You Too Can Be a Game Designer

Most commercial games require large teams of artists and programmers, but there are some things you can use to create simple games at home.

Learn Flash and Shockwave
Learning these two programs is probably the easiest entry point into the world of designing games.

Macromedia Flash
Develop Shockwave games using Macromedia Director MX
Download a free trial version of Macromedia Flash MX
W3Schools’ online Flash tutorial
Need some inspiration? Visit Shockwave.com, Flash Arcade, and ArcadeTown.

Find like-minded people
Make an effort to meet game designers and fellow aspiring game programmers.

The International Game Developers Association has local chapters throughout the United States.
Gamasutra is an online resource devoted to game development.

You don’t need to start from scratch
You can tinker with and mod existing game code to learn the inner workings of your favorite games and add a personal touch.

The Unreal Engine website
3D Game Studio is a great source for inexpensive game-creation and mod tools
gMax is a great modding tool made by Discreet
Find some free 3-D tools at WildTangent

Get pre-packaged 3-D art or characters
Visit 3D Cafe for free models, animation, textures, and tutorials.
Earn a college degree in game design
If you really want to get into creating games, some people are even going to college to major in game design. The Art Institute of California - San Francisco offers degrees in Game Art & Design and Visual & Game Programming.

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