Is it possible to get paid programming a game?

Question

Let's say that it's not a very large game, something online like Runescape or Naruto Arena. Would one be paid a lot of money?

Also what do (degree wise) to become a successful programmer?

One more thing - I'm 15 and all I know is how to make text based games in C++. Am I behind? Is it more important to start with text or graphics in order to become a programmer for applets(games played within the browser).

Answer 1

No, you're not behind. You've got to start somewhere, and learning to program games (good games, at least) is difficult enough without trying to learn graphics programming at the same time. If you're planning on doing applets, though, you might want to go ahead and start learning Java. C++ would be more useful if you're programming a client/server game.



And programmers can make a lot of money (look at John Carmack), but most will just make decent living. More than flipping burgers, though.

Answer 2

Obviously the answer is yes.



Runescape and other online games and offline games earn a lot f money from revenue.



Would you get a lot?



No.



Most of these games were created by a group of people. The money will be halved to all you people and the funder of the game production would get MORE than you.



Include the privacy rate of games which deducts from revenue :)



C++, though a very flexible program is not used that often in game programming industries. Most, including the company of my friend uses Delphi, Java, and other proprietary game engines to make life easier.



For degrees - Information Technology and Computer Science are good. Multimedia Arts is also an option.

Answer 3

Paid alot, yes! Go for a CS degree, and no your not behind I started at about your age and I did fine. Try learning the basics of a variety of languages (vb, java, etc) because many colleges use one particular language and if you have to learn it from scratch you may fall behind.I had a buddy in college who went to a different school where they used java, and when he transfered we used C++ which he knew very little about, so he had a rough first few weeks of the semester!



Good Luck!