To GDC, And Beyond!
It's been a couple weeks since I've returned from GDC, and I've finally caught up on post-event networking. As such, I wanted to write an update on all that has happened, and where I'm going from here.
Preparations
In a previous blog post, I tasked myself with finishing three objectives before my trip. The first was to create a schedule to make my time more efficient. It ended up looking like this, and I made sure it was flexible enough to accommodate for whatever may happen. I also sifted through the list of over 550 exhibitors that would be attending the conference, and narrowed it down to 50 booths that were most worth visiting.
My second objective was to write a blog post on empathy and ethics in the games industry. It's a topic I've been thinking about for over a year, and it seemed like a good way to get me more active on my blog. There's not much to say beyond what was written, so check it out here if you haven't read it.
As for the final objective, I wanted to create a small procedurally generated game for my portfolio. I worked on it for two weeks, and made an impressive amount of progress. However, I wanted to make sure the quality of the project best reflected my abilities, and ultimately decided to delay adding it to my website. But with that being said, it was playable on my laptop and I could show it to anyone interested in what I've been working on.
With all three objectives mostly complete, it was time for me to set off!
Monday
Before even leaving the east coast, I was introduced to my greatest challenge on this trip: Transportation. I don't travel much, and when I do it's with other people or completely planned out in advance. There is a bit of a learning curve to air travel and public transportation, and I learned that the hard way. If I were to do it all again, I would have spent another couple weeks planning to better prepare myself for this one aspect of the trip. I'll refrain from listing every detail of these woes, but it was a persistent headache throughout the week.
Upon finally arriving in San Francisco, I checked into my AirBnB and hopped a bus to the conference center. There wasn't much going on at the Moscone that day, so I picked up my badge and walked to the Unity Keynote. Unity is the game engine I've built most of my projects in, so I was interested in seeing firsthand what new tools they had coming in 2019.
While standing in line, I decided to try my hand at networking. I started up a conversation with a couple people while we waited, and it was refreshing to chat with fellow game devs from various walks of life. We were eventually let in, and it was a bit surreal to see one of these types of presentations in person. (Fun note: You can actually see me walking in at the beginning of the livestream)
I was originally going to sit in a middle row, but one of the guys I was speaking with pointed out some seats pretty close to the stage. It was a bit of a morale boost to realize that I'm just as deserving of sitting up close as anyone else there, especially as my first experience on the more professional side of things. And the presentation itself was definitely impressive, even if there wasn't much that pertained to my particular areas of expertise.
At the end of the keynote, they announced that there would be free drinks and hors d'oeuvres, as well as an opportunity to mingle with other attendees. I deal with social anxiety, so these types of events generally require a bit more effort on my part. I ordered a drink to calm the nerves, and the snacks certainly helped as well (Side note: they had tiny fancy chicken and waffles... What even?!). I searched for an opportunity to join one of the various conversations around the room, and eventually decided to just introduce myself to a table. One fellow there mentioned that he taught game design to high school students, and I immediately felt at ease knowing that we had some things in common to chat about.
After a while, they announced that the place was about to close, so we all headed our own separate ways. For me, it was off to the Pixonic & Pocket Gamer Party. I went there expecting something similar to what I just experienced, but was surprised to find something more akin to a nightclub. Apparently these events are just as varied as the people attending them, and it turns out that game devs must really know how to party. It was certainly interesting, but I don't see how people expect to network with music thumping louder than you can think. Maybe that just wasn't what this particular party was about. I did manage to meet a few new faces, some of which were great to talk to. But after an hour, I decided to call it a night.
Tuesday
There wasn't much going on Tuesday, so much of the day was spent taking care of odds and ends. During this time, I noticed that I made an error on my schedule, and listed a party that I was not able to go to. Fortunately, I remembered someone mentioning the GitHub Party. Their website mentioned that they'd have tables and outlets for people to show off their work, and I figured this would be a great opportunity to bring my game along with me.
This was probably the best party at GDC. There was much to do and play around with, and I'd love to attend again if I get the chance. I arrived early, and found a nice place to set up my laptop. It was my first time showing the game off to anyone, but I was pleased by the positive response to it. And where I had struggled with traditional networking the previous day, I now had something to assist me with that. My game's cute and simple art caught peoples' attention, they'd come over and ask to play it, and we then had something to talk about. Not only did this act as a great source of feedback for my project from others in the industry, but also a chance to meet some really awesome people that I'd love to collaborate with someday.
As the party came to a close, I made my way back to the AirBnB in high spirits. It was a late night, but I needed to get as much rest as possible for the following day. That's when the event would REALLY start.
Wednesday
The Expo opened Wednesday morning, and it truly was a sight to behold. Underneath the Moscone buildings, there was about two blocks worth of space dedicated to exhibitors. I had thought there were a lot of attendees out on the streets the previous two days, but that was nothing compared to how many people were present in the Expo. And the sheer amount of innovative technology crammed into that space was incredibly impressive.
My primary objective for Wednesday was to speak with most of the companies on my list of teams I'd be interested in working with. I pulled out a map of the event, circled the companies I wanted to visit most, and headed off in search of them. This map actually helped a lot, as I was able to cross off booths as I visited them, and it provided me a general path to follow.
