salaries
polycount lvl 666
Is it my imagination or have salaries for next gen artists increased a lot recently.
I even saw a lead artist job recently advertised at 60,000 quid a year.
WOW with a capital 'wu'
I even saw a lead artist job recently advertised at 60,000 quid a year.
WOW with a capital 'wu'
Replies
I started on 12,000 a year at blitz. I thought it was ok at the time.
then again, salaries on adverts often don't mean a whole lot. I used to work for a company that advertised artists jobs "up to 45k", and their lead artist was only on about 20
yeah Daz, money isn't everything, but its nice still:)
12k at Blitz? Damn, I applied there a while back and they asked me what my salary expectations were. Is it common for such a low wage? Of course I'd certainly give up a little cut of a salary if it meant working in a nice enviroment.
Lately, it seems to me guys coming from a film background command more money that those who start out in games too.
60k for a lead is not a stupid amount at all. It depends on what the word lead means - lead of a team, lead of all the artists etc.
What a friggin waste of a day that was.
yeah super , it was it like an interrogation.
They must have lost many a good artist over the years because of it.
Blitz has always paid low wages BTW.
cubik: the entry artist pay at dice sounds ridiculously low. afaik, sweden is one of the most expensive countries to live in europe?
anyway, certain berlin-based game dev studios have been accused (anonymously, that is) to employ a large number of extremely underpaid entry level developers that came out of games academy, an also berlin-based educational institute. according to the sources, these people are being paid something between 400 - 1000 euro/month for full time work.
yeah, sounds like quite the cool life, live the dream job and get rich while at it...
The guys that comes in near the end of the day here to clean out the bins and mop the toilets don't look so happy and they don't get the good pay tradeoff is my point.
I'm not having a go at you, I've fallen into the same lines of thought as you are, I just suspect that if you change industry and takea 1/3 pay cut for instance, you might feel different.
Well, I mean after the first year has passed and you understand what can't be changed
Personally I think being a bit unhappy now and then at work is a perfectly fine trade off for being well paid because the more well paid I am, the sooner I can retire and do as I please.
Happiness in my job doesn't get me closer to retirement and finacial independance enough to not need to care what day or time it is and simply 'be'.
It's all relative of course.
I started on 11k at reflections, they paid my apartment rent and electric/heating etc too. Free meal was provided if I worked past 7, so I did , most of the time.
r.
don't worry, they will get all that cash. divided up among the large hordes of grunts that seem to be necessary, of course
cubik: the entry artist pay at dice sounds ridiculously low. afaik, sweden is one of the most expensive countries to live in europe?
anyway, certain berlin-based game dev studios have been accused (anonymously, that is) to employ a large number of extremely underpaid entry level developers that came out of games academy, an also berlin-based educational institute. according to the sources, these people are being paid something between 400 - 1000 euro/month for full time work.
yeah, sounds like quite the cool life, live the dream job and get rich while at it...
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I know a group in Frankfurt that are dangerously overworked and underpaid. Their helth is starting to be effected.
But on the otherhand, as long as I make rent, and not "wory" about money, for me it's more important that the comany is well run, and doesn't have a lot of crunch time, and i don'tget the hairy eyeball for going home at sundown, that is more important. I waspaid really well at Castaway, but the great work environment made it a great job, as opposed toa good one.
However at my current status, I'llacceptjust about anything in the bay area that pays enough to make rent. ($2100 a month after taxes).
Scott
Scott
Scott
Im almost certainly looking at a substantial paycut at my next gig for sure. Heck If was to go and make models for ILM for example, probably 50% of what I earnt at EA. But they're unionized, so my theory is that I can lead a normal life. I am done with sacrificing my life for my job, which is why I'm attempting to leave the videogame industry. Perpetual crunching is a young mans game.
I'll get back to you on wether or not the grass is greener in a few months time!
Of course, it doesn't sound possible for you to lower it anymore than it has been, you paint a dour picture!
Yeah this industry is pretty stupid at times. I get tired of the 'you got to just jump on that grenade and cover it with your helmet' mentality.. I have to fight the urge to point out 'but we're not at war, we're not in the trenchs and if we were, there's no fucking chance I'd take a bullet for you!!!!'
Hope it works out, if it does , throw me a lifeline ina a few years time.
r.
ILM for example, probably 50% of what I earnt at EA. But they're unionized,
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Sorry OT, but I thought the majority of ILM workforce wasn't unionized? I mean, it is Lucas's baby after all. (I don't know, wondering if someone can pipe in)
My first 8 months I was working normal hours, then slowly I ended up taking the work home and its stayed like that ever since.
