What are some good colleges?

Question

im a freshman and i want to become a video game designer/programer. what are some good colleges to go to and what is the actually name of the major/minor

Answer 1

In modern game development, game design and game programming are two completely different careers.  Designers write up the details of every tiny aspect of the game and come up with the math to support it.  Programmers take the written details from the designers and implement it using programming languages like C++ and/or in-house tools.

If you're interested in programming, you can go to any good 4 year college and get a degree in Computer Science.  For electives, any class on essay writing or other types of documentation (tech writing, etc) are extremely helpful to a game programmer.  Taking an art class or two can also be useful in working with artists later on.

If you're interested in design, go to any good 4 year college and major in whatever you want.  Just pick a major that you enjoy and that will allow you graduate as quickly as possible.  Along with your major take math up through Calculus 1, and at least two courses in Statistics, two courses in writing, one Computer Science course, and one art course.  Math and writing are the main tools of a designer, and the CS and art courses will help you work with your programmer and artist colleagues later on.  Fill up the rest of your course requirement with a wide liberal arts education -- history, literature, mythology, sociology, psychology, etc, are all useful in game design.



If at all possible, go to school near a city with a lot of game studios, like Los Angeles, San Francisco, Austin, Seattle, etc.  Most game companies will not pay for relocation for an entry level job, and some won't even interview you if you don't live in the area, so it'll be a lot easier to find a job after college if you already live near several studios.  There's a map here: http://gamedevmap.com/ that lists every game studio by city.  Try to find a college in a city with at least 10 game companies.