The extent of my gaming career was going to school for computer programming at Brown Institute while I was GMing part time in a MuD called Hercules & Xena: Alliance of Heroes. I failed to complete the necessary schooling partially because they brought in a teacher fresh from the field, which is a common occurrence but unfortunately, as smart as she was had zero teaching skills. So I just dropped out at that point. I still learned quite a bit before that happened, but eventually moved on to being a Blackjack Dealer, which turned out to be a job which paid about 3x more starting out. Yep, programmers don't get crap for starting salaries.
I had to look up Brown Institute. Seems like an interesting place of learning. I remember when I was at school CSUSB graduate here. We had this math teacher from Vietnam and nobody could understand him because his English was terrible. I almost didn't pass his class and graduate so I feel your pain about the teacher you reference. I also worked at a casino but I wasn't a dealer. I worked surveillance but I knew many dealers and they made decent money because they shared their tokes (Pala Casino).
Pragmatism. I work to live, not live to work. 60 hour work weeks hold no interest.
"I used to think the worst thing in life was to be all alone. It's not. The worst thing in life is to end up with people who make you feel all alone." Robin Williams
I want a carer that I'm passionate about, something that I would still love to do even if there was no money involved, and being a game developer is not something that I can see myself doing.
I found there's a lot more money to be made in the finance sector than games if you're a programmer.
Not everything is about money.
On the other hand, I don't see what anyone should become a game dev just because he/she enjoys games.
I enjoy movies too and I have zero desire to become a movie star, director, or script writer.
making games is a big deal for a gamer because it usually means you will never 'play' games again. Its a major transition from game consumer into a new plain.
Reason is after spending all day creating and testing a game one of the last things you will want to do is play a game.
Please do not respond to me, even if I ask you a question, its rhetorical.
I think you might be living in an ivory tower - in the eyes of many people, enthusiasm only accounts for about 1/6 of what it takes to succeed.
I think it's best to play safe and choose a career that plays to strengths you know you have (and you can easily demonstrate).
I realise that "you've got to have a dream to make a dream come true" but at the same time you have to be realistic.
1000x this. That whole "do what you like and follow your dreams" thing only ended up wasting 3+ years of my life, 10 if you want to get technical, and putting me with a "higher than usual" debt im still paying. Not that I blame anyone (minus a few people, partly). In the end it was my decision to get the loans to pay for an overpriced private college... but having no one to slap some reality on me before I signed my life away wouldve helped.
The saying "Do what you love and youll never work a day in your life" has a very different meaning than what most people think.
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..because we're gamers, damn it!! - William Massachusetts (Log Horizon)
Played: EQ, EQ2, Vanguard, WAR, WoW, LoTRO, CoX, CO, GW2, FFXIV: ARR, AoC, Rift, TSW, SWTOR, TERA, BnS, ESO
Reason is after spending all day creating and testing a game one of the last things you will want to do is play a game.
Please do not respond to me, even if I ask you a question, its rhetorical.
Please do not respond to me
The saying "Do what you love and youll never work a day in your life" has a very different meaning than what most people think.