how to get a game ideah to a developer?

[Seydaman]

does anyone know how it would be possible. its obvious that everyone has there own greatest game idea, but how would you show a company/developer your idea? will it always be a fantasy of my modern ninjas plat former stealth action assassination game??

 

[Zac_Dai]

Like Tenchu but in the future?

 

[Plastic14407]

The only way you will ever EVER get it shown to a company is if you join someone like Epic or bungie or Square Enix and give them your pitch.

 

[Leodiensian]

Basically, the only way would be to join a company at some level and just start pitching. Don't be ashamed or anything, throw anything and everything to see what sticks.

 

[Reaperman Wompa]

Call up their office and ask?

Though If you do I'd work on making a proper presentation, not rocking up with a couple of post-its and a dream.

 

[Logan Westbrook]

Spelling 'idea' right in the title is often a good start.

 

[Seydaman]

Spelling 'idea' right in the title is often a good start.

what i did, at least spell check did

 

[Amnestic]

Like Tenchu but in the future?

They had a level like that on...the third tenchu game I believe. Rikimaru was transported to the future and you had to take out a bunch of gun wielding guards as well as a guy with a sword and a magic hand as the final boss.

It was really freaking hard ;<

 

[Sensenmann]

You need to make a mod, will get you noticed if the mod is good.

Edit: There are also a fair number of Indi Developers on this forum. Just give them or me a PM .

 

[Logan Westbrook]

Spelling 'idea' right in the title is often a good start.

what i did, at least spell check did

Fun Fact: Most web browser spell will not check the spelling of words in a single line text fields, like the one where you enter the title of your thread.

For reference, 'idea' doesn't have an 'h' in it, but you can correct it by editing your first post.

EDIT: Slightly more on topic and a little less cruel, let me echo Sensenmann's comment of making a mod. There are plenty of roles available in most mod teams, and a number of very successful games started their lives as mods. Counter-Strike, Team Fortress, and Day of Defeat spring to mind, and Doom 3 and Battlefield 2 were made by people who got their start making mods.

 

[Anton P. Nym]

Most studios go out of their way to AVOID receiving game ideas. In today's litigeous (read: "lawsuit-happy") society they'd be much happier to never, ever receive an idea that they may later be accused of ripping off if they ever create anything vaguely similar in the future; most unsolicited proposals get sent back (or destroyed) immediately just so that the legal types can cover their hindquarters from that. Besides, studios usually have far more game ideas than they can actually create and so usually have large files of unused ideas of their own.

As others have posted, you'd be better off creating a mod or a kitbashed game with some friends and getting your idea into the public eye that way. Though developers aren't shopping for ideas, they ARE shopping for employees and having a few good mods and/or homebrewed titles in your portfolio can only help. (Try looking into XNA, for instance; the kit's free to download and use.)

-- Steve

 

[Good morning blues]

Never. It doesn't happen. That isn't how the industry works. You can't get a job as a "game designer." The creation of video games is a communal process; there's no equivalent of a film's director in the video game industry. There are designers and project leads, but they're designing game mechanics and managing the disparate parts of the project. All you can do if you have a great idea for a video game - and I hate to be harsh, but there are millions of other people whose ideas are probably better than yours - is to make it yourself.

If you want to make video games, start out making simple indie games or working on mods. Don't expect working at a game developer to be like Grandma's Boy.

 

[Cousin_IT]

1) make your own cheap ass indie flash games

2) get noticed by a small development company & hired

3) slave away for a while working on their cheapo games

4) a) that company has a hit which you contributed greatly to, allowing you to climb the ladder & have greater say in creative process, maybe even getting chanse to pitch your idea
b) keep jumping companies till a) happens
c) Give up on taking the insider route, form your own indie company hope that the wing & a prayer your riding on take you anywhere but into a big pile of bankruptsy

5) a) When you're idea is pitched, its rejected outright. You fail
b) When you pitch your idea, they like it & promptly copyright the IP to their company, neglecting to mention your name & indeed not consult you any further on the matter. You Fail
c) same as b) except you are respected enough to actually be given credit for the game, maybe even put in charge of developing it. You spend the next 2+ years leading an underfunded project with an insufficient team. However, due to the CRUNCH philosophy of game development you find that with one month until release (assuming you even get that far) all you have is a barely working graphics engine (you couldnt afford middleware) & have to rapidly scramble to get the bare sembelage of a game ready for shipping in order to get the bonus (which is really just a euphamism for "we wont give you your full salery unless u work like a slave to meet our deadlines", much like how many resturaunts count tips as part of their salery)

6) a) Your game is released, it is roundly ignored by everyone with a wallet. You Fail
b) Your game is released, it sells alright. Your publisher promptly tells you to turn it into an easily milkable franchise that can be released yearly. You spend the rest of your career trapt in a cage you unwittingly built for yourself. You Win

 

[sirdanrhodes]

Spelling 'idea' right in the title is often a good start.

what i did, at least spell check did

Your spell checker can't detect capitals.