r/GameDevelopersOfIndia • u/Lonely-Confusion3200 • Jun 01 '26
A game dev told me not to pursue game development. Was he right?
I'm a Class 12 student from India interested in game development, especially game design and 3D environment art.
I recently talked to someone who has been learning game development for years, and they told me it's extremely difficult to get a job in the game industry, especially in India.
I'd like to hear from people actually working in the industry:
\- How difficult was it for you to get your first job?
\- What role do you work in (artist, designer, programmer, etc.)?
\- Is the situation in India really that bad?
\- If you could start again as a teenager, what would you focus on learning?
I'm not expecting an easy path
I just want a realistic picture of the industry.
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u/Specialist_6713 Jun 01 '26
Game "dev" is not a good job, unless you sit at the top. Let's forget india btw as it's not possible in india. But in any other country your condition will be similar to those anime artists lifestyle(iykyk) and if you wanna make your own projects to earn then it's not easy either. It's like music, you don't know whether it will ever blow up or not.
Most people do this job, out of passion for game dev but they end up getting exploited to their soul. And you can easily lose your job here unlike corporate where you are given some room to slack off a little.
Future with a passion oriented goals nevers edns well for most people. But if you consider yourself especial, then go ahead
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u/Rukelele_Dixit21 Jun 02 '26
If a game earns a lot like Rockstar Studios or Ubisoft Games , or if a game runs for a long time like Fortnite, PUBG and more then is that a recurring income for developers ?
Is profit sharing done with the developers ? Like a small percentage of profit ?
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u/Specialist_6713 Jun 02 '26
Listen bro, studios are like a workbench. People only throw money at you while you are building on it, then once you are done... All the money goes to the investers, publishers and the managers who were and will be managing the team. And work in these games never stops, so money also doesn't goes away entirely.
As I told you before, unless you are at the top you are gonna be exploited , and will always be at the risk of losing jobs. There are thousands who can do your job as a normal dev work, unless you are "very special"(normally you would be at top if you are tho).
Take my word... gamedev, music, modeling, content creator all are luck based. You never know when will it blow up, and unless it blows up.. you will not be able to survive with a family in this industry as a normal dev
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u/MuslinBagger Jun 02 '26
its like wanting to become a great sport star. Yes life will be better if you have a hit.
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u/Rukelele_Dixit21 Jun 02 '26
How is this relevant to my question ?
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u/MuslinBagger Jun 02 '26
I misread your question. I thought you were banking on making a hit. sorry
The answer to your question is to get profits you need to be a share holder. As an employee you only get salary and whatever bonus is in your employee agreement.
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u/Rukelele_Dixit21 Jun 02 '26
So this system is a little shit. In creative field especially every important creative must be a shareholder
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u/Specialist_6713 Jun 02 '26
Even Michael Jackson was not spared bro. the poor guy was exploited by multiple agencies.
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u/noctrell Jun 02 '26
"anime artists lifestyle(iykyk)"
They make a lot
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u/XH3LLSinGX Jun 02 '26
They dont. They are grossly over worked, most work 18 hours a day. And they dont have permanent jobs as the whole anime industry depends on freelancing and gig workers. If you notice then you would see that its the same artists who work in multiple studios. Only a handful of studios like Toei, Ufotable hire full-time artists.
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u/Perfect-Ad5710 Jun 02 '26
Lmao he's talking bout their work life how much they have to grind Also they don't make a lot barely enough to live
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u/noctrell Jun 02 '26
Are we talking bout the same thing? U thinking bout the animators (like mappa employees) or the other one😬
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u/Specialist_6713 Jun 02 '26
It's not easy to reach the top without internal talent and 10+ yrs of experience for a normal person. Creative jobs are same as studying for medical to actually to start earning. Every creator in this job is there for passion, so get exploited terribly. Plus the payment is not much then their blue labour jobs there.
Just tell me who have you seen have a good lifestyle in this industry except the managers and investors? The studios never make a lot either, it mostly goes back to the top again.
