# How is it like living in Canada or the USA?



## .17485 (Jan 12, 2011)

I want find out, how it is like living in Canada or the USA? I've been looking to get into the games industry in the UK and had no luck so far, so I'm considering whether I should move to either Canada or the states.


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## intjonn (Apr 20, 2013)

Bro; you're like talking about 2 REEEeeely big fuking countries, geographically with climate ranging from Polar to tropical and everything in between as well as culturally a tremendous amount of diversity, wealth & lifestyle..........




*<<<<==========take it frum a koon!*

You think you could like maybe narrow it down a little bit?


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## ShatteredHeart (Jul 11, 2014)

Political Climate in america is kinda scary at the moment, a very good possibility of Civil War in the near future. As far as the games industry (I assume you mean video games), you would be looking at the coastal regions. Most game studios are either out of North Carolina Or California. North Carolina is very conservative, Cali being very Liberal. Not only is it tough to get into the games industry, its also very demanding (salary 60-80 hour weeks) My recommendation would be to try to get into a good indie studio and avoid triple A until you are a valued commodity.

Hope this helps


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## illykitty (Jan 29, 2013)

I can only speak about Quebec, since that's where I'm from. I live in the UK now.

Compared to the UK, I feel people in Quebec are more relaxed and generally I loved it there. I felt safe. I think most people are open minded as well. An advantage of Quebec and Canada over the US is that we have gun control, so there's no guns all over the place. It made me feel safe to know that Joe down the road can't just snap one day and go on a shooting spree. There will be some people who have rifles, mainly hunters (ugh)... But I don't know many people who do.

Canada has a health care system, similar to the NHS but with some differences, like paying for medicine unless you're covered by work. You can find some info here. Canadian doctors are fine but overworked (like here) but I find dentists a lot better in Quebec, even though you have to pay (again unless covered through work or something). They really take time to look at your teeth and clean them properly.

Cost of living is more expensive than the US but I think the quality of life is better overall (because poor people get more help, there's more of a middle class, etc). One thing though I noticed compared to the UK, technological services are cheaper here. In Canada it costs an arm and a leg to get phone, internet (often capped) and cable/satellite TV.

Also, there's 4 VERY distinct seasons. Your first winter might be a bit of a shock. Summers are REALLY hot. Get air conditioning. Autumn is very beautiful. I miss having more distinct seasons sometimes though I don't miss being in a blizzard at -30 Celsius (I have memories of walking to school in the huge snow and feeling really cold).

If you're going to live in Quebec, it's a good idea to learn French. Since that's the main language used there. Most people know some English, with an accent. Montreal is a lot more English friendly though and that's where some game devs are. I'm not sure how things are in Quebec (city). I've never been there (was about 6 hours away, I lived closer to Montreal at about 30 minutes away).

I didn't know what sort of info you wanted, so ask away if you want to know more.


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## .17485 (Jan 12, 2011)

ShatteredHeart said:


> Political Climate in america is kinda scary at the moment, a very good possibility of Civil War in the near future. As far as the games industry (I assume you mean video games), you would be looking at the coastal regions. Most game studios are either out of North Carolina Or California. North Carolina is very conservative, Cali being very Liberal. Not only is it tough to get into the games industry, its also very demanding (salary 60-80 hour weeks) My recommendation would be to try to get into a good indie studio and avoid triple A until you are a valued commodity.
> 
> Hope this helps


Do you work in the video games industry?


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## ShatteredHeart (Jul 11, 2014)

No, I have tried to start an Indie. I have a few friends that do and several friends that have been trying to get in. Its hard to get recognized without a nice portfolio piece. Get a small group together and make something playable. I doesn't have to be the greatist, but it will teach you how hard game making really is and if its something that you really want to do. 

Side note, what aspect are you interested in? Direction, Art, Programming, QA, Marketing?


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## .17485 (Jan 12, 2011)

ShatteredHeart said:


> No, I have tried to start an Indie. I have a few friends that do and several friends that have been trying to get in. Its hard to get recognized without a nice portfolio piece. Get a small group together and make something playable. I doesn't have to be the greatist, but it will teach you how hard game making really is and if its something that you really want to do.
> 
> Side note, what aspect are you interested in? Direction, Art, Programming, QA, Marketing?


