Jobs of the future: Creativity meets technical competence in game design

Some of Joshua’s father’s fondest childhood memories are playing video games at home in Sudbury with his grandmother.

Digital pastime has always been a part of his life growing up and when it came time to decide on a future career he had game design in his sights.

“I’ve always wanted to do game design from scratch,” said Vaters.

“Video games have always made me very happy, so I’ve always wanted to make games that make other people feel the same way.”

But when he was ready to attend college, the only program available was offered by a school in Toronto.

With a young daughter to care for, enrolling in a program four hours away and turning his family upside down so he could achieve his dream just wasn’t feasible, Vaters said. Instead he went to work.

Trained as a professional rubber lining and conveyor belt technician, Vaters has developed niche skills over the past decade that have found him in demand at mining sites and aggregate pits across the city.

But that all changed last summer when he received an email from Cambrian College announcing his brand new game design program.

He immediately saw it as a chance to recapture an opportunity that had eluded him so many years ago.

“I thought, ‘This is it; this is the time. I can’t live my life (thinking) ‘What if?’ So I have to try.'”

Vaters is now one of the first cohorts of the college’s game design program, which launched in September 2021.

During the four-semester course, students learn about the theory of game design, the development, application and production of games and the use of augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR).

Thirty-five students signed up for the first year, a strong response to a new course, said program coordinator Aaron Langille, a veteran computer programmer and lifelong video game lover.

Many students are drawn to the program simply because it’s fun, he noted.

But in an industry worth an estimated $4.3 billion in Canada in 2021, video game design is also drawing attention to the vast opportunities it offers.

“I don’t have to work hard to convince people of the game design idea,” Langille said.

“It’s something that’s starting to come naturally to people because not only has the size of the gaming industry changed so much, but so has the perception of gaming as a really valid thing.”

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Although many students dream of designing their own Minecraft or Call of Duty, the game design principles they learn in the program can easily be applied elsewhere, Langille said. This includes the non-digital predecessor of the video game: board games.

Gamification – the incorporation of game-like aspects into other applications – is a major trend in the corporate world right now, with many companies employing gaming tactics to make information or services more attractive to users.

“How do we reach people? How do we keep them interested? How do we tell interesting stories about things that might not be interesting in and of themselves?” said Langille.

“We try to give all these skills in the game design courses to say that you can also use them in these cases.”

An example might be a company’s incentive program that encourages employees to meet their productivity quotas, he noted. Another is education; When an organization turns learning new information into a game, it immediately becomes more exciting and engaging.

Academia, industry and other employers are also using VR and AR in their training modules to provide learners with a simulation of scenarios they may encounter at work.

For example, an ordinary high school student could don goggles and immerse themselves in a VR tour of an operating mine before ever setting foot underground.

All of this advanced technology requires someone to design, build and implement it.

“Games sit at the intersection of so many media types and so many creative endeavors and so many technical endeavors that it’s impossible to learn non-transferrable skills while learning game design,” Langille said.

“Well, I’d like to think that we’re opening a world of doors for our students. Even if they’re just thinking about game design, there are so many places they could go after they’re done.”

Sudbury is already home to a small, young community of designers working in the industry, and Langille predicts it will continue to grow in the years to come.

As punctuated by the COVID-19 pandemic, geographic location is no longer a barrier to work across many industries, including game design.

He believes it’s entirely feasible for designers in Sudbury or elsewhere in Northern Ontario to collaborate with colleagues in locations around the world.

“I think Northern Ontario is ready, and I think it’s going to be great to see students from all over the world come out to participate,” Langille said.

“There’s no reason we can’t also be a hub for people in Toronto to connect with us. We have ideas that are just as good as everyone else; no question. I see it in my students and I see it in the people I meet.”

Joshua Vaters has another year to go before he’s ready to break into the industry, but the journey so far has been eye-opening.

Despite being a video game lover, he hadn’t done much programming, and he said it was a welcome challenge to balance the creative and programming aspects of the job.

Last summer, he gained first-hand experience in both fields after landing a coveted job at NORCAT, working with the innovation center’s engineering team on various projects including designing a VR program to train new electricians in fire safety.

After graduation, he hopes to find work at a local company where he can further hone his skills in the industry that has fascinated him all his life.

When asked if making such a big change in his life was worth it, there is no hesitation.

“Oh, definitely,” said Vaters. “I’m so much happier and enjoying it to the fullest. It is very good.”