hey if you want to get involved in computers or the making of mmorpgs what do you take in college?

Originally posted by akjohn31

hey if you want to get involved in computers or the making of mmorpgs what do you take in college?

A technical school that specifically teaches gaming design could be something to look at.

 First of all, a general Bachelors in Computer Sciences is what most companies want for many positions.

Then, you specialize in what you REALLY want to do, such as Animations, programming, character models etc. You will most likely start in some small company untill you get a few years/titles under your belt before you can join one of the big boys.

Originally posted by akjohn31

hey if you want to get involved in computers or the making of mmorpgs what do you take in college?

Id advise you to look into companies like Blizzard and Sony, NCsoft and see where they accept interns from and get an idea from that.

Check this FAQ on Blizzards internship program.  You may be able to get ideas on what a developer of this caliber looks for.

That would greatly depend on the school.

For example, some schools have committed computer graphics/design programs and even some dedicated directly to video game design. I am located in Georgia so something like the Art Institute of Atlanta or the Savannah College of Art and Design come to mind; however, I am not sure if they have those programs or not.

If you are talking a more traditional college (like a 4 year liberal arts college where I teach), it is much more difficult. I would probably say some computer science courses for sure but that area is not my speciality so I can't really recommend anything directly there.

Another route you can look into is the business side of things. Courses in marketing, management and finance would be helpful since MMO's are so huge. Combine that with an international business focus and access to a particular foreign language (something unique like Russian or Chinese), and you would be set.

Also ig you were more into the development side of things (outside of graphics), courses in technical writing and literature would be helpful since someon has to write the quests.

My recommendation is to look online and see what you can find and also look at the major companies and see what they are hiring. A lot of times they will advertise a job and it will say "4 year degree with an emphasis in this or that" required for employment. Then you can search for that program online and see what you can find.

Hope this helps.

EDIT: YES, an internship, during your last year or two is a major, MAJOR help for anyone wanting to get into the industry (and that goes for any industry too).

Computer science.

I would look for companies that are hiring, and check out the qualifications for those positions first. That will tell you what kind of degree they are looking for. However, I know you really can't go wrong with Savannah College of Art and Design, or with Full Sail, down in Orlando.

I would love to look into some intership things but guys i know NOTHING about computers. But i want to learn. I love to try to create things with realmcrafter. So maybe something up that ally?
 

Originally posted by Kainis

I would look for companies that are hiring, and check out the qualifications for those positions first. That will tell you what kind of degree they are looking for. However, I know you really can't go wrong with Savannah College of Art and Design, or with Full Sail, down in Orlando.

ya, about Full Sail.  Its a joke down here.  That school claims to be a lot of things and its not.   Its extremely expensive to boot.

Go to a real university.  Get a real degree and focus around your gaming internship needs. *edit*  Also, dont limit yourself to MMO's.  That would be a very vilotile career move.

Originally posted by akjohn31

I would love to look into some intership things but guys i know NOTHING about computers. But i want to learn. I love to try to create things with realmcrafter. So maybe something up that ally?
 

Well to start off if you want to program: http://www.cplusplus.com/doc/tutorial/

For other things, Id suggest looking for the programs the real devs use, and playing around with them to get the hang of it, and start making things for a portfollio. 

In which country do you live in ?

Options in game industry are plenty to mention a few:

- game design courses.  The hardest to get work in if you want to be leading designer, most of those people are people who actually have money to make games. You can start work as level/map designer.

- concept artist

- animation courses

- game development  coruses. One of the most demanding courses in IT espacially if you want to be a game programmer, you need strong mathematical skills. 

And many others, check it out www.blizzard.com/us/jobopp/ that's Blizzard website which shows different job opportunities in game industry.

I know one really helpful website about planing your gaming career

www.skillset.org/careers/

Any questions ? 

Originally posted by akjohn31

hey if you want to get involved in computers or the making of mmorpgs what do you take in college?

