Kyle: Twenty-Something in Gaming

Did you always want to work in gaming?

Yes I honestly did. Ever since I gave up on my dreams of being an astronaut at the age of six, games have been my obsession. People often laugh when I say this but they really have helped to shape me and fuel my creativity. Games are the perfect amalgamation of every art form I love. Films, music, comics, art and science… why wouldn't you want to do that for a living?

Can anyone work in gaming?

Yes, especially now. There was a time 5-10 years ago where you had to have a degree etc, but now the tools to make games are readily available to everyone. You can get many industry standard engines (the basic software used to compose and compile a video game) for free. These are the same engines that the biggest multi-million dollar studios use. There are also a number of funds and grants available to young people make games, which has led to a huge boom of creativity in the games industry and rekindled the indie gaming scene. Long may it continue; I’d love for the next Minecraft to be made by a small team in Britain!

What do you love most about what you do?

You get to create worlds - living, breathing worlds. As a kid I was always lost in my imagination; every wall was a castle to be conquered, every cardboard box was a rocket ship. Games allow you to make those worlds and dreams tangible and enable you to share them with others. I think every creative person does what they do to connect with people. Games allow you to do that in such a vivid, visceral and beautiful way.

What did you enjoy most when you were at school?

Oddly, English Literature, I was dyslexic and had always struggled with reading. Then in year 9 I moved schools and had the most incredible teacher. He showed me that books are not scary, intimidating collections of words to struggle over. I realised they were much the same as games or films. I’ve loved words and writing ever since.

Did you go to Uni?

I did, I studied Animation. There weren’t that many games courses around a few years ago, now there are many incredible courses specialising in Games Design and Games Art. At the time animation seemed like the clearest route into the games industry, and it really helped me to communicate ideas in a coherent manner, as well as meeting some amazing people.

What was your first job in gaming and how did you get it?

My first job in gaming is the one I’m currently in! I’m a Producer at Flix Interactive. It’s a small Indie games studio outside Birmingham. Before that I was working in publishing as a Digital Producer and had originally met up with Flix to help them with some filming. After about two hours of talking to the Art Director about games and production he advised me to meet with the CEO as they were looking for a Producer themselves.

I met him a week later and essentially pitched myself to him. I knew I had a lot to learn and so I offered to work part time for three months and spend the rest of my time studying to fill any gaps in my knowledge. I showed him what I’d worked on and explained how I work as a Producer. I was in the running for the role alongside other more experienced people and I’ve always been hugely grateful that they took the gamble.

If you could give any advice to yourself when you were a teenager what would you say?

Relax, it gets easier…

What’s the most important thing you’ve learnt during your career so far?

The most important thing I’ve learnt is to trust your team implicitly. You can't be everywhere at once, so as long as you keep communicating with each other, everything else will fall into place. As a Producer my role is to support the team and the best way to do that is to trust them to do what they do best. Remove obstacles and enable them to be the best creative people they can.
My golden rule over all else is, ‘stay calm and stay humble’.

What are the three qualities someone who wants to work in gaming should have?

Passion, patience and persistence.

To work in gaming you have to be hugely passionate as it takes too much time and effort for you to approach it half-heartedly. You need patience as a lot of the time in games the answer doesn't exist yet. You have to be inquisitive and curious, and aware that finding the answer will take time and experimentation. From there, more often than not, you find a way. You need persistence as like most creative industries it takes a massive amount of effort to get that first break. I have had so many false starts, but I kept working at it. Hard work beats natural talent nine times out of 10.

Which websites/resources are musts for any person aspiring to get into gaming?

The key thing is to switch from consumer-focused sites to games industry sites. The ones that I use regularly are Gamasutra, MCV, Develop and Edge magazine. These are all about the art and business of games, and allow you to see the field from a slightly different perspective. The focus is not about whether a game is good or not, but why. That will help you to gain a deeper understanding of games and keep you up to date with the latest ideas and trends. Twitter is also a good resource, as you can often talk directly to developers and most will more than happily chat and offer advice. People in games always want to talk about games.