Table Of ContentT H E L E A D I N G G A M E I N D U S T R Y M A G A Z I N E V O L 1 8 N O 4
A P R I L 2 0 1 1 I N S I D E : 1 0 T H A N N U A L S A L A R Y S U R V E Y
“In Firefall, we are creating a futuristic and fantastical world, but believability remains a
priority. If you cut corners when it comes to animation, you are betraying the vision of your
game. Morpheme lets us meet our high standards of quality while maintaining a very
efficient pipeline.”
Mark Kern, Founder and CEO of Red 5 Studios
www.naturalmotion.com
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dEPaRTmENTS
2 GAME PLAN By Brandon Sheffield [EDITORIAL]
Living Luminaries
4 HEADS UP DISPLAY [NEwS]
G.A.N.G. Award winners, Vietnam curfews online games, and
IGF, Choice Award winners.
29 TOOL BOX By Tom Curtis [REVIEw]
Report From The Show Floor: GDC 2011
32 THE INNER PRODUcT [PROGRAMMING] PoSTmoRTE m
By Michael A. Carr, Noel Llopis, Anonymous Programmers
Programming Sins 14 SUPER MEAT BOY
Super Meat Boy represents the work of two persons (plus a musician),
36 PIXEL PUSHER By Steve Theodore [ART] which went on to sell some 400,000 units on XBLA and PC worldwide.
The High Art of Games Fighting through illness and fatigue, this is a story of success from a
team that urges you to "have fun" making your game.
38 DESIGN Of THE TIMES By Damion Schubert [DESIGN] By Edmund McMillen and Tommy Refenes
A Player's Stories
FEaTURES
41 AURAL fIXATION By Jesse Harlin [SOUND]
Indie Audio Jonesing 7 10TH ANNUAL SALARY SURVEY
Our popular survey is back, now in its 10th year of sharing the
42 THE BUSINESS By David Edery [BUSINESS] average salaries of game developers worldwide across all disciplines
Team Players (though focusing on North America). Indies, for the second time, are
also reported herein.
43 GOOD jOB! By Brandon Sheffield [cAREER] By Ryan Newman and Brandon Sheffield
Tom Russo Q&A, Who Went Where, and New Studios
45 EDUcATED PLAY By Jeffrey Fleming [EDUcATION] 21 cREATOR Of wORLDS
One Man Down's Solace Minecraft-like procedural terrain generation is an interesting subject,
but where to start? Joshua Tippetts poses that through combining
48 ARRESTED DEVELOPMENT By Matthew Wasteland [HUMOR] various functions, you can create a tweakable procedural world.
How To Annoy Your Producers! By Joshua Tippetts
www.gdmag.com 1
GAME PLAN // BRANDON SHEFFIELD GAME DEVELOPER
MAGAZINE
WWW.GDMAG.COM
LIVING LUMINARIES
United Business Media
303 Second Street, Suite 900, South Tower
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WHY DO WE HOLD UP SOME VETERAN GAME DEVELOPERS ABOVE OTHERS? t: 415.947.6000 f: 415.947.6090
SUBSCRIPTION SERVICES
FOR INFORMATION, ORDER QUESTIONS, AND
AT THIS YEAR’S GDC—THE 25th— make us feel like the pioneers we technology and design innovation
ADDRESS CHANGES
there were 11 postmortems of admire. Coming upon some area in their respective eras. But I think t: 800.250.2429 f: 847.763.9606
vintage games from important you didn’t know existed feels like what really fascinates us is that e: [email protected]
creators, all of them incredibly you’re discovering the lost city these creators managed to make
FOR DIGITAL SUBSCRIPTION INFORMATION
inspiring. This prompted me to of Atlantis—if only for a moment. these innovative games largely www.gdmag.com/digital
think—why do we hold these folks Forging those worlds has a similar by themselves. The tools, designs,
EDITORIAL
in such high regard? They deserve feel, but most of us can’t do that and art techniques they needed
PUBLISHER
to be looked upon with respect, alone. We need a MINECRAFT to give didn’t exist, so they willed them Simon Carless l [email protected]
there’s no doubt in my mind. But us the tools, or else we need a into existence. These are persons EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
when you break it down, Toru team of artists behind us to create of vision, with the ability to back Brandon Sheffield l [email protected]