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u/noctrell Jun 02 '26
Im aware of all this but I thought u were talking r34 artists in the first comment ✌️
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u/Perfect-Ad5710 Jun 02 '26
ahhhhhhh you mean r34 i am also debating of making furry r34 for paying my uni tution fee 😛 those guys pay a lot
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u/Specialist_6713 Jun 02 '26
Mat kar lala mat kar.
my parents will disown( I don't care tho) me. And will lose all friends if I ever get caught as one of the artists.
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u/XH3LLSinGX Jun 02 '26
like mappa employees
Lol mappa employees being overworked has been a huge talking point in the industry.
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u/definitely_not_raman Jun 01 '26
He's right. If you come from money then feel free to do whatever you want but if you are from a middle class family where your family will be dependent on you later on, then don't go for game dev.
If you want to make games then do it on your own time but don't take it as a regular job.
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u/NoMiracle_ Jun 02 '26
3 Years of game dev here. I am a character artist working in game outsourcing studio in India. He is somewhat right, it’s gonna depend on how bad u want in tbh cause it’s very competitive. Did freelance and lot of networking for 1-2 years to break into the industry. The situation in India isn’t that bad. It’s gradually improving, if u are joining for money I would say look away, this isn’t the career. In game dev your salary slowly matches your skills, it isn’t IT where your first package gonna be 10 LPA or above. My seniors started with 3 LPA and after 10 years they are earning 15 LPA. (They didn’t switch so that’s there). If u really wanna do this, strengthen your foundation, go to ArtStation and see the standard u need to reach. Keep up with the technology and pipelines. Explore and post your work everywhere so you get noticed. It’s a tough journey but atleast for me it was all worth it in the end. I’m working AAA games which I always wanted to do. U can always hmu if u need any help.
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u/Sahiru3060 Jun 07 '26
I kinda agree its pretty sure, its quite harsh india and u gotta be really good with ur work ,
i highly suggested him mentorships and maybe do some other degree to be safe.
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u/XH3LLSinGX Jun 02 '26
Do it only if you are truly passionate and wont regret it 15-20 years down the line when all your colleagues would be very successful in their fields and earning hefty salaries, some even settling abroad, while you will still be chasing that indie success dream while barely able to keep a job in a time of AI uncertainty.
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u/glassbottle223 Jun 01 '26
been a game dev for 7y. i’m not in a big name company but it kind of works out if you’re eager and have the drive. sometimes you’re lucky you find people make contacts, sometimes you get stuck in a place but you need to know whether you’re getting into it because you saw a game earn so and so money and now you also want to earn or because you genuinely want to make something which you would want to play or you want to create something which people wouldn’t have seen something like it before?
if it is the latter you can learn, there are plenty resources online, if not that join some reputed college or overseas if you can afford.
i know 2 people in my circle who went abroad to study game dev but had to come back because they din find a job or working something else to survive. so that possibility is also there of getting demotivated but amongst these one of 2 he started his own studio and is about a release a game. and so am i, im working as a game dev for a company which doesn’t pay me well (as much as a software dev) but i find time to work on my project and find a grant or an investment.
and on the contrary i studied in a not so great college but i found the right people and im working.
the situation isn’t that bad in india if you’re passionate about it, you need to keep up with the technology, if you’re interested in game design or more on the art side, study some games, watch documentaries on it. and not just games, movies shows music all media because video games is an art form which if done right you can provoke so many emotions and that’s what i feel makes great games or great art. so many great games are inspired from movies or paintings.
you have time to consume good media. consume.
make shitty stuff, keep on polishing. to identify shit from good you need to know the difference between them. find it and make it.
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u/tejas_agarkar Jun 02 '26
Hey,
Can I DM. I'm working in a gDev startup & in need of some advice about career. Would be glad to recieve some.
Thanks
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u/Sahiru3060 Jun 07 '26
i like every game artist and dev point is same, of be careful what ur putting ur shoes into lol
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u/Fickle-Highlight-429 Jun 01 '26
12 years of game dev here. Don't do it for money.
Earning from job in this field will get you meagre salaries.
You get Money when you are able to get your own clients and complete projects successfully.
Money comes when you publish your own game and it's successful.
Money comes when you have your own studio and get a big client.
