Also called: Solo Game Developer
Makes games independently, alone or with a tiny team, and sells them online.
An indie developer codes, draws art, and posts devlogs to build fans before launching a game on Steam. Many work alone or in tiny teams.
Extremely variable.
Approximate: anchored on Bureau of Labor Statistics data for a broader job group.
No formal education, about 0 years after high school. No degree required; you teach yourself an engine like Unity or Godot, make small games for a couple of years, and release them online.
Ways in: Self-taught, 4-year college. Training cost: Under $15k.
Majors to look at: Computer Science, Game Design.
Growing about average. Competitive.
Medium risk for 10 years. AI tools help solo devs build faster but also flood stores with games, making it harder to stand out.
Classes: AP Computer Science, Art, Creative writing, Math.
Official data: O*NET occupation 15-1255.
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.