Iwatani created PAC-MAN, and that’s the assets that bring our code to that vision up with hard work and PRODUCTION EDITOR
Jeffrey Fleming l [email protected]
pretty much it. Other luminaries visual life. Or as artists, you need provable results. And who wouldn’t
ART DIRECTOR
like Jordan Mechner (PRINCE OF coders and designers to help craft respect that? Joseph Mitch l [email protected]
PERSIA) and ERIC CHAHI (ANOTHER that universe. The do-it-yourselfer will always PRODUCTION INTERN
WORLD) continue to work on games, We have become extremely be someone to learn from, no matter Tom Curtis
CONTRIBUTING EDITORS
but have few titles to their credit. compartmentalized in our work, what his or her era of prominence. Jesse Harlin
Why do we revere certain which is to the benefit of the large- But when they can continue those Steve Theodore
people in the game industry? Is it scale games we create. Having ideas through to the future, and their Kim Pallister
Dave Cowling
because of the high quality of the a dedicated writer has proved to original pioneering ideas are still Soren Johnson
games they created? Is it because be very successful for certain applicable, you see that they’re not Damion Schubert
of how influential they were? Do teams. Dedicated network coders just one-hit wonders. Sure, there are ADVISORY BOARD
Hal Barwood Designer-at-Large
we color those past experiences are hard to find, but an absolute those in the industry who happened Mick West Independent
with our memories? All of these necessity for most persistently to hit on something at the right time, Brad Bulkley Neversoft
Clinton Keith Independent
are factors—but I think overall, our online games. But sometimes and made an impact in their day, Brenda Brathwaite Lolapps
reverence for these people has to that compartmentalization can but cease to retain relevance. I think Bijan Forutanpour Sony Online Entertainment
Mark DeLoura THQ
do with a pioneering spirit. diminish the feeling of creation those are fewer and further between Carey Chico Independent
and exploration. than those who do something great
WILD, WILD WEST So we do hold up these because that’s what’s in them, and ADVERTISING SALES
» I think most of us in the luminaries for their pioneering spirit, whether they move on to education GLOBAL SALES DIRECTOR
Aaron Murawski e: [email protected]
game industry have some sort but also for the fact they did nearly as Iwatani has, or continue to t: 415.947.6227
of predisposition to thoughts of everything themselves, before tools pioneer fluid gameplay like Chahi MEDIA ACCOUNT MANAGER
fantasy. To imagine, fantasize, and to do so were even invented. with his new game FROM DUST, their John Malik Watson e: [email protected]
t: 415.947.6224
dream is human. But as working ideas remain strikingly relevant.
GLOBAL ACCOUNT MANAGER, RECRUITMENT
game developers, we actually make THE WILL TO CREATE This is what I’ve taken away from Gina Gross e: [email protected]
these visions come to life in ways » Iwatani’s PAC-MAN was an the vintage postmortems at GDC. t: 415.947.6241
that most people can only, well, early effort in fooling players into What these fellows did back then GLOBAL ACCOUNT MANAGER, EDUCATION
Rafael Vallin e: [email protected]
dream about. So to us, that fantasy believing games had complex AI, was amazing—but what they think t: 415.947.6223
is closer at hand. while also proving the power of and do now is just as interesting.
ADVERTISING PRODUCTION
We idolize cowboys, samurai, distinctive character combined Every time I’ve spoken to Eric Chahi
PRODUCTION MANAGER
explorers, inventors, and astronauts with tight control. Jordan Mechner about modern game design, he’s Pete C. Scibilia e: [email protected]
because they fulfill that need for knew he wouldn’t be able to create revealed to me something I wouldn’t t: 516-562-5134
adventure and exploration we all perfect animation with the tools have thought of, even in genres he’s
REPRINTS
feel. I don’t know about everyone he had at his disposal at the time, never worked on.
