Salary and Job issues! Please help

tremulant · Apr 2007

Okay I have one job offer of 30k in Pittsburgh, working for a steady job in correlation with the state on games, Then I have the other job that I have just recently received an art test for in California.

So here is the actual questions I have. How much would I need to make in California to equal the 30k in pittsburgh? Is the overall cost a huge difference, like 2x as much?(Yes I googled and googled and got different results)

Also the Art test is for a character Artist position...Does character artist usually pay any higher than ..say..environment artist?

I have 1 week on the art test, and the pburgh job, wants a response on whether I want to work there by this week! So I am kinda pulling my hair out here.

Lastly, the company in California is much more prominent than the smaller company, would this look much better on my resume than a job with the smaller company, if I decided to change jobs?

This would be my first gig in the industry, besides a 6month internship I did, while at school.

Thanks, and any feedback as far as how people like it in California would be much appreciated.

Tulkamir · Apr 2007

Well, one thing to keep in mind, an art test is NOT a job offer. If you have an actual offer, don't turn it down just because of an art test.

Sorry I can't be of more help. :P

animatr · Apr 2007

the west coast is loads more expensive. I would say as a char artist here, i dont know what prior exp you have, but you should be at least 45k to even afford to live in a 1 bed/1 bath apt and a car payment. it's pretty steep. i'd say for west coast living, i wouldnt go lower than 45k for a full-time position.

Matabus · Apr 2007

[ QUOTE ]
Also the Art test is for a character Artist position...Does character artist usually pay any higher than ..say..environment artist?

[/ QUOTE ]

No. One other thing you will find is that salaries vary from person to person even in your own department and at the same level of experience. It's a very subjective thing.

I can see how this would be hard decision to make. In the end you really need simply ask yourself which job you think you would be happier at. That is really all that matters. If you are happy, a reasonable living is all you need. I would rather not make EXTREME amounts of money if it meant I would have to commute forever to a job that sucked away my soul.

Asmuel · Apr 2007

Make sure not to blow the pittsburgh one is all I can say, unless your positive you'll get the one in Cali. Im sure you'd rather come away with one job than none

ebagg · Apr 2007

Like Matabus said, go where you'll enjoy you're life more, you're in pittsburgh, you may want to stay close to the folks you know there, or you might want to change your life and go somewhere else.

I wouldn't say character artists make more than enviro artists, and it is entirely dependent on the company, your experience, skill level, etc etc etc.

You need to be more specific, where in California? As animatr said, living on the west coast is a lot more pricey. For an example of washington, I have a coworker who used to live in Austin, Texas, had a house for around 200k, he moved up here, and paid nearly 400k for a house less than half the size (that house is in bellevue, a large city near the hub of the game companies in washington state).

I don't think the size of the company is much of a factor, I could be wrong but as long as you have experience and skill to back it up, along with a nice personality, you can get in plenty of places! I say go for the job you already got a foot in the door at, unless you REALLY want to try elsewhere.

tremulant · Apr 2007

wow such a response so quickly, Thank you guys all so much, u are making my life a lot easier. It's easy to get wrapped up in this stuff.

I am getting married very soon and I have lots of loans to start paying on, so I am thinking more and more that this job in pittsburgh sounds like the best choice.

Thanks for the input Ebagg. Seems to be about double the price over all, from here to there. Getting a foot in is def important. good tips

Matabus: I could tell that was important just from interning, u are def right, I had lost track of that .Thanks man

Marcus Dublin · Apr 2007

Also keep in mind that at a smaller studio you may make your mark quicker and be more hands on than say at a larger studio where your "Joe artist number 100"!

Marcus Dublin

Artist - Kaos Studios

Ryno · Apr 2007

Housing prices are a pretty good indicator of the cost of living and what you need to earn. For comparison, the average home price for Los Angeles, CA is $382,140, where Pittsburgh, PA is $116,000.

