We all know how daunting it feels to go from school to the workplace, regardless of what field you’re in. Do you have the right skills? Is the technology you’ve studied going to have any use in the job you land? It’s enough to keep you awake at night.Recently, we talked with a few 3D artists about how they are handling the transition from school to new jobs in game development, VFX, and immersive media. If you are interested in transferable skills, potential gaps, and the day-to-days of different 3D positions, this one’s for you.
Kris Yu – Associate Environment Artist, Blizzard Entertainment
So what’s a typical day like for a new environment artist working on the Diablo IV team? According to Kris Yu, her general routine begins with signing into the system, syncing the game development engine, and then starting work on the environment tasked to her. Time management is essential for artists on her team, and finishing tasks on time is the base standard for success. “It’s not about ‘try your best’ or ‘create the best art ever’,” says Kris. “It’s about following the schedule and making sure everything works.”
One helpful trick she’s learned is to lay out all of the notes and pictures of the task. Then once she’s finished with it, she’ll put a tick mark on it. With the level of detail in each environment, it can be easy to miss something that needs to be addressed by her or her team, so this tactic helps keep Kris on track.
She’s also quickly learned how much communication and teamwork are required in the video game industry, especially when working from home. “Being able to speak up, express yourself, and listen to other people is crucial in this industry,” says Kris. “I’m expected to ask questions and make mistakes. Instead of regretting and getting nervous about my mistakes, I’ve learned from and corrected them, which has made me grow so much faster.”
To get better insight into her tasks each day, Kris regularly has voice chats with colleagues and team leads. Her team also uploads videos and offers feedback to each other during weekly review sessions, which she says is a great way to learn and see the passion her colleagues have for game development.
One thing Kris wishes she learned more about before her new job is design. As a student, her preference was to start with another artist’s concept to create a 3D environment from it. With that solid foundation, Kris would only need to make some minor changes to improve the overall environment.
Once Kris started work with the Diablo IV team on world-building tasks, she needed to further consider its gameplay design in a 3D space, a design fundamental she believed she lacked experience in. “All of my personal projects don’t have the complexity of a playable game, where all angles should be perfect with moveable cameras,” says Kris. “So I’m continuing to learn about design spaces and I’ve started reading architecture books to gain more knowledge on structures.”
So, how did Kris land a job at Blizzard right out of college? She won Rookie of the Year – Game Development at the 2022 Rookie Awards and was featured in the 2022 Unreal Engine Student Showcase. If you frequent the Unreal Engine website, you may have even seen her work without knowing it!
Source: Unreal Engine Blog