Inbox: “Would you advise a smart youngster to go into tech even if their passion were in X?” Yes, for most Xes? Many people in tech successfully pursue passions which are not directly tech; a stable remunerative career is a good platform for doing lots of things.
-
-
You can get off at 5, but would be exhausted after the day's work to make any significant progress in X. Working at AppAmaGooBookSoft is not exactly a walk in the park, especially if you're being paid upwards of $400k.
Thanks. Twitter will use this to make your timeline better. UndoUndo
-
-
-
unfortunately, I have some ethical standards, so most of them are not an option
Thanks. Twitter will use this to make your timeline better. UndoUndo
-
-
-
I spent over a decade in AAA games before leaving for Big Tech. My recommendation to students who ask me is to take the money, and do analog game development on the side.
Thanks. Twitter will use this to make your timeline better. UndoUndo
-
-
-
I’d argue that the desire to make games and the desire to play games are not interchangeable. It is true that games are just another type of software, but all types of software have distinct challenges and it’s perfectly legit to be attracted to the set that come with gamedev.
-
I accept that the pay and conditions are generally much worse, and that that will be an overriding factor for some. And those people are probably the ones who are on the fence and seeking advice, so your advice is probably useful to them even if not universally applicable

- 1 more reply
New conversation -
-
-
I think this is good general advice because most game devs are more than skilled to work at those companies and earn those salaries but they don't know it. Still, the work is a lot more interesting in games if you are the kind of person that enjoys it.
Thanks. Twitter will use this to make your timeline better. UndoUndo
-
-
-
Can you really keep working very long for AppAmaGooBookSoft if you regularly leave work at 5?
Thanks. Twitter will use this to make your timeline better. UndoUndo
-
-
-
Yeah but is tech going to stay that way in say 10 years?https://twitter.com/ravi_mohan/status/1080790221313183744 …
Thanks. Twitter will use this to make your timeline better. UndoUndo
-
-
-
It's damned hard to walk out the door at 5PM. Those places want your whole life - it's a huge problem in tech as a whole. Also, there are _some_ people doing 300k+ at a Faang but it's not like that's an option any old dev can just walk in to. Most in this industry make <$200k
-
At the risk of pointing out the painfully obvious, you can be very comfortable on <$200k. Just responding to the op's comment about $300k+ comp.
End of conversation
New conversation -
Loading seems to be taking a while.
Twitter may be over capacity or experiencing a momentary hiccup. Try again or visit Twitter Status for more information.