Developers Corner

Greetings,

I was wondering, are people with no programming/graphical arts skills still needed on an average game development team?

For example, to create the lore, write quests, help work out the game concept and such? I'm wondering about that since I'm really interested in working on a game but since I have no programming and graphic design skills (And do posses story writing abilities and so on) I was wondering if I actually have a shot at contributing to a game on a proffessional basis.

beleive it or not but yes they are and if you want a job just pm me

In an up-start development team, no. The original developers are the visionaries of their game and tend to collaborate only with each other for ideas and basic lore. They only want skilled slaves to help make their vision a reality.

In an already established and quite large development team, yes if you can prove you have the talent for it (as with any job). They have already made a few games and are running out of ideas, so if you show up and start pumping in fresh concepts you'll have a warm welcome and a fat wallet.

Just be warned that, once your creativity well runs dry, they won't really have need of you anymore. Unless you work for a J-RPG company, in which case they'll recycle your ideas until it stops making money (12 iterations of the same game later).

For positions other than story-telling and all that creative stuff. You can always be an accountant or get into marketing. Marketing games is a big thing now, since hype and graphics is all that sells to kids these days (who cares about innovative gameplay when you can have all the stuff you've played before with characters that have bigger boobs and more blood!).

You bring out the same question i myself use to ask and yes its quite possible to write but you still should look to go into a programming aid to learn how to contribute a little more like me i was once just a writer and now not only am i a writing scholar but also i am a well rounded graphic designer with a little bit of programming skills.

I wouldn't consider there being enough room in a indy game for someone that does nothing directly related to making the game.

however in some indy teams there would be room for writing skills.  In my release design I have a dozen skills within each skill level there are a few handfuls of stance-parts so that's 672 names that need to sound slightly latinish and with about 40 groups that need to sound related all without annoying the audience(being unpronuncable, sounding alien, and all that good stuff).  Then there's drawing up the maps, the more the better the server can handle load balancing over large areas better than small areas which all need NPCs(a couple handful that have unique content, whether just normal talking or fitting with the questing system).

All in All game companies do need someone with your unique skill

For example, to create the lore, write quests, help work out the game concept and such? I'm wondering about that since I'm really interested in working on a game but since I have no programming and graphic design skills (And do posses story writing abilities and so on) I was wondering if I actually have a shot at contributing to a game on a proffessional basis.

You can go into the games industry on a proffesional basis, however many companies these days require a designer to have some sort of art/program skills.

It depends on the company as-well. You may come accross Bethsda who pay designers to create wonderfull indepth world lore, however you need sufficent evidence to proove your writing ability.

I myself got into the industry as a environment artist but got onboard with MMO design after my first AAA was released.

Companies look for people such as yourself, you either need to enter in on a Junior level and get taught skills you will need or look for studios such as RPG developers or MMO developers which are looking for story designers/mission designers.

Hope this helps