.. Unluckiness and just the chance for ****ty things out of your control to happen is something to consider.

Sorry lol, didn't mean to imply you got lucky or anything. Trust me, I know you're good at what you do .

So anyways, unluckiness is a factor for people to be aware of.

[chance]

I understand. But this is precisely the time in your life you should be establishing independence. Most people that age are moving into careers.

I know we will probably argue about this forever and a day but I really do understand where you're coming from. It's just not for me, and I want others to know that they don't have to take the path most traveled either. People should know their options and make a decision based on their own situation.

Very true. We each have to decide for ourselves what path to take. You're fortunate that you have the luxury of choice right now.

I'm sure you understand the risk of getting left behind in the job market, and you've made an informed decision. So good luck with it.

[PoniesForPeace]

What this means is that because of GM which I used to develop half of my final year work in, I can now get a job and start to fulfil my dreams.

Why get a job when you could earn a living with GM? That's what I've been trying to do anyway, and GM Studio has made that a lot easier. A single GM game now has the potential to make you a millionaire. I'm not exaggerating.

Sitting at a computer long enough to make a game is bad for your health. Most people don't have the initiative to do enough exercise that would compensate for that.

[Terrified Virus]

Good job!

The grading system in the US is different. A 67% is a D! :3

[True Valhalla]

What this means is that because of GM which I used to develop half of my final year work in, I can now get a job and start to fulfil my dreams.

Why get a job when you could earn a living with GM? That's what I've been trying to do anyway, and GM Studio has made that a lot easier. A single GM game now has the potential to make you a millionaire. I'm not exaggerating.

Sitting at a computer long enough to make a game is bad for your health. Most people don't have the initiative to do enough exercise that would compensate for that.

I try to, but lately I've been slipping up a bit. Need to get back into a healthy routine...

[King Tetiro]

You live in Britain? Apply at Yoyogames!!

Got any vacancies?

[King Tetiro]

Hey guys, just wanted to say thanks for the support posts :D

Does anyone know how to contact YoYoGames about job vacancies? Because that may not be a bad idea!

[faissialoo]

You just made me cry :'D

[Ruub]

...But in addition to the timesinks and hardships I'm sure he's had to endure, a lot of the time there's just pure luck involved...

I'm not a huge fan of people assuming that luck played a large part in what I've achieved, because it really didn't. I feel like that just devalues what was involved in getting to this point.

The main contributing factors have been hard work and attention to detail.

*6 months later*

I just have to say I really agree. People often tend to say you need a lot of luck to become something, in a lot of directions, though in reality I really believe Hard & Smart work = the luck. The luck you got to be the person who can work hard & work smart.

[11clock]

But half an hour ago, I got my final results. It turns out I got 67/100 for Project. This means I got a University grade of a 2:1 for that unit. I also got 83/100 for my Video Game Design, which I developed a 3D game with GM in

A 67/100 isn't that good, at least to me... is the class graded differently than in the average American system?

But still, congrats! It's very cool to see GM used in school!

The grading goes like this in the UK

40-49 = 3rd = D
50-59 = 2:2 = C
60-69 = 2:1 = B
70+ = 1st = A

The state I live in in the United States has a much harsher grading system. a 91+ is an A, and below a 65 is a failing grade. This is for the colleges. My high school has 93+ as A and below 70 as failing grade. I've been able to keep my grades above 85 without much effort, but my laziness is going to hurt me if I don't fix it by the time I get into college. I've heard that it's much harder despite the slightly more lenient grading system.

Edited by 11clock, 09 March 2013 - 05:19 PM.

[Yal]

The general rule in my school so far has been that below 50% is failing grade, and, err, 90% and above is A. (We don't get percentage point scoring, rather each task is on around 3-4 points for a 'long' exam and 10 points for a 5-question exam making a total of 30-40 points max. Typically the A treshold is 3-4 points below the max grade.)

But we're getting slightly off-topic now, aren't we?

[Game Bandit]

Thank you Overmars and YYG for producing this software and giving me a future. A future which I can look forward with my head held high. And you also helped me become a skilled programmer as well.

How exactly did Game Maker give you a future? It's not like GM lets you do anything that you can't do with other programming languages (usually for free) and it's not like someone's going to hire you for knowing GM.

I think people here should stop exaggerating about GM. It's not healthy to have such an unrealistic outlook.

[Αnt]

I'm releasing my first commercial game next month and if it sells more than 10 copies hope to go full time. I would absolutely not be doing this without GameMaker Studio.

I'm not a natural coder at all, I've tried several 'proper' languages over the years like DarkBasic, C, XNA, etc, and for me it's akin to running over sandpaper. Conversely I also don't like drag & drop systems like Construct as I feel like I have little control and generally like to get my hands code-mucky. People slag GML off for being simple as if that's always a bad thing, to me it's just streamlined and evident as I don't have to remember 5 abstruse function names just to move an object left and right. I'm also not much of an artist, it's game design and ideas that interest me most and there's no way I could hope to join a team saying "hey I'm the ideas guy" without first having several solid games under my belt.

The YoYo team have done a fantastic job at legitimising commercial dev using Studio. GM8 was plagued with graphic card related visual problems and export to multi-platform is a huge plus for getting into places like the Humble Store (I only have interest in the PC market, I'm sure the mobile advances are a godsend to a lot of devs too).

So Game Bandit yes I would literally have no future in making games commercially without GameMaker Studio... clearly I'm not the only one.