I've been in the game industry as a programmer since 2000. I read this site everyday, but I'm not submitting an application to ycombinator, so maybe I'm not the audience for your question.
I wanted to reply to the overworked/underpaid thing, because you read it a lot on non-gaming hacking sites...it's like parents tell their baby hackers to behave, or they'll have to go work in the game industry.
If you're talented and not willing to accept shitty working conditions, you won't end up in a sweatshop. Lots of good companies treat their employees very well, both in terms of work conditions and compensation. Game houses on the West Coast are abundant, but there are some very good ones in the East (Epic being one of the brighter lights there), and middle (Raven and Human Head in Wisconsin, id in Texas, many many others), so don't feel like you have to readjust to a Californian way of life or living expenses.
The rough equivalent of sweatshops _do_ exist, but these aren't as rampant as you would think, even at places that have been (in)famous for them, like Electronic Arts.
Aim for smaller, privately-held game companies. They tend to be most satisfying to work for. If they get bought by EA or Microsoft (or Activision, or 2K, or, or, or...), jump ship when your options vest. Very few people seem to be as happy after the acquisition, but there are always exceptions.
If you are a generic coder with no identity within your company or project, jump ship immediately. Before the interview, if you can. :) Most places won't have you in the spotlight at all, but are very good about making everyone feel like an important contributor to a team. If you don't feel like that, you should get out, because the work is always challenging, but it doesn't suck unless you feel like a cog in a machine.