I have tried to stop working at home of late, cause it does take its toll on your nerves.
Re the quality of life vs money aspect I suppose you have to balance it really.
Even if you have stuff to do at work, you should make plans for the evening , go and play pool, long walk etc, it really does help.
I also am startng to think i have given away a large chunk of my life to working too hard. I have doing 3d since 1995 and have rarely had a break/holiday.
GROSS 35,000.00 -> TAX -> NET = 25,539.38
GROSS 45,000.00 -> TAX -> NET = 31,852.48
GROSS 55,000.00 -> TAX -> NET = 37,752.48
GROSS 60,000.00 -> TAX -> NET = 40,702.48
The bracket from £35K to £55k is non existant because of tax reasons shown above. Basically your company would pay you more but the difference of take home cash is minimal, so they don't bother. Wages paid often jump from around £35k to around £60k with no middleground.
When wages go up, the tax becomes extreme. When they talk about fat cats in the news, it's actually quite missleading.
GROSS £100,000 -> TAX -> NET = £64,302.48
GROSS £300,000 -> TAX -> NET = £182,302.48
Also in the UK, there are rules to stop people from earning over £250,000 or so.
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Personally I think being a bit unhappy now and then at work is a perfectly fine trade off for being well paid because the more well paid I am, the sooner I can retire and do as I please.
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This is my opinion aswell. I love my job, but there are times (like now) where i work 6.5 days a week fixing other peoples SLOP and fighting tools and flawed systems when i wonder if I should just put a gun to my head. That's usually when I start playing geometry wars
-R
If you are very good, even with no experience, you ought to be entering on 21k or more. 60k seems like a lot but I imagine some art directors in Britain draw that down... most leads seem to rock in around 30-40k or so, maybe a little more depending on the candidate.
Just from what I have experienced. I had a senior role that I didn't take in the US a few years ago that would have almost doubled my salary so I know you guys can get paid well... this was a good role to be fair, 1st party development.
It is all relative though. As Daz says, money isn't everything - its all about a bit of balance. If its all work and no play, it not a fun life. Peaks, troughs, and flat bits is where its at - it shouldn't be a climb all the time.
Would it be fair to say that salaries are higher at 1st party studios compared to 3rd? I've often wondered if the quality of life varies depending on the studios backing, I imagine it would.
A few years ago I was offered an interview for a lead artist position at a southern developer for 2k more than I was making as a grunt in the north of England. Needless to say I told them I wasn't interested.
But yeah, the money isn't the be all and end all - (generally) good working conditions, pension, training and healthcare (including eyecare) all help. Thankfully I've not had to use any healthcare, but I know someone who recently did. 3 days later he was in the hospital and got it sorted, rather than waiting for months for an NHS appointment.
Most grunt artists with 2+ years of experience that I have known in the last 5 years were on 20-30k. Of course companies vary, and the area does affect the salary.
i'm sure Rick can attest to both of those
I saw that £60k job, too. I even mentioned it on my journal. It was for a lead position with 6 years experience at the helm of a team. I have just over 6 months. I don't think I'm going for that just yet.
As for Codies, I was there for an interview just over a week ago. Yes, the IQ tests have gone
I want my £30k +, dammit! Oh, and working on some long-term and interesting projects
I started at £18k with Rage, rising to £24k in two years. Rage died, then my wage dropped to £23k with Criterion, and seems to have stuck there. Starting to feel pretty under-valued, though, considering the responsibilities I've held (hence looking about)
most of my team used to work at rage before it went broke and became swordfish
thanks, thats really nice to hear for a nightshift worker who brings in £800 a month >_>
money over here is rubbish, unless your in the military, or an executive. your only hope is to move abroad.
wow this sounds pretty bad... UK must not be such a nice place to work, that tax breakdown is utterly ridiculous. I've heard UK companies do alot of outsourcing to china, india and eastern europe, is the common mentality there that the the inhouse artists should be paid as much as the contractors from other countries?
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Well, there is a reason the US constitution forbids the government from levying an income tax (Or rather, did forbid it until the 16th ammendment was pushed through. Disgusting to see things like that go completely against the original intention of those who founded our country.)
Oh and Daz good luck on Hollywood, but remember that not all game companies are EA, even if that seems to be the case.
Scott
1 British pound = 1.74 U.S. dollar
There us go (rounded up numbers).
You do know google has a built in converter? Just google on 30000 uk pound to us dollar
18 000 British pound = 31 446 U.S. dollar
30 000 British pound = 52 410 U.S. dollar
I'm actually taking a paycut to move soon, and my quality of life is still looking towards increasing heavily. Cost of living goes into account for much of the salary differences.