The director of an educational software company which develops industrial process simulations once asked me what a game designer actually does. There is no single answer that would apply in every case, but there are things that all game designers do.

Game designers give meaning to insignificant and worthless events. We get players to care about what they do. In the case of the director’s question, the fact that a game designer was involved changed an impersonal simulation into an attempt to run the unit in question as efficiently as possible. Succeeding in that is a personal achievement which creates a satisfaction that makes you want to keep playing.

The world has changed over the last 11 years and the gaming industry is usually at the forefront of that change. When I started there were maybe a couple dozen game companies. Now there three hundred and the best of them are among the best in the world in many different sectors of the gaming industry. They are still mainly programmers, engineers and graphic artists running things, although as the firms increase in size there will also be professionals in the commercial sector.

Most game designers have a programming background and a humanist in the gaming industry is still a rare bird. But I would like to think that a well-rounded education brings new kinds of knowledge and skills to the table. These help a game’s development by pushing the boundaries and have contributed to the current golden age of the Finnish gaming industry.