Income for Game Programmers
Game programmers have a variety of ways that they can generate income through their profession. Programmers are a critical role for the production of any game, so they are often highly sought after by teams. Without programming, a game simply cannot exist. There are many different types of programmers and ways in which they can work, each with their own pros and cons.
Some programmers might work exclusively for a game development team, similar to how an employee might work exclusively for their company. They will contribute towards the creation of the game throughout its entire production. Depending on various factors, such as the size, popularity, or wealth of the team, these team programmers may be paid on a regular basis throughout the production of the game by their producer (who gets their money from a client or makes it up through sales). This is a good option for programmers because there is financial security and a steady income as long as they remain on the team, they will have work to do until the game is complete. This will unfortunately often be a hard position for programmers to obtain, since established teams will often have experienced and trusted programmers.
Alternatively, if the team is new or not yet wealthy (often in the case of an early indie team), they might only get paid upon completion by receiving a fraction of the game’s profit. This is a high risk option, since unless they have a second job, they will have no income at all, and the game might not even sell well. Even if the game would have sold well, sometimes something entirely out of control of the team may happen, which heavily handicaps the team. For example, people may find a way to pirate the game, resulting in lower or no profit, or a natural disaster such as a flood or fire may destroy an unprepared team’s progress.
If the game does turn out to be popular and sell well, this offers two benefits to the programmer. They could potentially earn more than what they otherwise would have if they were paid a specified amount on a regular basis, but they will also be more well known as being a programmer for a successful game, and be more appealing to other teams in the future.
Even if a programmer is not a part of a team, they can still choose to earn profit through sales and attempt to make an entire game on their own. This will require a lot more work from them and will often be higher risk, but if successful, they will earn the most profit.
A programmer might work for a variety of different teams, having no specific team which they are a part of. This programmer will often be a specialist and will be paid to program specific things for various teams. This kind of programmer will often need to seek out work and may not be very financially stable. The benefit of working like this is that it removes you from the risk of working with a team. If a team does badly or has an unfortunate outcome, you have both already been paid and do not suffer the consequences that the team might have to face due to the game’s outcome.
Game programmers have a variety of options to choose from when it comes to generating their income. Programmers such as myself might not be motivated by income, however generating income is a necessity and is required to survive. Anybody who wants to be a game programmer should give the way in which they will earn their money some serious thought.
Bibliography
99pi (2015). The Colour of Money (R) Episode 54 [Image]. Retrieved from http://99percentinvisible.org/episode/the-colour-of-money-r/