WRIGHT'S MEDIA
else, but part of why I work on so he filmed his brother running We can aspire to greatness Ryan Pratt e: [email protected]
games, and help to create worlds, and jumping, then shrank the ourselves, and this is part of t: 877.652.5295
is because of an urge to explore. I data and made pixel versions that current the indie fervor, I believe. If AUDIENCE DEVELOPMENT
want to make my mark, and be the have an incredible fluidity to them. we apply what we know and try to TYSON ASSOCIATES Elaine Tyson
first one to step onto that alien soil Eric Chahi pushed polygons on make something different on our e: [email protected]
and discover its secrets. Because early computers in an early stage, own—something that comes from LIST RENTAL Merit Direct LLC
after all, no matter how carefully we and where assembly failed him, within—we could be presenting t: 914.368.1000
craft our games, there are always constructed code language of his our own vintage postmortems
secrets, little twists of the world own, to create a one of the most at the 50th GDC. Would anyone
that we never anticipated. cinematic games of the era. be surprised to see MINECRAFT’s
MMOs, open-world games, and Of course, it helps that all these Markus Persson there?
sandboxes like LOVE and MINECRAFT games were excellent examples —Brandon Sheffield
are fantasy generators. They of what could be done with twitter: @necrosofty
WWW.UBM.COM
2 GAME DEVELOPER | APRIL 2011
Our programs and initiatives are helping Ontario’s interactive digital media companies create a thriving industry,
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HeadS-Up diSplaY
ninth annual g.a.n.g. award winners announced
Game Developer’s Jesse Harlin wins “Best Article”
\\\ The winners of the ninth annual Game Audio Network Guild awards have been announced, with Rockstar Games' Red dead Redemption and DICE's
Battlefield: Bad Company 2 taking home multiple awards. The awards, held at the recent GDC 2011, represent "the best audio in video games from 2010."
The final winners were chosen by a 70-person advisory committee, made up of members of the non-profit GANG organization.
Red dead Redemption was the big winner of the event, bagging the Audio of the Year, Music of the Year, Best Interactive Score, and Best Dialogue
awards. Battlefield: Bad Company 2 won two awards, while LucasArts' monkey island 2 speCial edition: leChuCk's Revenge, Blizzard's staRCRaft ii: Wings of
liBeRty and 2K Games' BioshoCk 2 took one award each.
Game Developer Magazine also won an award for Best Game Audio Article, Publication, or Broadcast for Jesse Harlin's "The Weight of Silence - How
Silence Can Indicate a Character's Importance," published in our December 2010 issue.
GANG president Paul Lipson said "The quality bar from 2010 was so high across the board, it was impossible to predict specific wins. With over 350
submissions this year, just making it to the final nomination process is something all the teams and publishers can be proud of.” – Mike Rose
Audio of the Year Sound design of the Year Best original Best original vocal - Best use of multi-
Red deAd Redemption BAttlefield: BAd instrumental: Choral Channel Surround in a
¬ Rockstar Games CompAnY 2 "AtHenS HARBouR "invinCiBle" – WoRld of game
¬ Composers: Bill Elm & ¬ Electronic Arts/DICE CHASe" – JAmeS Bond WARCRAft: CAtAClYSm BAttlefield: BAd
Woody Jackson; Lead ¬ Stefan Strandberg, Ben 007: Blood Stone ¬ Blizzard Entertainment CompAnY 2
Audio Designer: Jeffrey R. Minto, David Mollerstedt, ¬ Activision ¬ Music by Russell Brower, ¬ Electronic Arts/DICE
Whitcher; Audio Designers: Thomas Danke, Mari ¬ Richard Jacques Jason Hayes; Lyrics by ¬ Stefan Strandberg, Ben
