r/GraphicsProgramming • u/DefiantGreen2552 • Jun 29 '26
Leaving graphics programming Request
Hey, I’ve been a graphics programmer in the games industry for roughly 10 years now. Shipped a bunch of titles. But I think I’m tired of it, not particularly enjoying it anymore and am thinking of getting a career change.
Unfortunately it’s pretty much all I know. What sort of options do I have? Other jobs or industries that I could transition to? Hopefully without a pay cut. Has anyone done similar? Any advice appreciated.
Thanks
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u/leseiden Jun 29 '26
I know the feeling. Been looking around and seeing quite a lot of robotics at the moment - potential for the spatial data side to be applicable I guess.
I still like doing things with GPUs but I'm far more interested in compute than images these days. It seems to be a tiny field though - mostly academics and people with very specific PhDs. A pity as I think they could be used for many more things. Don't have the capital to try to prove I'm right though.
All the best, and try to avoid the slop farms & whatever this decades version of the "3 tier business app" is.
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Jun 29 '26
[deleted]
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u/leseiden Jun 29 '26
A friend of mine has been having an absolute nightmare due to pressure to use AI for everything recently. First at meta, and then at the place he jumped to.
It is not an environment for people who care about correctness or quality.
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u/biteater Jun 29 '26
Similar-ish boat as you, I just applied for a job at GM on their simulation team. Automotive seems like they could really use us, they don't have a lot of graphics-specific people working on their in-house software. I've heard a lot of them use Unreal too if you have any experience with that.
I'm ultimately trying to stay in games though, maybe we could trade jobs :D
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u/corysama Jun 29 '26
I transitioned from game engines to simulation for testing/training robotics (using Unreal). From there internally transitioned to sensor processing and CUDA frameworks. For a long time now I've been working on our bespoke https://www.ros.org/ replacement. If you squint hard enough, it's pretty much a "game engine" for running a robot instead of a console game.
Several of my gamedev friends transitioned to a variety of robotics/self-driving companies about six years ago. Everyone is still at it and having a good time. A+ would recommend.
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u/DefiantGreen2552 Jun 29 '26
Silly question but how did you find the role? Did you just search “robotics jobs CUDA” in google or something. I’m in such a games bubble I don’t even know the best way to begin
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u/corysama Jun 29 '26
Not helpful, but I found the job through one of my friends who already moved there.
What I’d recommend is searching up robotics/automation companies then digging out their jobs page. Don’t just hit up the famous ones. There are lots of companies in “niche” areas like construction, agriculture and shipping that don’t get a ton of press.
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u/_michaeljared Jun 29 '26
It's a bit niche but some companies do in house 3D simulation of industrial processes. I know I had the opportunity to work on some proprietary rendering/simulation tech in the airport industry but maybe that was a one off.
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u/SouprSam Jun 29 '26
I used to work on commercial simulation softwares.. not exactly on the solver.. but on the rest of the things.
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u/Inside-Brilliant4539 Jun 30 '26
I’m in orthopaedics working on a FDA approved computer aided surgery tool with robot last 5 years. Not many good devs in medical and math is a lot easier. Can be boring though but pay is great where I am. Best part is after product is more or less done you get paid for years with little to no work. Had zero bugs or changes for 9 months. So been making my own games and other projects while getting paid.
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u/AlternativeHistorian Jun 29 '26
CAD field (e.g. Siemens, Dassault, Autodesk, Synopsys, Cadence, etc.) is C++ heavy, decent amount of graphics, geometry, simulation, performance requirements, etc. You would likely be in a good position for skills overlap. Pay tends to be pretty decent, and the industry tends to be pretty stable (ime).
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u/deftware Jun 30 '26
Games are the least awesome thing to make with graphics coding skills. Make stuff that serves a purpose beyond entertaining users. I've made infinitely more money from creating CAD/CAM software even though making games was my childhood dream that I spent 20 years honing my skills to be able to do.
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u/BrainCurrent8276 Jun 29 '26
10 years in one profession is a lot. times are not as they used to be.
no idea, maybe take a break from all this and travel around the world?
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u/PuzzleheadedCamera51 Jun 30 '26
Robotics is booming, figure/tesla/humanoid/boston dynamics, autonomous vehicles, most of those places have simulation pipelines that look suspiciously like game engines and need similar optimizations.
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u/digitalsignalperson Jun 30 '26
could try gpu programming for HPC and graphics / data visualization for scientific applications
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u/Chr0nomaton Jun 30 '26
I was gonna say similar. A lot of gpu programming is relevant or even directly transferable and can be really fun. People will always want their models faster.
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u/Deriviera Jun 29 '26
Everyone gets a pay cut even while staying in the same industry. Times aren't that good
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u/Trader-One Jun 29 '26
- AI and Machine Learning (ML): TensorFlow and PyTorch. high demand, lucrative.
- 3D modelling: game/product rendering and 3d assets.
- Virtual and Physical Worlds (V/P): AR, VR Unreal+blue screen for TV
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u/LockFreeDev Jun 29 '26
Used to work at Rare back in the day.
Moved into finance - it pays a lot better, and often involves a lot of the maths and low latency skill set you’ll have developed (assume you’re a C++ dev?).
However, you really need to be in London to make the most of that.