14 hours ago, DrBFragged said:

This is one of very few times that I have heard this advice. Most advice that I've read has stated the necessity for a QA position first. I will continue working on improving my portfolio then. 

You dont need to work in QA before becoming a designer.  If anything, being a tester might make you want to quit games altogether cause it's so shitty and boring.

I'd recommend to do a lot of game design, whether it's using an engine like Unity, or designing board games, and to learn about game design theory.  There's some very good videos from GDC about game design.  I'd also highly recommend learning a scripting language like Python (or C# if you're working in Unity) and get good with that.  Being able to script will make you a much more valuable designer than someone who can only write down ideas or make spreadsheets.  Being good at math wouldnt hurt either.

6 hours ago, Tom Sloper said:

I know a number of them who started that way (in my 30+ years in the industry), including at least one, maybe two, who went on to become a producer at a triple-A company.

I think it was more common in the past, certainly for people starting in the 90s/early 00s, so there are certainly people around who can say it worked for them. But I don't think it happens much now, especially since more and more QA is located off-site so you don't really have your foot in the door in the traditional sense. I certainly wouldn't recommend it as the approach to take unless all other routes are barred.