Steven von Kampen, Saastamoinen, Olof Derek Duke, Neal Acree Minto, David Mollerstedt,
Christian Kjeldsen, Corey Stromqvist Best Cinematic/Cutscene Thomas Danke, Mari
Ross; Audio Programmers: Audio Best dialogue Saastamoinen, Olof
Corey Shay, Robert Katz Best interactive Score StARCRAft ii: WingS Red deAd Redemption Stromqvist
Red deAd Redemption of liBeRtY ¬ Rockstar Games
music of the Year ¬ Rockstar Games ¬ Blizzard Entertainment ¬ Lead Audio: Matthew g.A.n.g. Recognition
Red deAd Redemption ¬ Bill Elm, Woody Jackson ¬ Russell Brower, Paul Smith; Additional Dialogue Award
¬ Rockstar Games Menichini, David Farmer Editing: Will Morton, Allan ¬ Sumthing Else
¬ Bill Elm, Woody Jackson Best Handheld Audio Walker, Jon McCavish; Musicworks
monkeY iSlAnd 2 Best use of licensed Audio Designer: George
Best Audio other: SpeCiAl edition: music Williamson; Dialogue g.A.n.g. distinguished
HAlo: WAYpoint "tHe leCHuCk'S Revenge BioSHoCk 2 Assistant: Lindsay Service Award
RetuRn" ¬ LucasArts ¬ 2K Games/2K Marin Robertson ¬ Dren McDonald, Jacquie
¬ 343 Industries/Microsoft ¬ Tom Bible, Jesse Harlin, ¬ Michael Kamper, Audio Shriver
Game Studios Wilbert Roget II, Jeff Ball, Lead and the 2K Marin Best game Audio Article,
¬ Kristofor Mellroth, Senior Dan Reynolds, Andrew Audio Team publication or Broadcast Rookie of the Year Award
Audio Director, Microsoft Aversa "tHe WeigHt of SilenCe ¬ Woody Jackson, Bill Elm
Game Studios; Paul Lipson, Best original vocal - pop - HoW SilenCe CAn
Audio Director, Pyramind Best Soundtrack Album "i'll tAke it All" - James indiCAte A CHARACteR'S lifetime Achievement
Studios; Peter Steinbach, video gAmeS live - Bond 007: Blood stone impoRtAnCe" – Game Award
Steve Heithecker, David level 2 ¬ Activision Developer mAgAzine ¬ Chris Huelsbeck
Earl, Michael Roache ¬ Tommy Tallarico, Jack Wall ¬ Dave Stewart ¬ Jesse Harlin
vietnamese government puts curfew on online gaming
\\\ As of March 3, gamers in Vietnam people and online games. maintenance of online games more
might be getting a bit more sleep. The government group will be difficult for the region's operators.
A government ministry has asked monitoring online game activities The report pegs Vietnam's number
internet service providers to block during the prohibited hours and could of internet users at about 23 million,
access to all online games between the cancel services that allow people or 23 percent of the total population.
hours of 10 PM and 8 AM. to play, according to the ministry's Southeast Asia in general is a hotbed
According to a report in Viet Nam Deputy Minister, Le Nam Thang. for MMO growth; Pearl Research has
News, the Ministry of Information and Service providers argue that the projected that the Vietnamese and
Communication is concerned about the access block is unfair to their customers Indian online gaming populations
impact of online activity on the nation, who've paid for access to entertainment, together will reach 25 million by 2014.
particularly when it comes to young and also have argued that it makes the – Leigh Alexander
4 game developer | april 2011
igf, game developers choice
award winners announced
\\\ At the Independent Games Festival Awards and the Game Developers
Choice Awards at this year's GDC, Mojang's indie-hit MINECRAFT earned the
IGF's Seumas McNally Grand Prize, while Rockstar San Diego's RED DEAD
REDEMPTION took home the Choice award for Game of the Year.
At the IGF ceremony, MINECRAFT and Frictional Games' horror title AMNESIA:
THE DARK DESCENT collectively took home five of the event's ten awards, with
MINECRAFT winning the Audience award in addition the Grand Prize, while
AMNESIA won for Technical Excellence, Excellence in Audio, and was granted the
Direct2Drive Vision Award.
