Any game developers out there?

[TyC7AFguy]

I am kind of interested in attempting to become a game designer....but before I take any glorious steps to out do and wit the creators or Halo, Half-Life, and Zelda I would like to get some good knowledge from those who are doing this.....is there anyone in this forum who is a professional game designer? what I am really curious about-besides imagination....what other prior skills do you need or should you have before pursuing a degree and career in game design? If you would like to throw in some more info on what the career is like that would be cool as well.

[sRc]

I'm a freelancer myself, not professional yet because I don't have anything done yet. But first of all you'll need something to author with. If you want to do it right, you should program it yourself:

Here's a link for programming tools download.

http://lab.msdn.microsoft.com/express/
(They're beta softwares right now, though I believe when they become finalized they are supposed to be free. Most games are written in C/C++)

Aside from that, things are up to you. If you want a cheap 3D software, look at Milkshape 3D. Art software, get something like Paint Shop Pro. Audio software, look at GoldWave. If you want some tips, a man named Andre LaMothe has written some good books on the subject.

Mostly you need patience. It's not easy, it's a slow process. You're creating in the most complex software genre out there programming-wise, and if you're making something decent it's not going to be something you'll be able to turn up in a few months.