Games making noob: What the hell am I doing here?

Ok, so I got a job in gamedev. As far as I know, it's a dream of a pretty vast percentage of gamers out there. Been kinda a dream of mine too, I have to admit. What's more... Me getting the job was a matter of luck more than reason. What's even more - I got to learn from people who really know what they are doing. Not some indie startup, but one of the biggest companies in my country.

Why am I writing all this? Did I just create this blog to rub it in the faces of those who dream of someday entering this industry? The ones that work hard to get their major in photoshopping or code producing? On the contrary.

When I came up with the idea to work in gamedev, I started researching, what the industry is really like. I found a crapload of articles on an average salary or the booming industry of gamemakers. I found brief opinions of testers that quit after a month on the job, I found some rare insights from people who actually work in the field, but these articles or interviews were mostly very politically correct: "yeah, we do crunch, but only when it is needed, and we make cool games, so in the end it is worth it". I found some coders forums where I couldn't understand a single word they were saying and a bunch of discussions between kids of various age, with "I have a game idea, I'll tell it to someone and they will make it" and "wow, I wanna play games and get paid for it too" being the dominant topics. And one cool site that actually explains this and that very briefly, but pretty accurately most of the time - Extra Credits.

Now that was some fruitful research! I went to the interviews in gaming companies, showing off my brilliant ideas of game designs. When asked, how I imagine the process, I was partly quoting Wikipedia, rambling about a good Design Doc being the answer to all the problems in the games world and it was pretty much the closest I ever got in my blind search for the right answers. On this occasion I would like to thank all these people who interviewed me and were professional enough not to laugh at me. Looking back, I am laughing my ass off. Literally. My ass is now a few meters away. Getting the actual job was a matter of sheer luck. It was actually such a ridiculous coincidence, that I won't even write how it happened to prevent anyone from hoping it will happen to them as well.

That is all why I am starting this blog. To share my experience. To document my struggle as a noob in game development. To provide some insight to those that need information. I will write about everything. About things that might be painfully obvious to some people, but they weren't to me. About my thoughts on topics I encounter - however outdated these might be. About the process of making games, even if it can be totally different in any other company. All of this is fresh for me and I strongly believe it is fresh for dozens of people out there, too.

Yes, I may be a noob and I may be underequipped for this, but there is only one way to find out how far I can get.

Let the story of my struggle begin...