[ FalconCast theme fades in ]
[ 00min 01sec ]
Vincent Colavita (Guest):
One thing I can say is that even if I do fall out of love with game design, I'm not going to fall out of love with games.
I am Vincent Calavita. I am a student at Fitchburg State. After next semester, I am going to be leaving the nest.
[ 00min 23sec ]
NIKKI (Host):
Hi, I'm Nikki, your host and you're listening to FalconCast. Leaving the Nest. I will be interviewing a couple of people that are in the process of transitioning out of academia, transitioning out of college.
And I'm very excited to hear these people's story and to relate to them. I feel like a lot of you guys out there can probably relate to just having a transitional season in your life.
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NIKKI:
What does leaving the nest mean to you?
Vincent:
I would say that definitely means moving on to the next stage of life, so to speak. College and the working world are very different places, and it's going to be an interesting transition.
NIKKI
How long have you been at Fitchburg State?
Vincent:
I'm a transfer student, so I've been here for three years. I came here my sophomore year.
NIKKI:
What are you looking forward to the most about leaving? Are you excited to go out in the open world?
Vincent:
Yeah, as a game design major, there are some worries that I have, obviously. Overall, I am pretty happy to getting a bit more independence in my life, potentially having my own place pretty soon, things like that.
NIKKI:
You said you had some worries about leaving. What worries you?
[ 01min 40sec ]
Vincent:
Yeah, so as I mentioned, I'm a game design major, and recently within the gaming industry, there has been like, mass layoffs and things like that. It's generally, at the moment, very difficult for somebody within my major, within my field, to find a decent job. And because of that, I might end up hopping between less skilled jobs, less specialized jobs for a while. But overall, I'm genuinely happy I went for the major I went for, even with that in mind.
I'm actually a transfer student from UMass Lowell, and while I was there, I was doing a general computer science degree. And it wasn't something I felt very happy doing, but I think it definitely would have been more practical to get that degree.
Hindsight is 20/20. With that in mind, I do think that I am going to find some difficulties getting a job with my current major. But hopefully this period of layoffs and shifting over to a lot of AI content, hopefully this soon passes, and eventually these jobs will start to come back.
[ 02min 40sec ]
NIKKI:
Funny you mentioned AI. [ laughs ] We have a coding class together. So do you think AI could possibly edit?
Vincent:
What we see is full of potential, but it's not quite there yet, and it's still sort of rapidly – it's growing at a rapid pace.
And what we see this year is going to be just a tiny fraction of the power of AI that we see next year and the year after that. And I think with that in mind, it's definitely going to revolutionize a lot of stuff. And with that comes the loss of a lot of jobs and opportunities for people.
[ 03min 18sec ]
NIKKI:
What does that look like for you going in the field?
Vincent:
In recent months, I would say, we've seen the rise of a lot of solo game developers using AI to help them program and AI to help generate art. And we see a lot of even like game storefronts like Steam taking a stand against it, even. Where they say AI-generated content is not allowed on this platform.
We're seeing a lot of – a bit of a tug of war between these sides where independent developers who could have never made a game before can, and that's amazing. But also, now a lot of programmers are out of jobs. It's a delicate balance, and nobody's really quite sure where it's going to land.
NIKKI:
Yeah, that's the scary part about the world beyond, like, school, because we know what to expect when we're in school. We know, oh, we have our classes, we make our schedules, we go to this and this classes every day.
But – and we know what to expect at the end of the semester. But we don't know necessarily what the day-to-day life is going to be out in the big world. And that's the scariest part of it.
Vincent:
I totally agree, and that is something I'm also worried about. Like, I mentioned like potentially getting my own place, but like finding a place to begin with is very difficult at the moment. And especially finding a place near like game development offices. They're few and far between. There are definitely a lot of unknowns that we'll be heading into as we exit school.
NIKKI:
For sure, for sure. I'm choosing to try to remain optimistic. The world can change. So where do you see yourself in like five, ten years?
[ 4min 50sec ]
Vincent:
Yeah, so in five to ten years, I can see myself working for a decently sized gaming company. Maybe like, maybe not well-known place, but like small indie company. At the moment because of school. I don't really have time to develop solo projects, which is also something I'm kind of worried about. But as you said, remaining optimistic is definitely helping me get through this.
[ 05min 22sec ]
NIKKI:
Speaking of indies, I love my indie companies. I feel like they are the way to go, especially for people who just leave in college. Indies are our best bet. They've always been very – a niche place for us. That's just starting out.
Vincent:
Yeah, I totally agree. And like, especially in the gaming industry where in the recent years, independent games have definitely risen in popularity quite a bit. But there's also the risk factor of like, if you are part of an indie company, it's definitely also a lot of unknowns. I keep bringing up unknowns.
NIKKI:
Yeah, yeah. I mean, yes, that is an unknown. That is scary.
[ 6min 0sec ]
Vincent:
There is actually quite a big movement in the gaming industry to get these sorts of games known. Like, as I said, indie games have generally risen in popularity over the recent years and generally have been doing a better job than they have, than they were in the earlier 2000s.