Yeah that's true you have to have a portifolio that stands out. I'm aiming to get into games design. I want to make small games. Endless runners those kind of games. I'm learning how to use construct 2 and made a endless runner using the tutorial for it


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## .17485 (Jan 12, 2011)

@ShatteredHeart 

I made this a few days ago. Tell me what you think of it Space Runner - Free Addicting Game


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## ShatteredHeart (Jul 11, 2014)

Did you do the Programming? Runs very smooth. What programming language did you use?

One thing I would do is experiment with some mechanics, maybe change jump height to correspond with how long you hold down the jump button, the minor change will give the player more control and thus more enjoyment over making good judgement. once you have gotten comfortable with the base mechanics, start playing with power ups that break them adding more complexity. play around with some things that speed up or slow down the pace, increase/decrease jumping, maybe have a dash item. Also experiment with how things might play vertically, Almost all endless runners are left to right or falling, changing direction will help you stand out, just be prepared to qualify why you made the design choose. Once your satisfied with the play experience, find yourself a good artist to make it pop and a director to add enough story to give the player a reason to run. Story may not be top priority in an endless runner, but a little motivation goes a long way.

You have a good start keep building on it.


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## .17485 (Jan 12, 2011)

ShatteredHeart said:


> Did you do the Programming? Runs very smooth. What programming language did you use?
> 
> One thing I would do is experiment with some mechanics, maybe change jump height to correspond with how long you hold down the jump button, the minor change will give the player more control and thus more enjoyment over making good judgement. once you have gotten comfortable with the base mechanics, start playing with power ups that break them adding more complexity. play around with some things that speed up or slow down the pace, increase/decrease jumping, maybe have a dash item. Also experiment with how things might play vertically, Almost all endless runners are left to right or falling, changing direction will help you stand out, just be prepared to qualify why you made the design choose. Once your satisfied with the play experience, find yourself a good artist to make it pop and a director to add enough story to give the player a reason to run. Story may not be top priority in an endless runner, but a little motivation goes a long way.
> 
> You have a good start keep building on it.


Nah I used the built in construct 2 programming event. I'm not good at programming. I used a tutorial built into construct 2 to help me. Some of the code I don't really understand lol. Yeah your right. A lot of the endless runner games are similar. The movement from right to left. a vertical one would be interesting. I've played NimJump which is a vertical endless runner.


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## ShatteredHeart (Jul 11, 2014)

What part of games development do you want to do? If you want to code, download Unity. Its free and the number one engine used by inies. there plenty of tutorials available. If QA is more your thing get a book on game design.


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## jbking (Jun 4, 2010)

Tega1 said:


> I want find out, how it is like living in Canada or the USA? I've been looking to get into the games industry in the UK and had no luck so far, so I'm considering whether I should move to either Canada or the states.


I've lived in a few parts of those countries. Southwestern Ontario wouldn't be my choice of a place to go as that is the former auto belt down near Windsor and the chemicals in Sarnia unless you want to work at Casinos. Toronto may have opportunities though you should have some connections for that to work. Seattle has some rather nice technology companies there, fairly liberal values though I haven't lived there for the last 9 years so things may have changed. In Calgary, Alberta there is a lot of Oil and Gas stuff here. Vancouver may work like Toronto though I'd argue if you come to Canada, have a game plan and be prepared to execute a few contingencies when things don't go according to plan.


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## .17485 (Jan 12, 2011)

ShatteredHeart said:


> What part of games development do you want to do? If you want to code, download Unity. Its free and the number one engine used by inies. there plenty of tutorials available. If QA is more your thing get a book on game design.


I would say games design is the part of games development I want to get into. Coding is interesting. Very difficult too. QA? You mean quality assurance right?


