games dev and the military
polycounter lvl 7
This is a random question guys, but as of late I am seriously considering joining the territorial army. (UK reserve forces for those not from UK). I was wondering if anyone on this forum has had any military experience or knows of someone who has ans has juggled that with the industry?
I think if I was not so ambitious in this field I would have joined the army long ago and right now I am seriously considering it but am a little worried that the games industry will not be very understanding or accomodating. I want to join because I do not want to look back and think that I didn't even bother trying but don't want to throw my career goals to the wind, especially now I feel like I am getting close to actually getting somewhere.
Cheers
Ben
I think if I was not so ambitious in this field I would have joined the army long ago and right now I am seriously considering it but am a little worried that the games industry will not be very understanding or accomodating. I want to join because I do not want to look back and think that I didn't even bother trying but don't want to throw my career goals to the wind, especially now I feel like I am getting close to actually getting somewhere.
Cheers
Ben
Replies
Of course if war were declared and you were to be shipped off, any jobs you had would go down the drain. Unless of course it was a big war, in which case everyone's jobs would be down the drain. Small wars could be OK, because they might not need you. So basically try to avoid medium sized wars if you like 3d.
Ok, seriously. Why do you want to join the army? If it's kinda like a backup plan in case the industry fails, or it's a personal ambition, or just patriotism, then that's something to go off. If you don't mind me saying, what you've said is you 'want to join because you could look back, having not joined, and said, 'I could have joined''.
In the US, if a soldier is called to war, I do believe there are laws preventing them from being fired for a time. So I'd look into that.
As for artists here in the military, there is one on the boards (sadly can't recall his name) who is a jet fighter pilot. Not sure if he is doing much in the industry, however.
And with the cutbacks in the armed forces recently they are calling on the TA more and more. Its a much bigger commitment then it use to be, id recommend researching a lot more into it, before making a decision like this
There are laws preventing employers from firing you when you are on operation or training. On paper that's fine but as Neox said how would a company react to my being called up during crunch or something. You can refuse the summons I believe if you have a valid reason but wether or not work is a valid reason isn't quite clear.
I have done a fair bit of research into this subject and I was mainly asking if anyone had actually done this before.
I think the main thing that concerns me is would a company avoid hiring someone who is TA BECAUSE they know they can be called up.
It wouldn't suprise me. I bet every post gets a lot of applications. But do you have to let them know that you're TA?
When I went into school to learn 3D back in 1996, Disney, Pixar, ILM, were hiring entire graduating classes right out of school. There was massive competition for 3D artists. For some reason, the way it was back in the 90's is what so many people still think about the ease of getting a job in 3D.
According to my school, that 90% dropped down to 50% in 2 years and then down to 10% when I graduated.
I think it hovered around 1% when I graduated back in 2000, and has stayed somewhere around there ever since. It's a hell of a tough industry to break into, and getting harder and harder and harder.
My portfolio back in 2000 was a really weak portfolio, and there is absolutely no way I would get any consideration for a job with that porfolio today. All I showed was very basic modelling and texturing knowledge.
A couple years later, what I needed to show was decent concept skills, to go with an understanding of proportions, and a rudimentary understanding of low-poly modelling. I could simply do most of my textures through projections.
in 2004, I needed to show very strong low poly skills, specifically in characters. Rudimentary understanding of anatomy, light, color, shade, form, shape, and very strong low poly modelling skills. Painting with an understanding of material differentiation, along with the ability to really REALLY push resolution out of tiny textures. Projecting textures were not going to be able to get me as far as I needed to go, and I had to learn how to start handpainting everything.
Fast Forward to today:
ON top of having a decent mastery of those aforementioned skills, I then had to be highly proficient at Zbrush, strong understanding of anatomy, material properties, skills in many different disciplines, working within constraints of real-time engines, working with outsourcing, and be highly efficient.
What I'm getting at is: It's the hardest it's ever been trying to get a job in this industry. It will only get harder and harder. In 2-3 years, the industry is not going to be what it is now.
If there is potentially a PS4 coming out in 2 years, you're going to have to be absolutely stellar at many of the aforementioned skills, along with very strong technical skills, strong communication skills, and gear your skillset to possibly working with DirectX 12 stuff. Generating displacement maps, multi-layered texturing, complete anatomical accuracy that you know every muscle and bone in the face.
With this in mind, how badly do you want to get into this industry? It's not worth it for a LOT of people now. They love video games, they love art, but often they don't love it THAT much.
You are competing with tens of thousands of kids trying to break in, and that number is growing larger and larger, and we are relying on outsourcing more and more.
I don't want to be the all-negative guy, but if being an artist is a secondary commitment to you, then chances are you're going to lose out on the opporunity to someone who's 100% committed to it.
I do get your point though. IMO I really cannot see myself doing anything other than Art and couldnt just let it go anyway. I honestly do not know what I would do with my life if I did not have this ambition.
Don't get me wrong, I have a massive respect for what they do, but the army can really change a person. It might not be the same for the TA, but at the end of the day they will want you to think like a soldier, and act like a soldier. Its what they want to drill into your head.
So essentially what I wanted to say was that joining the TA could well take away a serious chunk out of your art ambitions. But hell, if its something you feel you need to do then go for it! Best of luck with whatever you decide.
yeah, some studios can be tough....