What is the difference between Digital Games Business and Games Design?
Many universities offer the Games Design course. As the name suggests, this is a degree course in game design. The focus is on software development, media technology and creative media design. A certain technical affinity is of course an advantage.
Although creativity also plays a role in Digital Games Business, the focus here is more on the economic aspects of the games industry. Topics such as product and content development, games marketing and games innovation await you in this brand new course.
When is the Digital Games Business degree program right for me?
The games industry has grown strongly in recent years. More and more highly qualified graduates are being sought in this field. According to a study by Statista, the games market currently has a turnover of over 10 million euros in Germany alone, and the trend is rising. As with all other STEM professions, it is predicted that the shortage of skilled workers will become even more acute.
The Digital Games Business degree program is just right for you if you love games and innovation and want to become a manager in the games industry.
What career prospects are there in the games sector?
While the career opportunities after a degree in games design are increasingly in the artistic field, after a successful degree in Digital Games Business you have a wide range of career prospects in management in the games industry.
- Product Management (Product Management): After your studies, as a product manager you will be involved in the connection between development, production, marketing and sales of games. In this area, you can take on tasks such as setting business goals for games, such as player satisfaction. You will work with all departments to help develop the game so that these goals are achieved. You will use usage and market data, such as downloads of the game, to make decisions about product development and marketing strategies.
- Game User Research: As a Game User Researcher, you will support game development by
social science methods
to check whether the gaming experience corresponds to the target group. Here you test the comprehensibility of the story, content and design and whether the gameplay is entertaining for the user. In doing so, you will be helping to create the best possible game experience and the commercial success of the game. - Game ProducingGame producers in the games industry oversee the game development process from concept to completion. As a Game Producer, you monitor time, budget and quality, organize and coordinate all those involved and thus improve team collaboration. In larger companies, there are specialized roles for sub-areas of game development, such as Art Producer or Creative Producer, who have specific knowledge in these areas.
- Game AnalysisAs an analyst in the games industry, you will collect and analyze data from digital games to help games companies make decisions on game development, marketing strategies or budget planning. You will be responsible for tasks such as analyzing the results, summarizing them and preparing them for other departments so that the right decisions can be made for the successful future of a game.
- Quality Assurance (QA)As a QA Manager in the games industry, you are responsible for the quality assurance of games. With your work, you can ensure that the game content, technology and compatibility with different devices and platforms work. You also carry out test scenarios with players to identify errors and potential for improvement and take them into account for the next decisions.
- Community ManagementAs a Community Manager, you build, maintain and grow gaming communities. In this job, you have direct contact with gamers and collect valuable feedback for game optimizations. You will also organize gaming events and activities to strengthen the community and act as an interface between players and developers.
- MarketingYou work as a marketing specialist in the games industry, for example in online marketing or brand management. You will work closely with the product development and design departments to develop suitable marketing strategies for marketing a game. You analyze the market and the relevant target groups in order to identify trends and needs and are therefore jointly responsible for the commercial success of a game.
In general, you can make a career anywhere where innovation management and the joint development of products and services with the user (co-creation) are relevant.
How much do you earn in the games industry?
As the games industry continues to grow and change, the need for specialists in this field will also continue to increase. Through the diversity of the industry income varies greatly. The salaries shown are the average gross annual salaries in Germany.
As already mentioned, you can work in project management, product, brand, content, communication or marketing and sales management after your Bachelor’s degree. In these professions, the starting salaries depend on company size and position are between € 35,000 and € 45,000. With many years of professional experience, you can expect a salary of between €60,000 and €80,000 per year in this field.
How much you will earn when you start your career also depends on a number of criteria such as the size of the company, your negotiating skills, your level of responsibility and the professional experience you may have already acquired during your studies through various internships or part-time jobs. With a Master’s degree and appropriate professional experience, salaries in the six-figure range are also possible.