I hadn't had time to be nervous up to this point. I was too busy preparing the entire month before GDC to feel anything. But once I arrived at the first booth, it hit me like a wave out of nowhere. I was nervous as hell, and had to pace laps around the area a couple times as I worked to overcome my anxiety. I sat down for a moment, took a deep breath, focused on what I wanted to say, and made sure I had everything I needed. Then I walked up, introduced myself, and had an awesome conversation with one of the guys at the booth. This interaction filled me with hope and determination, and completely eliminated those types of worries for the rest of the week.
There were certainly booths that were less successful. A few companies didn't have entry level positions, or their internships were only for current students. Some required skills that I have yet to learn. And there were others still that simply weren't a good match. But I expected things like this to happen, and didn't let it get me down. I was confident that something good would come from all of this, and was fine with taking the ups with the downs. It was like a roller coaster, and I was just happy to be along for the ride.
One of the more useful stops on the Expo floor was the job board. It was this fantastic whiteboard covered top to bottom with job listings and business cards of people looking for work. I snapped several pictures of companies to research, and made sure to pin my business card on there just in case.
After the Expo came to a close for the day, I had one more event that I wanted to see. On the GDC Main Stage, the conference was holding its annual Independent Games Festival Awards and Game Developers Choice Awards. These were a complete joy to attend. So many passionate and talented people in the industry were being recognized for their incredible work, and being there with them was a truly inspiring moment for me.
Thursday
The next day started rough. I discovered something that upset and infuriated me, and I needed to hang out at the AirBnB for a couple extra hours to process it. In an effort to remain professional, I'm not even going to waste my time talking about it. But what I will say is that I used it to fuel my determination, and leveraged it in my favor when networking throughout the week.
Once I finally made it back to the Expo, it didn't take long to visit the last few booths on my list. I actually overestimated the amount of time I'd have to wait in lines throughout the week, so I ended up having quite a bit more time than expected. I eventually decided to take a seat and have a snack as I figured out what I wanted to do next.
Not long after, another person took a seat at the same table and we started chatting for a bit. He was a Senior Software Engineer at Havok (owned by Microsoft), and asked if my career search had lead me to the Microsoft booth. When I told him that I had trouble finding their recruiter, he actually offered to help. After quite a bit of walking and searching, we eventually found someone who directed us upstairs. This awesome and kind gesture lead to one of the more promising opportunities at the conference, and I couldn't be more appreciative of his help.
After that, I decided to explore a bit. I wanted to let myself stumble across new and exciting things, and see if they might lead anywhere. I spoke with people about the projects they were passionately working on, and how they related to my interests and experience. This felt far more fluid than the by-the-books networking of the previous day.
During this time, I tried out some VR experiences for the first time since Nintendo's failed Virtual Boy. I had been fairly skeptical of VR games up until this point, but figured this would be a great opportunity to see what value they bring to the industry. Despite some hardware issues, the experiences themselves were pretty great. While I think the tech still has quite a ways to go, the creative potential is definitely high.
I also stopped by Alt.Ctrl.GDC, fantastic wordplay for a section of the Expo devoted to games with alternative control schemes. Couches, guitars, robots, cuckoo clocks, dishes, and even plungers were all used to create some of the most imaginative games I've ever seen. One setup tasked people with playing an NES game, but every player only had one button from the controller and had to work together. Another tied two players to chairs as they try to solve puzzles, reminiscent of something you'd see in Indiana Jones. One of my personal favorites was a game that simulated shoveling coal to make a train go faster. While not in English, this video does a great job showcasing these great experiences.
Friday
I dedicated the final day of the event to the career seminar. While I personally feel these talks would have been more useful at the beginning of the week, I believe it was held on Friday so that attendees with the Student Pass could attend. There's not too much to mention about the talks themselves, but they did offer some useful insights into the industry. I also discovered one last recruiter in an area of the Moscone I hadn't been to yet. They didn't have any opportunities that I could take advantage of, but she did offer advice on how to improve my resume.
To finish off my GDC experience, I decided to eat at this awesome shawarma place across the street. I bumped into someone I met on the first day, as well as some other game devs, and we all just chatted for a bit. It was a huge relief to finally make it to this point, and nice to just sit down and eat a decent meal without worrying about time constraints.
The Games Are Only Beginning!
Since my return, I've reached out to most of the people I met at the event, and connected with them on social media. There have been so many awesome people that I've met through this event, and I want to keep in touch with them. I also applied to several positions that I think would be an awesome fit for me, and some have even responded that they're interested in moving forward in the recruitment process! All in all, this was a life changing experience, and I couldn't be more appreciative to the folks at GDC for selecting me as a recipient of a free Expo Plus Pass.
With this massive blog post finally out of the way, this next week is going to be devoted to taking skills tests and following up with interested employers. Beyond that, I've also decided upon getting my procedurally generated game to a point where I'd be happy to sell it. I want to get it to a polished state so that I can ship it and build up my portfolio. I also plan on writing blogs when I have the time, and working on a few other projects I've got going on.
I'll continue to update this blog as I take on this journey, and ultimately find my place in this industry!
