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Researching The Seattle Area

Hey all! Sooooo I'll be getting my degree in May, however I'm in a location that's pretty much dead for industry so I'll have to be moving to find work, which is no problem. I looked around at gamedevmap and a few others to see who all was hiring and what positions I'd be qualified for coming out of school and I decided the Bellevue/Seattle area sounded like a good place to be. I was curious as to what other people's experiences have been there, and if apartments and such are really priced that high as compared to some of the websites I've looked at. Also trying to get a feel for how much an average month runs...

All that being said I'm currently a poor college kid in East TN working my way through school, and well I don't really want to work for Walmart anymore after having worked my ass off for the degree :). So any help or info or ANY KIND of advice would be awesome!

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  • Justin Meisse
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    Justin Meisse polycounter lvl 18
    I think it may be best to get a job first and then move.
  • R0gu3
    I think it may be best to get a job first and then move.

    That's what I thought too, however my Professor is encouraging me to move out there and suck it up do whatcha gotta do etc till you get the job. That being said I could transfer from Walmart here to Walmart there and work that job till I found one in industry.
  • Justin Meisse
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    Justin Meisse polycounter lvl 18
    R0gu3 wrote: »
    That's what I thought too, however my Professor is encouraging me to move out there and suck it up do whatcha gotta do etc till you get the job. That being said I could transfer from Walmart here to Walmart there and work that job till I found one in industry.

    Well your professor is a bit nuts. Why limit yourself to only one section of the US market? I'm also sure Wal Mart pay doesn't scale that well to the higher cost of living you'd have in Seattle.
  • ZacD
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    ZacD ngon master
    Most video game industry cities have higher costs of living. It's not going to be fun paying $600 in rent, living with 3 people, working a minimum wage job. You want to live in conditions that will allow you to work on your art and look for jobs. Which might be at your parents house for a few months, working part time.
  • RyRyB
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    RyRyB polycounter lvl 18
    Well your professor is a bit nuts. Why limit yourself to only one section of the US market? I'm also sure Wal Mart pay doesn't scale that well to the higher cost of living you'd have in Seattle.

    This.

    And honestly, there's a lot of competition in the area for positions. While 343, Bungie, and others are snatching up a lot of talent, there are also lots of folks looking for work. And these people are not new to the industry, there are lots of veterans you'll be competing with especially with GPG layoffs.

    Do what you gotta do but make sure you are tipping the tables to your advantage.
  • Lucas Annunziata
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    Lucas Annunziata polycounter lvl 13
    Agreed. Be willing to move anywhere you can get a job. Limiting yourself to one area is one of the worst things you can do, and especially just out of college you will have nothing holding you to any particular area. If you are going to work a shit job while working on art, do it in the least expensive way you can. If that means living in a dead end place for a while, so be it.
  • R0gu3
    Well your professor is a bit nuts. Why limit yourself to only one section of the US market? I'm also sure Wal Mart pay doesn't scale that well to the higher cost of living you'd have in Seattle.

    That he is lol. Ehhhh, I don't really see it as limiting (But I see what you're saying). For me there's a lot more opportunity on that side of the country it seems, and after looking everywhere it's a place that I think I'd be comfortable living while still being a lot closer to a good chunk of industry. Yeah that's kinda the concern for moving out there on Walmart pay. Currently making a little over 9$ an hour and by the time I have enough for the move I should be making closer to 10$ but I agree I'd much rather have a job in industry first.
  • R0gu3
    @Zac: Oh yeah I'm sure and I've looked at some COL Calculators online

    @Gonzo: Yeah I think I just don't want to get stuck here in Johnson City, I'd rather be somewhere where I can be on the ready to go in and work at a company. And I'm trying to avoid the bigger name companies for now, due to the competition.

    @Dar: More than happy to move anywhere... And live in the smallest crappy place I can find lol, I just chose the Seattle area for personal preference.
  • Justin Meisse
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    Justin Meisse polycounter lvl 18
    for example, I lived in Florida and my first industry job was in Virginia, they also covered all of my moving expenses. Before that I assumed my only chances where in California.
  • R0gu3
    for example, I lived in Florida and my first industry job was in Virginia, they also covered all of my moving expenses. Before that I assumed my only chances where in California.

    Huh... That's pretty awesome, is that kinda standard? Or was it luck?
  • Avanthera
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    Avanthera polycounter lvl 10
    That's kind of standard, entry-level positions may require you to move yourself, but if you're planning to move anyways, then it's all good.

    I was planning on doing what you are thinking about a while back, moving to Seattle from Atlanta, and hope for the best. 2 months before I was about to make the move, I got a job in Austin, Texas. I'm very glad I didn't go through all of that hassle to just be in a city that may not have had opportunities for me, and would probably have had to move out of for a job.

