Also called: Game Developer, Game Engineer
Writes the code that makes characters move, enemies think, and game systems work.
A gameplay programmer codes a new combat ability in C++, fixes a bug that lets players fall through the floor, and optimizes code so the game runs at 60 frames per second.
Approximate; software developers overall have a median near $133k, but game programmers often earn somewhat less.
Approximate: anchored on Bureau of Labor Statistics data for a broader job group.
Bachelor's degree (4-year), about 4 years after high school. A bachelor's in computer science or game programming plus game projects in C++ or C#, then about a year as a junior programmer.
Ways in: 4-year college, Self-taught. Training cost: $15k – $60k.
Majors to look at: Computer Science, Software Engineering, Game Programming.
Growing much faster than average (about 15% over 10 years). BLS projects strong growth for software developers overall (~15%).
Medium risk for 10 years. AI coding assistants write much routine code, squeezing junior hiring; solving hard game systems stays human.
Classes: AP Computer Science A, AP Calculus, AP Physics, Math.
Official data: O*NET occupation 15-1252.
Career Universe is an early version. Pay, training and AI-risk figures are estimates to start your own research, not verified facts. The research was written with AI research assistants, checked by validation scripts and spot-checked by hand. Check anything important with schools, employers and official sources. How the numbers work.