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## ShatteredHeart (Jul 11, 2014)

Yeah, you don't want QA. Start reading up on design principles. A book I would recommend reading is "The monk and the Riddle" it has nothing to do with video games but gives great perspective. Start documenting Ideas and keep a design bible for each idea. If you can find a programmer and artest that likes an idea you can start producing. make sure the first game you start working on together is not your love child. Its not going to come out how you think but it will be a great learning experience.


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## ai.tran.75 (Feb 26, 2014)

Tega1 said:


> I want find out, how it is like living in Canada or the USA? I've been looking to get into the games industry in the UK and had no luck so far, so I'm considering whether I should move to either Canada or the states.


I'm in the Silicon Valley (palo alto,ca) the games industry (video games ) is quite popular - just really competitive but I have many friends who work as art lead and lead programmers  


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## Emerald Legend (Jul 13, 2010)

Toronto is decent, but I'd move if I had the chance. People are not that friendly and jobs are hard to come by..not sure about the gaming industry here but I wouldn't gamble on it. What I do know is govt will pay you to start a digital arts/media company in certain regions..like a startup gaming company, perhaps?


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## .17485 (Jan 12, 2011)

ai.tran.75 said:


> I'm in the Silicon Valley (palo alto,ca) the games industry (video games ) is quite popular - just really competitive but I have many friends who work as art lead and lead programmers
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


Ok that's cool. Do you what companies they work for in particular?


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## ai.tran.75 (Feb 26, 2014)

Tega1 said:


> Ok that's cool. Do you what companies they work for in particular?


Cryptic Studio, Locomotive Games, stormfront studio 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## aeralin (Jul 11, 2014)

USA- I have never visited another country so I am not sure what exactly you might be looking for here. However, someone commented to me (an exchange student) that it's very segregated in some areas in the USA. For instance one area can be predominantly one ethnicity and a couple other blocks another ethnicity and than other parts it's a mishmash of all different types of races or just white people (this can be all in one city too).


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## TreeBob (Oct 11, 2008)

Moving to any country without a job is risky, especially 2 giant countries like US and Canada. So I would go in looking to work anywhere you can, get settled and then start applying for the work you want. The 3 biggest cities in Canada have the most gaming companies (Montreal, Toronto, Vancouver). Cost of living is probably cheaper in Montreal and you can get by without French, Toronto probably has more everyday jobs though. Vancouver is just insanely expensive and I would stay away from there unless you have a good job lined up in advance. 
Canada Now Has the Third Largest Video Game Industry | STUDY Magazine

I live in Ottawa/Gatineau area and we are a very large tech city, but not much on the gaming side of things. 
Ottawa ranked top global city by Toronto think tank | IT World Canada News

If you want to be more at home, I would say Canada is more similar to the UK over the US. In traditions, Ottawa is still heavy on British influence.


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## HFGE (Jul 19, 2014)

PowerShell said:


> I'm not even talking about non-felony ones. If you're a felony, I can see justification for not letting you in. I'm talking about non-misdemeanor ones. Basically ones that aren't classified as a crime at all and are merely a fine.


So like TreeBob was asking, Canada won't let people from the US enter in if they have non-criminal traffic fines? I could understand denying people with felony or misdemeanor traffic offenses but non-criminal? It just seems kind of odd.


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## PowerShell (Feb 3, 2013)

TreeBob said:


> So you are saying Canada won't let people in if they have a traffic fine?





HFGE said:


> So like TreeBob was asking, Canada won't let people from the US enter in if they have non-criminal traffic fines? I could understand denying people with felony or misdemeanor traffic offenses but non-criminal? It just seems kind of odd.


Yes. If the law you broke would be a criminal offense if committed in Canada, even though it's not a criminal offense where you committed it, you will be found criminally inadmissible to Canada.

I am current criminally inadmissible to Canada because of this. In May 2010, I was pinched for drunken driving. In Wisconsin, a first offense is treated as a traffic ticket and not an actual misdemeanor. All 49 other states do treat it as a crime, but Wisconsin does not. I plead guilty, paid the fine, took the classes, and had a 6 month license revocation. I've learned my lesson and actually have had people tell me how adamant I am about not drinking and driving and praise me for thinking things through. Basically, I made a mistake, learned from it, and have not repeated it.