    Don't discount other parts of the US! There are studios in Boston, Virginia, Atlanta, Chicago, Texas, and Colorado to name a few off the top of my head. Just because the west coast has a ton of studios, doesn't mean the rest of the US/Canada has less, just more spread out. You aren't too far from a bunch of studios, they just don't advertise their location that much. :)
  • bugo
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    bugo polycounter lvl 17
    I think you would be a bit more lucky finding a job in a Startup at SF than trying a job in Seattle. Lot's of companies are closing/closed around here in the last 2 years.
  • Jonas Ronnegard
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    Jonas Ronnegard polycount sponsor
    just start sending out your portfolio and see if someone is interested, then move after you get a job, being stuck searching in only one city wont do you any good, especially for your first gig.

    I have worked in

    Norway
    Sweden
    Taiwan
    Japan

    I have actually not worked in the same country twice,
    so locking yourself down to cities wont do you any good.
  • Andreas
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    Andreas polycounter lvl 11
    R0gu3 wrote: »
    That's what I thought too, however my Professor is encouraging me to move out there and suck it up do whatcha gotta do etc till you get the job.

    That's cause it ain't his money that'll be getting spent. :\

    If you can transfer locations with your current employer, and have a decent support network should things go awry, then sure. Could be worth a try.
  • praetus
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    praetus interpolator
    This sounds almost exactly what I had done years past. I lived in Florida working for Wal-mart and picked up everything I could fit in my car and moved to Seattle to look for work. I will tell you now, it is both the best and worst decision I have ever made.

    Seattle is an awesome town and by all means I really enjoyed my time out there, but I wasn't ready to get a job. I spent my three years out there working at Fred Meyer stores until I was lucky enough to score my first modeling job....back on the East Coast in Virginia. And I had to pay my own moving expenses to get back out to where I am now.

    Many studios that were in Seattle when I had moved there have since closed up shop. There are less opportunities but I think that goes for many cities. Moving to a town where you don't know anyone and you're hoping to just fall into something great is incredibly foolish but also very liberating. Just make sure you can keep your head above water if things don't work out.

    Also, don't transfer to Wal-Mart out there. They won't unionize, so Seattle won't let them build within the city (at least that was the case when I lived out there.) If you're looking for part time, Fred Meyer is the major store out there and they have better wages and benefits for while you're looking for full out work.
  • sprunghunt
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    sprunghunt polycounter
    There'd be more opportunities in LA. Even though Seattle is nicer than LA - except for the weather.
  • R0gu3
    Thanks a lot for the advice guys, however...I'm still interested in learning some of the other facts about Seattle area, but how 'bout we expand it. Lets take same questions from post one and apply them to where YOU currently are living and working?

    Questions to answer:

    City and State?
    Where you are currently working?
    What is the approx amount for your rent?
    Avg of rent for the area?
    Avg amount in bills per month?
    Do you enjoy the area?
    How's the job market?
    How's traffic?

    and anything else you might want to add
  • ZacD
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    ZacD ngon master
    For the first 2 questions it'd probably be best to look at this thread. http://www.polycount.com/forum/showthread.php?t=49362
    There's also online cost of living calculators for areas that do show rent and bills.
  • R0gu3
    Yeah, I've used the calculators, and I've looked at apts online... however sometimes cheaper apts don't get listed on the web and the calculators can be skewed sometimes.
    Still thanks for the link.
  • daphz
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    daphz polycounter lvl 13
    I'm with Jesse one this one. Also you should not be expecting to get a job super soon after graduating unless you have super solid portfolio. Moving somewhere would only take precious art portfolio time away from you.

    Studios (depending on size and other things) Do sometimes cover or help out with relocation. If picking up and moving your life to a new place isn't a huge deal, mention that in your applications and interviews, but for now I would sit tight and concentrate on making some kick ass art.
  • Ninjas
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    Ninjas polycounter lvl 18
    Seattle is cool as well as the Bay Area or Austin, but the problem with those areas is that there are a lot of local, skilled, out of work artists there already.
  • alexk
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    alexk polycounter lvl 12
    Stay where you are, send out your folio, accept a job, THEN move to it. Most graduates from "game schools" also need to update their folio and/or skills before being job ready as well.
  • Filbot
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    Filbot polycounter lvl 12
    Move! As someone that was in a similar situation as you, I made the decision to pack the car and make the move out to Seattle from Ohio about 2 and half years ago. Haven't looked back since and it was the best decision I've ever made. I would suggest you look into FuturePoly

    I grew a pair and signed up for both the 2D and 3D courses at FP and jammed as much crap that I could fit into my car and set out. I was lucky enough to connect with some people through Polycount to set up living arrangements for the first six or so months I was out here while I took courses at FuturePoly, which was a totally tight experience. From there I made a serious effort to network and meet as many artist face to face as I could, which was something that was impossible to do stuck out in Ohio. Landed an internship at a major studio while at FuturePoly and have been in the industry since. Seattle might be the perfect storm of a place to have done that. Anyone, please feel free to PM if you've got questions or anything else. Cheers.
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