VBGamer

What do you consider real money? I'm not making six figures, but I'm making enough to pay the bills and have some left over for entertainment, trips, etc. It's actually more than I was making in the business world writing applications. I wouldn't suggest trying to start your own company as a way of making the "big bucks". Probably less than 1% would make something that'll bring in enough money to support the company. Please don't think you're going to write the next Doom or Quake. Unless your John Carmack's twin you more than likely won't. I'm not putting anyone down, just being realistic. Go for it, but don't delude yourself into thinking you'll be driving around in a Ferrari next year. My advice - write code until you dream about it. Write a small game with some original ideas or twists on existing games. Attend conferences (GDC, etc) and have some CDs of your game with you along with your resume. Search the web for game companies that are hiring. They're out there believe me. I got my job in the industry by attending a GDC Roadtrip and talking to some people about the game I was working on. They took a look, must have liked something because a couple of months later brought me back in for an interview and offered me a job. That was almost a year ago.