Rockstar Games' RED DEAD REDEMPTION was the biggest winner at the
Game Developers Choice Awards, taking home three additional awards for
Best Audio, Best Game Design, and Best Technology.
MINECRAFT took home awards in three categories: Best Debut Game,
Best Downloadable Game, and the Innovation Award, in addition to its
awards at the IGF.
GAME DEVELOPERS CHOICE
IGF WINNERS AWARD WINNERS
Best Student Game Best Audio
FRACT RED DEAD REDEMPTION
RICHARD E FLANAGAN ROCKSTAR GAMES
Excellence in Design Best Debut Game
DESKTOP DUNGEONS MINECRAFT
CF DESIGN MOJANG
Technical Excellence Best Writing:
AMNESIA: THE DARK DESCENT MASS EFFECT 2
FRICTIONAL GAMES BIOWARE
Best Mobile Game Best Game Design
HELSING'S FIRE RED DEAD REDEMPTION
RATLOOP ROCKSTAR GAMES
Excellence in Visual Art Best Downloadable Game
BIT.TRIP RUNNER MINECRAFT
GAIJIN GAMES MOJANG
Excellence in Audio Best Visual Art
AMNESIA: THE DARK DESCENT LIMBO
FRICTIONAL GAMES PLAYDEAD STUDIOS
Direct2Drive Vision Award Best Technology
AMNESIA: THE DARK DESCENT RED DEAD REDEMPTION
FRICTIONAL GAMES ROCKSTAR GAMES
Audience Award Best Handheld Game
MINECRAFT CUT THE ROPE
MOJANG CHILLINGO
IGF Nuovo Award Innovation Award
NIDHOGG MINECRAFT
MESSHOF MOJANG
Seumas McNally Grand Prize Game of the Year
MINECRAFT RED DEAD REDEMPTION
MOJANG ROCKSTAR GAMES
WWW.GDMAG.COM 5
ADVERTISEMENT
BY Mark Rein
Epic Games, Inc.
STAN LEE UE3 delivered the fl exibility the team was looking for. made the c hanges, passed them through Unreal, and
composited the fi nal animation in time for the fi nal
“We wrote several pieces of code to help generate custom
AND HOUSE OF
piece. According to Krygowski, without Unreal this
shaders and to be able to bring virtual cameras into and
wouldn’t have been an option.
MOVES PICK UE3 out of the Unreal Engine for the purposes of this project,”
said Alberto Menache, HOM’s visual eff ects supervisor and Krygowski says he expects more Hollywood productions
Entertainment legend Stan Lee and Vicon House of pipeline developer. “As a result, we had incredible creative to build Unreal into their pipelines, since it allows for
Moves (HOM) recently enlisted Unreal Engine 3 (UE3) fl exibility, and could render out 8,000 frames in a matter collapsed production time when necessary, while still
to create Lee’s new franchise, The Guardian Project. In a of seconds–not to mention the savings in gear costs allowing for robust iteration. Plus, with Unreal the assets
special collaboration with the National Hockey League without the need for a multi-CPU render farm.” are more easily shared between diff erent mediums, from
(NHL), Lee and HOM crafted the world of the Guardians, games to broadcast.
CG assets for the short fi lm were built using Autodesk
30 new hockey-based superheroes that made their
Maya and Pixologic ZBrush, with Autodesk’s According to Brian Rausch, HOM’s vice president of
debut at the 58th Annual NHL All-Star Game. The
MotionBuilder brought in to retarget animation and production, “you have to think down the road of the
Guardians’ fi rst appearance came in the form of a short
navigate environments during motion capture sessions. possibility of extrapolating characters and environments
fi lm that kicked off a media blitz that is slated to include
into game assets, or a television series, making sure
an online video game, a computer-animated TV show HOM captured stunts and poses for each of the 30 Guardian
you can easily fl ow the CG creative elements between
and a slew of merchandising. superheroes at their 26,000 square feet of motion-capture
mediums. By building scenes in a game engine from the
stages, outfi tted with more than 200 Vicon T160 cameras
HOM headed up development of the Guardians, relying start, our options are just much broader.”
