#need advice from experienced dev

1 messages · Page 1 of 1 (latest)

gaunt peak
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I’m a 23-year-old game developer from Pakistan. I graduated last year with a BS in Computer Science. During university, most of the focus was on theory and rote learning rather than hands-on coding or projects, so I didn’t get much practical experience back then.

Since graduation, I’ve worked at two game development studios in Pakistan. While those jobs gave me some exposure, the focus was mainly on getting projects done quickly for clients rather than writing clean, maintainable code — and that left me feeling unsatisfied.

I’m confident in my understanding of programming and OOP concepts, but I don’t yet feel confident in my overall game development skills. That’s because most of my experience so far came from following tutorials and using ChatGPT for help, without building much on my own.

To change that, I’ve started creating small personal projects completely on my own — games like Pac-Man, Bomberman, platformers, Worms, FPS shooters, Minecraft-style sandboxes, and Portal-like puzzle games. I’m trying to rely on ChatGPT only for breaking down problems, not for writing code directly.

Now I have two main questions:

Can I realistically land a remote job at a game studio from Pakistan with small but complete projects like these? Or should I focus more on building advanced systems such as enemy AI, procedural generation, AI reinforced learning stuff and multiplayer to stand out?

Am I on the right path overall? Is there a place in the industry for someone like me who’s still building confidence through personal projects rather than formal experience?

royal zealot
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Generally speaking, no you will not likely find remote work from Pakistan. There is an over abundance of people looking for jobs on the market as is, especially those coming off layoffs that have been hitting the industry as a whole. Studios are not going to be seeking help from outside their country simply because they don't need to (plus it avoids all the logistics of it as well).

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As for your path, your portfolio is the most important thing so that's what you need to focus on. In the meantime, take whatever jobs you can get for the sake of keeping your career moving forward.

gaunt peak
royal zealot
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I have never seen a job posting in games/Unity that required a degree over a portfolio. Whether it's worth it, is up to whether you think you will learn from higher education.

gaunt peak
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Got it, I was just thinking of doing it so show people I have experience in an abroad country as Pakistan isn't considered that much better than some countries.

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thanks for your replies.

royal zealot
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Yeah, work from Pakistan and those regions unfortunately have a reputation for quick outputs which you've already pointed out. Honestly, I think your best chance would be to relocate, then job hunt. Alongside the near impossibility of finding remote outside country work will be finding finding a studio willing to hire someone on a work visa as well.

But first, you need a very high quality and polished portfolio that you can actually bring with you.

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Aside from that, consider jobs outside of games/Unity and more in general tech/IT. They pay better anyway 🤷‍♂️

gaunt peak
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Hey @royal zealot, Is it normal for someone to struggle in writing a 2d player controller, they can move, jump, fall, crashdown, jump through platforms etc..
its my 2nd time writing one by myself but its been 7 hours and there still issues in it in some cases.

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Makes me feel like this field isnt for me if i am struggling in a simple thing like this

glacial bough
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@gaunt peak Developing a game is a problem generator. You shouldn't feel like something isn't for you, just because you've stumbled across a challenge.

You come across a problem, you find a solution. Just because your current problem is getting a 2D character controller working as you intend, doesn't mean you're unfit for the field.

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If every Developer had that mentality, there would be zero Developers.

gaunt peak
glacial bough
gaunt peak
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already fixed sir 🙂