I Like Computer Games

Spore

Sara Crubellier (Flickr)

I regularly meet with students that want to major in Computer and Information Systems (CIS) at our community college. One of my first questions is something along the lines of “what area of computing and technology interests you?” “I like computer games” is a very common response.

I like Coen brothers movies, but damned if I’ve found a way to earn a living watching them.

At this point in the conversation I start to inquire if making computer games is their interest, or is it playing computer games. For the half that think they want to make computer games, I encourage them and point out that it’s going to take a serious dedication to computer programming. They may need to look into a computer science program at a 4-year school because our community college, like many others, doesn’t offer much in programming and certainly not much in upper-level programming.

For the ones that dream of a life as a game tester, I refer them to a very good article from Seattle Weekly that came out a few years ago. It documents the author’s foray into computer game testing as a job and will hopefully open their eyes. Game testers barely make much above minimum wage and often don’t have regular, guaranteed work. It’s something that most do on the side.

Check out Karla Starr’s article at Seattle Weekly for the full story.