Graduate Problem...
Hi guys,
Just wanted a few words of advice from fellow developers and potential employers out there on my current scenario and what to do...
The gist of it is; in our final semester were given a final project which usually consists of a full 3D game that demonstrates our skills and enter a competition otherwise known as GamesRepublic...My group started this project during summer 2012 to ensure it'd be a great final result however have now split into two halves.... both of which have the project file - with the game mechanics and no current 3D assets...
Do I
A) work on a game for my project to a similar scope only smaller or
work on my portfolio pieces...
Obviously A could be a combination of both as well as getting my name known for contacts however i dont know much about programming and would have ALOT of documentation to answer for!
Cheers guys
Just wanted a few words of advice from fellow developers and potential employers out there on my current scenario and what to do...
The gist of it is; in our final semester were given a final project which usually consists of a full 3D game that demonstrates our skills and enter a competition otherwise known as GamesRepublic...My group started this project during summer 2012 to ensure it'd be a great final result however have now split into two halves.... both of which have the project file - with the game mechanics and no current 3D assets...
Do I
A) work on a game for my project to a similar scope only smaller or
work on my portfolio pieces...Obviously A could be a combination of both as well as getting my name known for contacts however i dont know much about programming and would have ALOT of documentation to answer for!
Cheers guys
Replies
HOWEVER, I had a bunch of mates who did make it to Game Republic and some of them did get those contacts and I saw a fair few people land jobs at the games companies who were there.
SO! There isn't really a right answer. Although the right answer here is totally B.
They don't use zbrush or characters as this was my job...
However, being more generalized might help you if you want to find work at a small studio or a start-up because one person usually fills many roles. However it's unsure if they would hire someone right out of college for this. I imagine it may be useful experience if you want to move towards producer or game designer. But it might also help if you want to become a technical artist, assuming you got involved in technical aspects of producing the game (coding, shaders, pipeline, tools). Unless you've done any of this before (producing, tech-art, game design) during you studies, this would be the more risky route, because you will have less experience to show and to demonstrate to an employer in these areas.
If you've done mainly art before and if you want to continue this route, I would recommend the first path by sticking to doing art by practicing and specializing. It seems less risky.
(1) yes, we also look at additional skills, but they will become more important later in your career when you e.g. get more independence or need to coordinate work on your own with other departments or disciplines.
What did you go and spend all those years in College for?
To get that piece of paper, and make sure the best grade possible is on that paper.
Do whatever it takes to get a good grade printed on that piece of paper. You can never 'do more work' for a better qualification. But you'll have all the time in the world to make portfolio pieces.
Otherwise you've just thrown away 3-4 years.
I had a group project that encompassed a variety of skills, but I was also in one of my final semesters, and was trying to focus on getting my portfolio ready, and creating a few more filler pieces for it.
I chose to do the bare minimum on the group project, since I knew I wouldn't be doing 90% of what was needed right out of college. I wanted to focus on my environmental art at the time. So, I did just that. I poured my energy into my portfolio while the group project took the back burner. I certainly could have done better on the group project, but I had to look at the big picture, as I was already burning the candle at both ends.
I hope this helps and good luck!
Good luck!