over nine days of mo-cap shooting. The project was
heavily on performance-capture technology to create
completed over six months with a creative team that started
realistic characters that would work across a range of
at 10 and grew to 200 at the project’s peak.
media for television and online broadcast, stadium Mark Rein
displays and virtual reality experiences. “I can’t emphasize enough what an impact Unreal had on Epic Games, Inc.
this project,” said Krygowski. “The real-time lighting, ease
“We chose Unreal for its ease of use,” said Peter Krygowski,
of use, ability to iterate quickly and near-time rendering Canadian-born Mark Rein
director, HOM. “The learning curve to ramp up production
of fi nal assets allowed us to accelerate an already is vice president and co-
and fi t it into our pipeline was minimal.” founder of Epic Games based
compressed delivery schedule. For the short fi lm, we
in Cary, North Carolina.
Ease of use was particularly important to HOM since needed to deliver a three-and-a-half minute animation
Epic’s Unreal Engine 3
it’s primarily a motion capture and animation shop, short in two and a half months, from start to fi nish. It’s a
has won Game Developer
without a huge infrastructure for handling the rendering project that would normally have taken six months.” magazine’s Best Engine
requirements for traditional high-end output. Front Line Award fi ve times
The Guardian Project brought some unexpected drama,
along with entry into the
Fortunately, Krygowski had been close to the video in addition to the punishing timeline. Just 48 hours Hall of Fame. UE3 has won three consecutive Develop
game world for more than a decade, had plenty of before the fi lm was set to premiere at the NHL All-Star Industry Excellence Awards.
experience with a number of proprietary engines and Game, an outside vendor delivered six shots that didn’t Epic is the creator of the mega-hit “Unreal” series of
knew exactly what his team needed to successfully pull fi t with the video. But using Unreal, HOM was able to games and the blockbuster “Gears of War” franchise.
off The Guardian Project. revise, reanimate and re-render the shots. The team Follow @MarkRein on Twitter.
WWW.EPICGAMES.COM
East Coast E3 Expo Casual Comic-Con
UPCOMING Game Los Angeles Connect International
Conference June 7-9, 2011 Seattle San Diego, CA
EPIC ATTENDED Raleigh, NC Seattle, WA July 21-24, 2011
EVENTS April 13-14, 2011 July 19-21, 2011
Please email: [email protected] for appointments.
© 2011, Epic Games, Inc. Epic, the Epic Games logo, Gears of War, the Powered by Unreal Technology logo, Unreal, Unreal Engine, Unreal Kismet and Unreal Matinee are trademarks
or registered trademarks of Epic Game Games, Inc. in the United States and elsewhere. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. All rights reserved.
Ten years ago we began surveying employees ThroughouT The indusTry's various has continued to rise in prominence, as a source of
disciplines regarding their salaries, including additional benefits and alternate sources opportunity and employment for those looking for a
of revenue, employment status, and general position, thereby creating a snapshot different path, after making their mark on downloadable
of the industry each year. We continue the tradition through to this, the 10th annual and browser-based platforms. Last year, we included
Salary Survey from Game Developer. indie developers and independent contractors in their
This year’s big number is the rise in the average salary across all disciplines and experience own listing, a practice we continued this year, though
levels, with 2010's $5,244 gain having made for a strong rebound from the near $4,000 loss with a slightly lower response.
in 2009, bringing the latest average above 2008. The number of respondents whose salaries A major takeaway from the comments section of
increased in 2010 was up across the board from 2009, with the biggest increase coming from the survey reveals that while in general salaried
those in production, 73 percent of whom reported higher income than last year. developers are making more money, independent
In addition, 47 percent of respondents agreed that there are more opportunities for developers are a lot happier with their lot in life.
developers than ever before, and 73 percent said that the industry is still great to work in, Those who lost their jobs this year may want to take
showing that there is plenty to be optimistic about as we head into 2011. heed of those words and find out what it is they truly
This year was one of proving for the social game space, and we believe that contributed want to do in games.