Now, this doesn't mean that you need to earn three times as much in Cali as you do in PA, as home prices aren't everything, but it does give you a loose benchmark. Having come from California originally, a salary of $30,000 would be laughable. An entry level position shouldn't pay you anything less than something in the mid 50s, preferrably higher. To actually manage a reasonable standard of living, you'd really need to be making 70+.

Paul Jaquays · Apr 2007

"An entry level position shouldn't pay you anything less than something in the mid 50s, preferrably higher. "

Which may be why California no longer has a "lock" on being the heart of the game industry ... literally pricing itself out of the market.

@tremulant ... go with the "bird in the hand" offer there in Pennsylvania. Work on your skills and improving your reputation and contacts within the industry. This cost of living calculator takes a lot of factors into consideration when comparing costs of living ... http://www.bestplaces.net/col/

Jesse Moody · Apr 2007

I live in the Southern California area and have since January of 2000. It is expensive as hell here. If you are a single guy and can stand to have a roommate then 45-50k would suit you just fine but if you have any type of family, school loans, car payments then you may want to consider the other job. California is a wonderful place but you really pay for it in the end. Literally. I have lived in apartments that weren't in the best of areas and still payed almost 900 a month for a little 1 bedroom. Most game companies in the San Diego area are in the nice neighborhoods / areas and that will cost you to live anywhere close. High Moon Studios, Concrete Games, Bottle Rocket, Rockstar are only minutes from the beach so you know what that does to the cost of living.

Just make educated decisions and don't turn down offers for an art test. Trust me on that.

AstroZombie · Apr 2007

As was already stated an art test is not a job offer. Furthermore, the art test is just a single step in the interview process. It could easily be 2-3 months before you will actually get any kind of offer from the company, if you get an offer at all.

Emil Mujanovic · Apr 2007

I agree with much that was said here. If you've been offered something and it looks decent, then I suggest you take it. I'm working at a smaller studio and in the 7 months I've been here its grown quite substantially.
It's really good hearing about the living conditions in Cali seeing as I was hoping to do a move sometime within the next year or two. It's making it seem a lot harder than I initially anticipated.
Good luck with whatever decision you end up making.

-caseyjones

Ryno · Apr 2007

Ooh, ouch. I just looked up the average home price for San Jose/South San Francisco bay area. That would be $490,490. Even worse than LA, although there are definitely large regions of equally expensive housing in So Cal.

tremulant · Apr 2007

Yep ouch indeed. Thanks everyone for your tips and advice, I decided to take the job in Pitt, for many many reasons, and I still have a great contact with the other employer, who said to keep her info, if I needed work later on down the road. So it's a win win.

It seem from all the info I have gathered both from you guys and friends, and googling, that Cali is about 1.5 times the cost of east cost(pburgh) livin.

Jesse Moody · Apr 2007

good educated decision. As much as I love So. Cal my family and I are moving to Maine for cheaper living. Since I am doing contract work that was a no brainer for me. Stay around here and pay 1200 a month for a small 2 bedroom apartment or move to maine and rent a 3 bedroom house for around 450-500. Hmm that didn't take long. Good luck with your job and everything else.

Scott Ruggels · Apr 2007

Accept the concrete job. Take the art test, and forget about the west coast. If it happens great, but a job in hand is worth two on the coast.

Also survival in the west gcoast is around 65K if you livemiserly and expect to save money.

Scott

tremulant · Apr 2007

haha, I hear that Scott.

Thanks jesse, same to you bro.

dave

Malekyth · Apr 2007

I made a fair amount more than that in San Francisco, and I was still bleeding money every month. You need a lot of income to be comfy out here. Stay clear, is my advice!

edit: oh, you are staying clear. Well done.

Geezus · Apr 2007

You're still stuck in the 'burgh though man! :x
To be honest though, Pittsburgh has an extremely low cost of living, so it was a good choice. And I know you were looking to stay on the east coast. From what I've gathered in my own research, coming from east to west, it's near impossible to come straight out of college without a previous steady income to help the move, cost of living adjustments, etc.

Congrats on the job though man! It's great that all your hard work paid off. Did you end up going onboard full time with eGen, or did you take a position elsewhere?

Salary and Job issues! Please help

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