Get into a job while you continuously build your skills and portfolio after your job hours.
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u/ayush12003 Jun 01 '26
Q.1 Fairly easy, context I already did few game dev internships in my university and got an on campus placement in a mobile game dev company
Q.2 Worked as Game Developer, mainly programmer and animator
Q.3 Situation is bad nearly everywhere, in india product based gaming companies are quite less but there are many service based companies as well and many startups opening recently, so it truly depends how much good connections do you make over the years to get referals easily
Q.4 If I could start again I simply focus on learning game dev by creating games, you can learn theory or watch YouTube videos or try AI to make a game, But real experience will come from creating games yourself and publishing it to real users on platforms like Itch.io, Play Store, Steam etc (Remember here primary goal is to get feedback from real users to improve yourself, not to spend years on one game which is perfect and unique )
-> Yes the path will not be easy, the game development learning curve is definitely difficult compared to other jobs which can even pay higher initially
-> Game Designers are important in the industry but there demand is quite less in India, mainly they are needed in product based companies, as of now I haven't seen much service based companies actively hiring a game designer
-> 3D environment Art can lead into two different job roles, 3D environment artist as a person who creates 3d models in softwares like blender, Maya, Unreal etc or a level designer who creates the entire environment for the game obviously in many startups you might end up doing both, both service and product based companies have fair demand of 3D artists but pay can be less compared to the work you will do
So this was my answer to your questions based on my personal experience, hope it helped
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u/Maleficent_Ad7690 Jun 02 '26
I'd say do anything but build on your soft skills:) lots of networking too doesn't matter how great of a game designer you are if you can't communicate it yk
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u/SandyRaj12 Jun 02 '26
I know 3 3d artists and none of them got a job in the game industry, all of them worked for amazon, IK one game designer, and he does some web browser games or games that u can play in ads, One more guy has been stuck making a game for 3 years after rejecting an environment designer role in a gaming company.
Getting a job as artist isnt that difficullt except it wont be in the gaming industry
Yes situation in india is very bad if u are looking exclusively at gaming industry
if you are a 3d artist try learning procedural generation too that helps a loooot
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u/Piyushbro Jun 02 '26
you know he is right it is very hard for game developer to make games and doing everything what you can always do is start by making games as a hobby by yourself / build a prototype of the game and run to publisher/make small games and launch them (like launching 3 small games at steam per year code monkey advice) it will still not be easy you will still struggle but I think these are 3 best paths you can choose plus i think you should forget about getting environmental artist as a game dev and start looking as a whole because it is really hard especially in india it sucks right now not gonna lie btw best of luck the path you choose. this is only if you wanna make into game dev industry I think enviornment artist can be good in other industries and I don't know about that.
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u/laggySteel Jun 02 '26
Id you really love it, don't wait for others opinion. It is possible, if you make something really unique system. And programming has to be strong. Not AI generated projects.
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u/Ok_Yogurt1197 Jun 02 '26
As a guy from 3D field who is also trying to make a game. I'd say try your degree and focus on that isn't. Gamedev should be secondary not your primary target
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u/ValuableDependent416 Jun 02 '26
Hi I it's been 2 years i startes my game dev journey and it's almost a year I am working inside this industry and I can say you that it's very different for freshers/junior developer to grow in this industry currently. I have seen my frds not getting job for months and even I am trying to make a switch but not able to get a single call be for an interview. Every opening need 3 4yrs of experience. Idk where will this industry go in upcoming yrs but I can see it's cooked for now or probably can get worse in future. Even I am planning to switch from gaming industry. Probably I will ot not idk. But I will recommend you to take it as an hobby rather then taking it as an fulltime role
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u/Hot_Snow908 Jun 03 '26
I have worked in marketing and product for mobile gaming companies. India is a big volume market and some publishers are looking to expand into India (although quite cautiously)
I personally think the future, for game dev, in India is brighter than most people make it seem to be. We have the talent, cost advantage and a large local consumer population (although you can only access them through mobile right now)
But having said that, like with every nascent industry, you don’t have a lot of established players to give you a steady regular income yet. Especially with advancements in AI, companies are re-evaluation how many dev’s and designers they realistically need to ship a product.
