Knowledge and Skills

You must be able to inspire artists, programmers, producers and marketing staff to make the highest quality product possible. Be able to make tough decisions that affect the game's schedule and budget as well as the look and feel of the final product. Have a good understanding of the bigger picture of game development, including the impact of their decisions with respect to financial outcomes. Understand what makes a game appealing to different audiences. Possess excellent imagination, creativity and problem-solving skills. Have excellent communication and presentation skills. Have a good understanding of the financial and managerial aspects of game development. Have knowledge of the requirements of the relevant health and safety legislation

CREATIVE DIRECTOR - COMPUTER GAMES

Career RolesThe Creative Director is the key person during the game development process, overseeing any high-level decisions that affect how the game plays, looks or sounds. Not all game companies employ Creative Directors. Some companies prefer to continue to split the duties between a game's Lead artist, Lead Programmers, Designers and Producers. Where the position is used, each game development team has its own Creative Director. Some highly experienced and talented Creative Directors oversee multiple projects. They are responsible for the overall look and feel of a computer game. The position is a relatively new one within the games industry. It has evolved out of the producer's role, which has shifted towards managing the process of completing a game on time and on budget.

Training and QualificationsYou donʼt need a formal qualification to be a Creative Director. However, to be successful in the role, you will require a combination of experience, artistic vision and the ability to inspire others. You will need to have experience at a senior level of game development and an enthusiasm for and detailed knowledge of the games industry. Most Creative Directors are graduates, with common areas of study including visual and technical arts.

Example of ContributionFor example, Neil Druckmann has been in the industry of creating big AAA games since 2004 with Naughty dog, his first game he helped create was Crash Bandicoot, The previous game he was the Creative director role, for the game “The Last Of Us” Before entering the video games industry, Druckmann was majoring in criminology. It was while attempting a course in programming that he realized “people make games”, thus inspiring him to find a job based in game design. Deciding to switch majors, he then enrolled for the Entertainment Technology masters in Carnegie Mellon University and sought an internship at video game development studio Naughty Dog. Following the success of the the game Drakeʼs fortune he had also programmed for them, Neil was then given the role of co-lead game designer for the game Uncharted 2, along side Amy Hennig. Once this game was made in 2010 they began to make the video game “The Last Of Us” which role he was given was the creative director. This shows that it takes along time to get to be a creative director with a lot of skill and knowledge needed.