An Interesting Look at the Video Game Industry

Bamafan77 writes "USATODAY has an interesting article in their Money section on the video game industry. The centerpiece of the story is an overview of DigiPen, the only accredited video game university, but it also describes aspects of the video game industry in general including the explosive growth of the industry (e.g. Barnes and Nobles would've reported a loss without their Gamestop subsidiary) and how many universities not only fail to prepare students for the game industry, but still don't take it seriously. However, I believe things are slightly better than the days when Trip Hawkins (EA's co-founder founder) Harvard professor told him to stop wasting time with games."

Game devels ...

[YahoKa]

... aren't made; they're born :)

Me too! Me too!

[radiumhahn]

I majored in tetris! I also have degrees in Donkey Kong Theory and Token Economics!

Re:Game devels ...

[Cruciform]

No wonder my mom resented me so much.
The keyboard and mouse I carried out of the womb musta hurt like hell.

Hmm

[Patik]

Trip Hawkins (EA's co-founder founder)

So he's the guy that found the guy that founded the company with another guy? Wow, what a guy!

I guess someone has to say it...

[ShadowBlasko]

"Computer games don't affect kids. I mean if Pac-Man affected us as kids, we'd all be running around in darkened rooms, munching magic pills and listening to repetitive electronic music."- Kristian Wilson, Nintendo Inc. 1989

Trip Hawkins

[SpaceRook]

However, I believe things are slightly better than the days when Trip Hawkins' (EA's co-founder founder) Harvard professor told him to stop wasting time with games."

Gamers [toastyfrog.com] have been begging Trip Hawkins to stop wasting time with games for years. I guess Hawkins' prof was just ahead of his time.

speak it, brother

[Anonymous Coward]

how many universities not only fail to prepare students for the game industry, but still don't take it seriously

Yeah, when I tried to explain to them the reason I was flunking out was because of playing Final Fantasy, they decided to suspend me anyway!

Co-founder founder?

[Michael Woodhams]

I'm confused. I know what a founder co-founder is (one of the parents of the founder), but what is a co-founder founder? The original from which the co-founder was cloned?

Re:Heh

[Anonvmous Coward]

"It's pretty well known video games cause violence among kids.."

It's also pretty well known that the Earth is flat, the moon landing was a hoax, and masterbation makes you blind. I agree that common sense should be divvied out, but I don't think you're channeling it in the right direction.

US of A Today

[reconn]

"Dad, I think this paper is a flimsy hodgepodge of pie graphs, factoids and Larry King.

Hey, this is the only paper in America that's not afraid to tell the truth, that everything is just fine."

Studing and Gameboy..

[McFly69]

Going to school and studing to be a game developer reminds me of the famous quote from Animal House.

"You can major in GameBoy if you know how to Bullshit".

Porn University?

[jwdeff]

With the porn industry with estimated $11 billion in annual sales (besting the video game industry by $1.6 billion), where's the Porn University?

I feel many universities not only fail to prepare students for the porn industry, but still don't take it seriously.

Re:Porn University?

[Aexia]

With the porn industry with estimated $11 billion in annual sales (besting the video game industry by $1.6 billion), where's the Porn University?

I believe they're called "Fraternities & Sororities."

Re:Game devels ...

[Jenova]

You mean "spawned"....

Re:Heh

[teamhasnoi]

Great. Now we're going to have a bunch of blind kids swinging at people until they fall off the edge of the earth and punch a hole through the curtain the moon is painted on.

Damn you Video Games! Damn you to hell!

Preparation for the Games 101

[orthogonal]

many universities... fail to prepare students for the game industry

1337 Warrior Freshman:
"Hey, Prof, is this class 'How to earn Gold Pieces in EverQuest by repetitively making bricks from river-bank mud until I can accumulate enough to go on an adventure, 101?'"

Prof:
"Sure is, and it'll also prepare you for the mind-numbing drudgery, alienation, and disaffection of real work, too! By the time you're done, you'll know how to eagerly but passively sacrifice your life and dignity for the worthless epheremal trinkets consumer capitalism will tell you you have to have! And you'll be able to do it the the real and in virtual worrlds simultaneously!"
"