You don't see to have a specific thing in mind.  Do you want to run the business?  Do you want to write software?  Are you the type who wants to play with graphics?  Do you want to manage a team of some kind?

what are some of the programs real devs use?

Originally posted by akjohn31

what are some of the programs real devs use?

 

http://lmgtfy.com/

I would just like to come up with a game or work on other peoples ideas. I want to be a manager though. In head of everything.  just like making stuff. and i live in the US..Texas baby

Originally posted by akjohn31

I would just like to come up with a game or work on other peoples ideas. I want to be a manager though. In head of everything.  just like making stuff. and i live in the US..Texas baby

then you should major in Biz Management or Technology Management...

Personally?
I've been apart of 3 game companies now, and anybody hired from the "Game Design Colleges" have proven completely useless.  The best programmers I've seen often haven't even gone to college, or haven't yet graduated.  They were self taught and motivated, learned themselves.  You have to have a passion to make games...

If you absolutely do not have an incredible desire to make games, beyond "It sounds like a fun career!", you should not chose this as a career.  The hours are long, the pay is pretty bad, and there will always be somebody talking down to you about your work.
If you have illussions of grandeur of creating the greatest game ever, you'll likely be sorely disappointed.
If you think that the game industry is steady work, you're in for a surprise.  You can read about layoffs and closures regularly, especially in the MMO field.  Most MMOs never make it to fruitation before they are canceled or run out of money... in a few extreme cases, workers show up and the doors are locked after finally having a day off after several 70+ hour workweeks.

Really sit down and research the Industry... don't just read about games, read about the INDUSTRY of gaming.  Gamasutra is a great place to start... read a few "Post Mortems" on MMOs, most of them mention the weeks of crunch time and other not so positive game realities.

If you read all that and are still interested, I suggest you do the following:
Learn a little programming (even scripting)
Learn abit about 3D Art
Learn about the costs of timelines, how long it takes to do certain tasks.
Take some management classes at a regular University... do NOT attend a "Game College", go to a real university.

Managers need to know a little about everything... if you want to manage a MMO company, you need to know ALOT... especially if you plan on managing without coming up through the ranks.

---

Originally posted by Rayx0r
ya, about Full Sail.  Its a joke down here.  That school claims to be a lot of things and its not.   Its extremely expensive to boot.
Go to a real university.  Get a real degree and focus around your gaming internship needs. *edit*  Also, dont limit yourself to MMO's.  That would be a very vilotile career move.

---

I think we had more people representing Full Sail at my last company than any other school (with the possible exception of the local art school where a lot of our artists hailed from.)

What i should have said was i want to manage my game being made. I wanna learn how to create worlds and areas on a computer. also learn how to make 3d characters and stuff. After i get those skills maybe in the future i could start to make my own game

Originally posted by Axehilt

 

---

Originally posted by Rayx0r
ya, about Full Sail.  Its a joke down here.  That school claims to be a lot of things and its not.   Its extremely expensive to boot.
Go to a real university.  Get a real degree and focus around your gaming internship needs. *edit*  Also, dont limit yourself to MMO's.  That would be a very vilotile career move.

---

 

I think we had more people representing Full Sail at my last company than any other school (with the possible exception of the local art school where a lot of our artists hailed from.)

what company is that?  Mcdonalds? 

seriously..  you guys pull full sail graduates?   Im in the area, im curiuos what company you worked for that pulled these guys.

I see what everyone here is saying and I'd say it mostly makers sense.

I just want to add though that if you're familiar with G4tv.com there is a web show called Sessler's Soap Box.  If you're familiar with G4 you're familiar with him.  He gets a lot of flak about his show and stuff, but I find him to be pretty knowledgeable about stuff.  Anyway, he talked about this in one of his more recent Soap box episodes.  He said what he tells people when they ask him this is "Anything".  He said that the ability to program is always good, that people with all types of degrees work on games.

I mean if you really think about it you could get an English degree and still get a job working on story boards and be creating the story line to a game.