13 and already thinking of moving to japan

...I..I gotten so far than other choices, but is this what i want to do for a living or just a hobby?... Hobby, no matter what i want to do for a living want to help the industry that is my life's goal; if not change society but that is unlikely i have no interest in creating music which i have tried, the movie industry is too big and mainstream, the book industry is in desperate need of rebooting and not evolving but i don't think i'm the one but i can think of ideas, politics i could do but i would have to massively improve i every subject, as i've said before i believe the industry has truly amazing potential but i just don't know what to do...

 

There's a reason some GCSEs are compulsory - they're the important ones - maths, science and English.

You're not going to get a decent job without maths and English - you need to be able to talk to customers / colleagues and, unless you're working in McDonald's perhaps, write coherently. You need to be able to add - if you're handing a customer change or ordering electronics parts, you need maths. And that's oversimplifying matters.

Others - choose subjects that interest you. The grades are more important than the subjects. It's your degree that's important. Universities don't give a shit what you took at GCSE, they care that you got so many points in your A levels. And, to a certain degree, that's it. Yup, it probably doesn't matter too much which subjects you took at A level - obviously there are certain pre-requisites for certain courses. You might not even go the degree route, though. If you wanted to be a hairdresser or a mechanic, there are important skills you'd need to learn but you learn them at college. So perhaps business studies is a good option if you don't know what you want to do, as it will give you practical knowledge that's good in any industry.

You're 13 - you're not SUPPOSED to know what you want to do for a living in probably 8 years time. I wanted to be an archaeologist when I was at primary school, then I wanted to make the graphics for video games at your age (remember, SNES era) - there were no courses for that so the school's careers computer threw up graphic designer, which sounded cool. At 16, I wanted to be a TV/film make-up artist, doing special effects. At 18, I was interested in making guitars (a luthier) and I got into sound engineering. That's what I studied, and did do for a while. I ended up in computer repair, though.

 

Because of GCSE and upper school and my age i thought i found what i was going to do with a living, goes to show that i have made tremendous progress when it comes to maturity but it goes to show i'm still the noob a year ago just more experienced and knowing well looks like i just have to pull myself together and if i have to say what i want to do i would say business studies, now to focus on school and social skills (at school i'm that type of person who stands in a corner at break & lunch who doesn't have any friends and doesn't talk also i was born with a stammer which is getting sorted) schools seriously needs to show the importance to staying attention and this isn't the first time i have heard it the improvement would be tremendous but hay, i'm just some random thirteen year old.

 

To be fair, whilst social skills are important and it's good to be able to make friends, you're at least not doing any harm by keeping your head down and getting on with it. You'll have opportunities to make friends in college, university, work, clubs etc.

Schools want you to get good grades, but they're not going to tell you that it doesn't really matter at this stage what subjects you take. It's best to choose something that you think you'll be able to do, want to do and will benefit you somehow. It's not until after you get your GCSEs that you make the big decision - A levels, to aim for university, or vocational qualifications?

 

Actually McDonald's workers in Japan are quite articulate and polite.

 

Wish I could say the same for McDonalds here. It's really a mixed bag. I've had my order thrown at me a few times.

 

well for now i will do business studys, also my mum always nags me in one way or another to act social and i would like to make friends in university, or collage, or once i start working but she thinks unless i try i won't be social at interviews or i won't have a girlfriend, i know i know it's a matter proving myself

 

Your desire to expatriate half way across the globe shows an independent streak. Be ready to leave your life and the bulk of your possessions back home.

If you get to uni and (most importantly) succeed there, look into the option of studying abroad. In most instances, you have to be a junior in your major... If you make it that far into the coursework, it shows that you are serious about it seeing it through. Tech-related majors (CS/EE/CE) would work to your advantage, many of them have study abroad programs based in Japan, China, or South Korea.

If you make it that far, it will be nothing like you expected it to be, but you will at least be able to fulfill your original goal and you will learn very much along the way.

You can take advice from a bunch of condescending oldheads like us, but it only goes so far. Only you know what you're capable of and what you want to do. Just don't get exhausted, give up, and conform to the sheepish wills of the masses.

 

Good thing that he is young, I believe that if he dedicates really hard from now on, he won't face difficulties when he reaches 18.

 

I'll say this much for him, at least he has some kind of (semi-realistic) idea if what he wants to do with himself once he's finished schooling. I didn't figure out what I wanted to do until a few years ago, prior to that I was just kinda coasting.

 

Between now and when he's 18, he'll change and many other things will too. Sad, but true.

 

Well obviously. For one, he'll probably lose all those ambitions about changing the face of the gaming world in one fell swoop Ah, to be young again. And also a robot.

 

I never said that, i wanted to support the industry in any way i can because this is the industry i'm passionate about.

 

Yeah, Japanese developers will be even more irrelevant in five years.

 

Also, aren't most people on this board like 30-ish? (I just turned 20, for reference)

But anyway Adam, at least you know specifically what you want to do. Most young kids who wanna get into the video game industry only know things on a superficial level. They play Skyrim or whatever and think "woah this would be the sweetest job in the world!! I wanna design a game that has a super complex realistic battle system!!" At least you know about prototypes and the work process a bit.

When I was 13, I studied pixel art limitations and various console graphical information. It prepared me for being a qualified worker in this kind of thing. (Of course, back then GBA was current and sprites were still used in new games. That's why I learned 3d as well though, to keep up with the times. But learning about old consoles is still good) My point is to study your field while you're young, have an upper hand.

 

I (we) wish.

 

Hilarious. Adam, your dream wont come true. Please understand.

 

I wouldn't say that, but I would say that there's no point in making detailed life plans at 13.

I would suggest getting into university (which itself is still 5 years away) studying whatever you enjoy the most and try to get a place on a year abroad scheme to Japan. Failing that, apply for a JET placement after graduation (if you could stomach teaching), which will allow you to learn/improve the language and give you hands-on experience of the country. You might hate it - more people come back than hang around; I studied Japanese at degree level and, to the best of my knowledge, only a handful of my classmates are currently living in Japan.

 

Be an car mechanic.

JK, If you really want to reach your dreams, then you should make your journey now as you're young.

 

I fully know that perhaps i will change interests, but at this time in my life i'm trying to learn and get experience anyway perhaps i will become a video guy since at the moment i'm learning about different cables and learning a little in-dept (thinks wikipedia). Also i'm not the noob you may be led to believe i admit that i used to be a few years ago, but i have finally found at least an area which i have made progress on and continue to anyway, no way at all i want to be a explorer and music & coding isn't my thing even though i may have to learn a bit in the future.