[graffix]

For context, I learned to program via hobby game development, eventually going pro. But I gradually transitioned away from the game industry, into adjacent territory like simulation and visualization. Of my six jobs thus far, the non-game ones were the best two overall.

Today's "mid-size" to AAA game development culture is ultra-conservative, both technically and creatively. Ballooning team sizes and budgets mandate this. Do not join a studio bigger than ~10 people. Smaller teams/studios imply better jobs, in my experience.

They say not to make your hobby your job- unfortunately, there's no other way to break in to this highly competetive industry (echoing others here). So start with hobby game dev in your free time. It's worth learning C++ while doing so. C# is another option, but one that mostly locks you in to studios using Unity.

Beware of relatively low compensation and "crunch time" (really a perpetual, cyclical issue in game dev). I largely escaped the latter, but most in the industry can share overtime horror stories.