somewhat to the overall raise in salary across all disciplines. Meanwhile, the indie segment —Ryan Newman and Brandon Sheffield
www.gdmag.com 7
programmers artists and
AVERAGE SALARY AVERAGE SALARY
$85,733 animators $71,354
PROGRAMMERS ARE THE BACKBONE OF THE INDUSTRY, AND THEIR THE AVERAGE SALARY FOR ARTISTS WAS UP ONLY SLIGHTLY FROM LAST
hard work is certainly rewarded, as the profession continues to be one year, with the bulk of that increase coming from a bump in the
of the highest paid in the industry, though this year coders have been income for art directors.
eclipsed by producers in salary levels. However, increased earnings were not across the board, as artists,
Overall, average programmer salaries increased some $5,000 over animators, and leads all saw their average salaries drop. The exception
2009, with gains pretty evenly split across disciplines. But entry level was artists and animators with three to six years of experience, who
programmers (those with less than three years' experience), saw an saw a small increase from $61,121 to $61,667 in 2010. The biggest
overall drop of around $1,000. decrease was found amongst lead artists and tech artists with over six
Minor though that drop may be, this fall in salary combined with a years of experience, with the average salary falling to $89,519 in 2010
rise in the number of respondents in the entry-level categories is likely from $97,206 in 2009.
an indicator that companies are hiring more fresh-faced computer Canadian artists found their salaries increasing on average by
science graduates at lower pay rates than before. $3,877, up to $63,277 (USD). The increase was largely found amongst
Programmers in Canada fared better in 2010, earning $74,473 in artists and animators, whose salaries increased from $50,565 in 2009
2010, up from $67,937 (USD) in 2009. European programmers also to $56,630 (USD) in 2010. European artists also found themselves
saw a rise, earning $48,230 (USD) on average. earning more, with an increase of $3,459 from 2009, bringing the
average salary up to $41,611 (USD).
Programmer salaries per years experience and position Artist and Animator salaries per years experience and position
Programmer/Engineer Lead Programmer Technical Director Artist and Animator Lead Artist/Tech Artist Art Director
100K 100K
90K 90K
80K 80K
70K 70K
60K 60K
50K 50K
40K 40K
3200KK $53,488 $54,167 $74,403 $81,722 $99,502 $108,796 $126,554 3200KK $44,643 $61,667 $60,887 $86,563 $89,519 $107,206
10K 10K
0K 0K
<3 years 3–6 years >6 years <3 years 3–6 years >6 years
ALL PROGRAMMERS AND ENGINEERS ALL ARTISTS AND ANIMATORS
YEARS EXPERIENCE IN THE INDUSTRY Percent receiving additional YEARS EXPERIENCE IN THE INDUSTRY Percent receiving additional
income: 77% income: 74%
17%
20% Average additional income: $17,689 Average additional income: $12,711
<3 yrs
<3 yrs 42% Type of additional compensation $45,714 41% Type of additional compensation
$55,426 received received
>6 yrs Annual bonus .....................................51% >6 yrs Annual bonus ....................................47%
$91,723
38% $107,888 Pension/Employer contribution to 42% Pension/Employer contribution to
Retirement plan ...............................49% Retirement plan ...............................49%
3–6 yrs Profit sharing .....................................16% 3–6 yrs Profit sharing .....................................16%
$76,413 Project/title bonus ............................27% $61,898 Project/title bonus ...........................39%
Royalties ............................................12% Royalties ............................................16%
Stock options/equity ........................37% Stock options/equity .......................33%
GENDER STATS FOR PROGRAMMERS Percent receiving benefits: 94% GENDER STATS FOR ARTISTS Percent receiving benefits: 94%
Percent Average Type of benefits received Percent Average Type of benefits received
Gender Represented Salary Medical ..............................................99% Gender Represented Salary Medical ..............................................99%
Male 96% $86,140 Dental ................................................93% Male 89% $72,924 Dental ................................................93%
Female 4% $74,559 401K/Retirement .............................84% Female 11% $59,224 401K/Retirement .............................80%
8 GAME DEVELOPER | APRIL 2011