NIKKI:
You know your industry. Like, what is one thing that you think you can contribute to any company that you work with?
Vincent:
Yeah, so I've been working with Unity, which is a well known popular game engine. I also make music. I do freelance music stuff on the side, generally for smaller indie developers. So I do have my name out there.
NIKKI:
Like, what do you think you've picked up from Fitchburg State that's going to help you, whether it's academic wise or just anything that you think you're going to carry with you?
[ 6min 48sec ]
Vincent:
Yeah, so a lot of my skills with like, Unity and game engines and stuff like that did come from Fitchburg State. I feel like they create a helpful environment. A lot of the alumni have also been very helpful in, like, getting people internships, getting industry connections, stuff like that. I think that sort of industry connection and networking thing is something that I'm going to be relying on a lot.
NIKKI:
So you guys have like, an alumni connection in the game design major?
Vincent:
Yeah, so we have this whole Discord channel for game design majors at Fitchburg State where we can show off our work or talk about things going on in the game industry. And a lot of the alumni in that channel generally work for pretty large, generally large companies. I'm definitely going to be staying active in that community.
[ 7min 34sec ]
NIKKI:
Yeah, that's one thing that I know for a fact is helpful when you stay connected to the alumni community here. That's something I want to do. How would you say you would give back to the Fitchburg State community? =
Vincent:
If slash when I end up getting into like, some sort of big company. And again, it's a big if. I would definitely stay in that Discord channel and become part of the alumni network that people tend to rely on.
I would put in a good word for Fitchburg State at the company. The program here is pretty great. The game design major is pretty great. Great professors, great students, great people all around.
NIKKI:
Do you think you're prepared to go out into this world?
[ 8min 14sec ]
Vincent:
I mean, as I mentioned earlier, there's a lot of unknowns, but I do feel confident in saying that whatever gets thrown at me, I can generally find a way to handle that. And if I can't, I know people who can help me.
NIKKI:
Yeah, and I feel like that's to sum up like your alumni connection and just you having that confidence knowing that you possibly have them behind you is amazing and beautiful.
Is there anything that's like scaring you? Just anything at all that scares you about leaving school and starting your life?
[ 08min 52sec ]
Vincent:
I mean, a lot of things. The job market is pretty bad right now. So I'm not quite sure when I'll be able to get a job or if I'm going to be living at home for a while. If I'm going to have to get some sort of extra schooling to learn IT or something like that. In the meantime, there is a lot I'm scared of, I would say. In general, I do feel more prepared than when I first came to Fitchburgh.
NIKKI:
There's a lot that's scary out there, but I do feel prepared. And I do, again, have that confidence that whatever I do is going to be just fine. But I do have that will to be successful.
What do you… What does success look like for you?
Vincent:
At the moment, success: Probably just having a stable job that I am passionate about that lets me afford an independent life, essentially.
NIKKI:
Grad school is definitely some things that people do after they graduate. But do you think that that's absolutely necessary?
Vincent:
Absolutely necessary? No, but helpful? Yes.
I mean, as I mentioned, I might go for something like IT stuff in the meantime while, while I try to find a game design job.
Again, for a lot of people, I don't think extra schooling is entirely necessary. But for people in industries that are currently struggling or going through big change like gaming. It’is definitely something that should be considered. =
[ 10min 19sec ]
NIKKI:
Everybody has their place at school. Besides that, where do you fit in the world?
Vincent:
I do know that there are lots of game dev conferences and meetups and stuff like that. It's not going to be easy. I'm going to keep on looking for my space, but it's difficult.
NIKKI:
School is sometimes a big place for people to find their community. School is a community. Fitchburg State is a community. And that's one thing that I've really come to appreciate about it as much as it's something I'm also worried about. Where I'm going to be, where I'm going to live.
Vincent:
Yeah, it is something I have been struggling with for a while, I would say. It's good to find your space and I'm still trying to.
NIKKI:
Is there one thing that, whether it's, you know, your relationships or just academia overall, that you've wished you had done differently here?
Vincent:
I'm not quite sure. I'm not quite sure how to answer that question because I mean, I'm not quite sure if transferring to this, to Fitchburg and getting the game design major was the correct decision.
And I do wonder how my life would be different if I hadn't done that because I would have been graduated by now. Because I ended up taking a bit of a gap year between my freshman at UMass Lowell and my sophomore at Fitchburg State.
A lot of things can be different, but I'm not quite sure whether they'd be good different or bad different.
[ 11min 41sec]
[ FalconCast theme fades in ]
NIKKI:
So this is my last question and then I'm going to wrap it up. Are you ready to leave the nest?
Vincent:
Yes, I believe I am.
NIKKI:
I think you are too. And with that being said, I'm Nikki and you've been listening to FalconCast Leaving the Nest, and I will see you guys on the next episode.
[ FalconCast theme fades ends ]
[ 12min 06sec ]
[ Perseverantia Theme fades in ]
This is, Game Design major, Class of 2024 – and you’re listening to Perseverantia, the Fitchburg State Podcast Network.
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