Austin, Tx job hunt
Im here in austin, where i grew up. Ive been visiting studios, some seemed promising. Others seemed impossible to infiltrate. I had the most luck with twisted pixel. Actually got to talk to some one. It seems most of my encounters were like talking to automated messages. I like the face to face " apply online" was a common phrase. Blizzard shot me that line. I love it here, wish i could stay, praying for a door to swing open. But, i head back to cajun country tomorrow. I have so many ideas and im itching to be involved. Arkane, Aspyr, Twisted Pixel, Bioware, Midnight, Retro, Blizzard. Tried to find Red Fly, no dice. If your an Austin game studio looking for a creative powerhouse, full of ideas then im the man your looking for.
Replies
Did he just Jedi mind trick the audience and that yellow robot at 3:08?
LMFAO @ 4:05 to 5:00
That was a great share skayne, good luck hshg.
You don't have to give up your dream, bust your ass becoming a badass artist and once you get in you can start spending more time improving your writing.
also, as far as I know, the Blizzard Austin office is just a customer service center.
seriously, as autocon said, there's lots of people with ideas. If your ideas are really great and you have a problem convincing studios, try smaller and work with an indie team. If you can't convince them, how will you convince people who run an actual business? Of course just being the "boss" or "the clever guy" doesn't cut it there - you have to contribute however you can. There's all kinds of indie people who're not kickass artists/coders/whatever but they managed to recruit people and make them believe in their ideas and make it all come alive. It's possible, but you have to be good at the whole idea powerhouse thing.
Now the easier route in my opinion, just as you said yourself, is to study more, work harder and get some sort of portfolio ready - may it be art, coding or small game samples illustrating your ideas, or anything appropriate for the role you're looking for...say, what role are you actually looking for? Being passionate is all cool, but you gotta have a goal of what you want to be.
For real though, your right. I need to do some more studying on digital painting and texturing. Was supposed ti head to full sail. Deeply considering taking that step.
If your interested in the design side of things (mr.idea man :P) then you should learn a game engine like UDK or Unity or Flash and make a small game that people can play and test out your ideas. Talking about them will lead you know where. Ideas are a dime a dozen. People who can make these ideas a reality and into a game are a rarity.
If your interested in games then you just have to do it. No joking about it. You will go no where in this industry half assing things. Good luck
Also IDK if its just me but I dont think actually going to these places out of the blue is a very good idea. If you made an appointment sure, but there are a lot of wackos out there and I'm sure most people dont want people just stopping by. Hence why most places have security guards
spaces are good
http://www.polycount.com/forum/showthread.php?p=1235334
I agree with Autocon, you need to prove that you can do the job, the best sales pitch in the world won't make anyone hire you if all it is... is talk.
If you're going to be an idea guy you need to show that they can work and that they are good ideas. IF they do hire you to be an idea guy, they will hire you to create new ideas constantly, they won't hire you to get access to those ideas you keep locked away and won't tell anyone because you're afraid they will steal them. If they do... you'll make more that's the skill they hire you for.
If you really are a fountain of creativity then flow... let people see what you can do!
Either get a team together or build something simple on your own. I suggest getting team together because it would demonstrate that you can talk to the different camps and communicate your ideas effectively and clearly.
If you're going to be an artist you need a rockin portfolio. What you have in that thread is pretty bad and you'll need to step it up.
Do not misinterpret the vague term of "talent" for something that takes years of experience to get. Want to be a true "idea" guy? Listen this guy, his "ideas" are made from hard work.
http://www.fengzhudesign.com/tutorials.htm
Spark
Most, if not all, will not let you in the door to talk to the "team". Its all about email dude.
If you want to get a job at a studio you need to decide what you want to do specifically and make a portfolio. Do you have one?