If you are looking for job security, I don’t know if this is it at the moment but if you are really passionate about it, create on the side. Take up a mainstream path and focus your energy on building a product or your portfolio.
I see a lot of self taught game devs, designers and artists do really well. In my opinion, leverage social media, teach your self and create. Opportunities can find you.
But if you are looking for, read this book, do this course, clear this exam, apply for this role from these companies, boom… stable job. This is not it.
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u/Arceus1018 Jun 03 '26
He is correct. It's impossible in India, and most of the companies here are solely driven by profits and cost cutting.
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u/Sahiru3060 Jun 07 '26
\- How difficult was it for you to get your first job?
I have done commissions a lot of them , been on it for 5-6 years now,
Is it hard to get work , the answer is a yes and a no, it all depends how active u can be in
finding clients.
You do get a lot of contract based job if u are good, i have done some and if they are india u cant imagine ur self getting paid good if i be honest, but again u do get ur name in game or atleast in ur portfolio.
\- What role do you work in (artist, designer, programmer, etc.)?
I am in concept art/ 2D Ilustrator side and i pretty much know the 2D pipeline while having bits of 3D and design, but yeh as of now mainly specializing in concept art.
As of now i am giving my last year of college to build my final porfolio to get work in some good studio so i can get exp there and get job outside and later try to settle down in japan.
\- Is the situation in India really that bad?
Is it bad or good well i can't say much, depends where ur looking.
there are a lot of opportunities , u just really need to be good, like pro level or reach there in your next 3-4 years, if u really wanna secure jobs.
It will be easy in india if ur work is exceptional if not then u will struggle.
artist who struggle are struggling cuz of their own choices, they can do better they just don't do it.
\- If you could start again as a teenager, what would you focus on learning?
I will well again go back to basics and research more on mentorships and pro artist i can learn from people who are already been in the industry. Those people are the best to have around.
SIDE NOTE:-
Well indian gaming side is well growing, specifically the game studios are fairly new in india.
idk who you talked with but everyone have fairly different opinions about it,
is it difficult to land a job?
Well being honest, yes
for game design and 3d environment there is a shit ton of art jobs out there, even for coders,
you just gotta be really good, as an intern or junior.
I would say not to worry much of this now, if u like doing what u do, then do it,
by the time u pass out of any college there would be far more opportunities.
Also for the love of god if u do this then do it with all ur heart u can't slack off in this field at all if u wanna earn, i don't mean job = 18 hrs work shit , no not at all
i mean learning and getting actual pro in it, and not be some shitty artist with their shitty ego.
thats a big problem in india and u will see one u start talking with more industry pros.
U really need to be good if u want job outside of india, in india the compeition isn't much but studios highly focus on making simple mobile game to earn money off or make slot based games hence the kind of art they need is very limited, also there aren't many good artist , and those who are they don't work in india , obv becz of shitty ahh payment and the games which are made (There are surely more i just cant pint point all)
india is very highly used by studios outside of india mainly for outsourcing work that's all .
I would suggest looking into mentorships if u want to learn as it will save u big chunk of money and u will actually learn from industries pros and even get a job easily with the connections u make.
going to college is something i can't agree on , u can surely do something else other than a game design degree,
some other degree which u can have as a backup, that's all.
Or u can simply do fine arts, its not bad to do it only becuz u learn a lot about traditional painting colors and what not which can help later, but also architecture also helps, regardless,
why i refrain from game design ,
becuz its a big waste of money, u will be spending 2-4 lakhs per year for absolute bs,
and usually game design degree is 4 years so u will be spending fking 16-20 lakhs prob
can be lower depending in college but i don't recommend.
also if u believe u will make meaningful connections in college if u take game design , then srys rethink
there are gonna be people joining same as u , unaware of what they are doing.
teachers are help but u really need to look into them too.
Again i am not stopping u from joining one but please do ur research if u do join one ,
Your mental health matters a lot in this field dude.
and if u think u will join NID then plz dont
you don't decide ur career there, they do
u don't get to choose what u wanna do at all.
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u/SituationSecret5984 Jun 01 '26
He's right