Besides that drunk driving, I have 2 speeding tickets. That's the extent of my record, basically 3 traffic violations. Well I've been to Canada 5 times prior. What allowed me to get in is a standard criminal background check shows up nothing since I do not have a criminal record.

Every time I crossed the border and they asked me if I ever was arrested, I truthfully said yes and explained that I was arrested and convicted of the offense of prohibited alcohol concentration. I also truthfully told them that it was a non-criminal offense and I do not have a criminal record.

Well the 6th time I tried crossing, they asked if I had been arrested for anything. I answered yes and told them prohibited alcohol concentration. This was the 4th time I'd be crossing at this border crossing and actually made a joke to the border guard that he seems to always be working when I cross (he had been working the 3 other times).

Well he investigated a bit more and I knew something was up when the secondary questioning took more than 10 minutes. They took that offense and said because it was a criminal offense in Canada, I am criminally inadmissible and turned me around at the border.

There are certain ways to get around it but I can no longer cross like everybody else. You want to know the ironic thing? I work for the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission and fully passed their background checks. They are the ones responsible for alcohol law enforcement in the State of Texas, including the drunk driving laws. It's a bit ironic I can work for them (and yes I had to fully disclose the offense because they specifically asked if I'd been convicted of a drunk driving), yet I can't go into Canada and spend money there.

I've done some research on this since when I get the app thing going, Canada is a good market overall. I've found even lesser offenses like a reckless driving or other traffic violations will bar you from entering Canada under their criminal inadmissibility rules.


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## HFGE (Jul 19, 2014)

@PowerShell - So you're barred from Canada for another 6 years? Ouch. Well at least you're in jail for anything and if you were visiting family you could have them come visit you instead. How's Austin? I've heard that it's a fairly youth-oriented town because of UT Austin and all of the tech companies there.


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## PowerShell (Feb 3, 2013)

HFGE said:


> @_PowerShell_ - So you're barred from Canada for another 6 years? Ouch. Well at least you're in jail for anything and if you were visiting family you could have them come visit you instead. How's Austin? I've heard that it's a fairly youth-oriented town because of UT Austin and all of the tech companies there.


Yes, I'm basically banned for 6 more years unless I go through the paperwork, bribe your government with $200, and get a temporary resident permit, or after another 2 years, I can apply for "rehabilitation." I love that term, re habitation. They make it sound like I'm some hardcore offender or addict for having a single offense on my record. After 10 years after the offense, you are "deemed rehabilitated." 

More irony is how Canada has a supposedly open door immigration policy and will let people from the Middle East with ties to Al Qaeda in, but God forbid, someone has a drunk driving or reckless driving on their record. Needless to say, the times I've been in Canada, the people were amazing and super friendly (probably some of the friendliest I've encountered). I definitely enjoyed my opportunity the times I was able to get in and want to go back. Your laws are just a little messed up when it comes to crossing the border. I don't have family there but I do enjoy going there. Pretty much 99% of my immediate family live in Central Wisconsin.

As far as Austin, it's going great. I'm involved in a lot of meetups and things are booming here. I definitely see a lot of cool things coming out of here. Right now I secured a stable government job that allows me to pursue my interests and hopefully I'll be able to get something to take off. If stuff doesn't take off, I'm learning government and also the law enforcement sectors.


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## HFGE (Jul 19, 2014)

PowerShell said:


> Yes, I'm basically banned for 6 more years unless I go through the paperwork, bribe your government with $200, and get a temporary resident permit, or after another 2 years, I can apply for "rehabilitation." I love that term, re habitation. They make it sound like I'm some hardcore offender or addict for having a single offense on my record. After 10 years after the offense, you are "deemed rehabilitated."
> 
> More irony is how Canada has a supposedly open door immigration policy and will let people from the Middle East with ties to Al Qaeda in, but God forbid, someone has a drunk driving or reckless driving on their record. Needless to say, the times I've been in Canada, the people were amazing and super friendly (probably some of the friendliest I've encountered). I definitely enjoyed my opportunity the times I was able to get in and want to go back. Your laws are just a little messed up when it comes to crossing the border. I don't have family there but I do enjoy going there. Pretty much 99% of my immediate family live in Central Wisconsin.
> 
> As far as Austin, it's going great. I'm involved in a lot of meetups and things are booming here. I definitely see a lot of cool things coming out of here. Right now I secured a stable government job that allows me to pursue my interests and hopefully I'll be able to get something to take off. If stuff doesn't take off, I'm learning government and also the law enforcement sectors.


Ack, I meant to write, "Well, at least you're *not* in jail for anything..." Lately I've been writing things that I don't mean at all but yeah, that does seem ironic in a really negative way.

Sounds like things are working well for you in Austin, I'm sure you won't even miss being able to cross into Canada until you're allowed to cross over again. Just a thought but you could also consider working for the university if you're looking into government jobs.


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## PowerShell (Feb 3, 2013)

HFGE said:


> Ack, I meant to write, "Well, at least you're *not* in jail for anything..." Lately I've been writing things that I don't mean at all but yeah, that does seem ironic in a really negative way.


I figured that. I did have to sit 12 hours in a holding cell to sober up. That was enough to know that it isn't worth the risk of another offense.



> Sounds like things are working well for you in Austin, I'm sure you won't even miss being able to cross into Canada until you're allowed to cross over again. Just a thought but you could also consider working for the university if you're looking into government jobs.


Crossing Canada is in the back of my mind because I think if something takes off, I'll want to go there and be present in their markets. There's always alternatives and I'm sure I could get a temporary resident permit without an issue if I'm looking to invest in Canada. It's just the hassle of doing that.

As far as government jobs, TABC is good enough now. The UT might be a good place to go eventually, but as of right now, I'm pretty set at TABC. Hopefully I'll have an idea that takes off and I'll be working for myself.


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## Laguna (Mar 21, 2012)

I'm hoping to work in the U.S. for a Canadian company. And if I decide I want to move north, I'm hoping that's an in. (I've done zero research - am I totally fantasizing here?)


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## TreeBob (Oct 11, 2008)

Laguna said:


> I'm hoping to work in the U.S. for a Canadian company. And if I decide I want to move north, I'm hoping that's an in. (I've done zero research - am I totally fantasizing here?)


Here you go
http://m.wikihow.com/Immigrate-to-Canada-from-USA


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## Laguna (Mar 21, 2012)

TreeBob said:


> Here you go
> How to Immigrate to Canada from USA: 3 Steps (with Pictures)


Cool thanks! Does it help I have friends from Toronto that live in the U.S.? They would vouch for me even though I constantly pick on them about their "nice-ness," saying "eh?" and for thinking the 2 dollar bill was not real.


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## TreeBob (Oct 11, 2008)

Laguna said:


> Cool thanks! Does it help I have friends from Toronto that live in the U.S.? They would vouch for me even though I constantly pick on them about their "nice-ness," saying "eh?" and for thinking the 2 dollar bill was not real.


Toonies are amazing.

also, I think sponsors are a good thing, but you may want to research that.


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## Laguna (Mar 21, 2012)

TreeBob said:


> Toonies are amazing.
> 
> also, I think sponsors are a good thing, but you may want to research that.


Toonies. I had to google that!


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## TreeBob (Oct 11, 2008)

Laguna said:


> Toonies. I had to google that!


and this his is our loonie. 
http://www.mcdougallinsurance.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/loonie.jpeg


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## Laguna (Mar 21, 2012)

TreeBob said:


> and this his is our loonie.
> http://www.mcdougallinsurance.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/loonie.jpeg



Okay, those nicknames are wierd but at least you have pretty animals on your coins, not dead presidents who don't smile and have wierd hair!


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## TreeBob (Oct 11, 2008)

Laguna said:


> Okay, those nicknames are wierd but at least you have pretty animals on your coins, not dead presidents who don't smile and have wierd hair!


The fun thing is they aren't even nicknames. Those are the names of our coins


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## Laguna (Mar 21, 2012)

TreeBob said:


> The fun thing is they aren't even nicknames. Those are the names of our coins


Oh. Well I learned something today then, eh?


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