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Do you have a passion for playing video games? Do you enjoy writing? Then building a career as a professional video game reviewer could be a great fit. Video game reviewers spend their time playing games, and then writing about them to help others decide whether to play — or to offer insights that could help players enjoy the games even more.

So what does it take to become a video game reviewer? And is it a good job that can pay the bills while offering the creative fulfillment you crave?

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By Posted in Careers, Schools No Comments

Since the dawn of the computer age, if you wanted to get a job programming, the best way has been to get a computer science (CS) degree. Because of this, universities and colleges that offer CS degrees have been the “gatekeepers” to the programming industry. Which wasn’t necessarily a bad thing — CS degrees certainly do teach you a lot about computer science and programming, and even give you some hands-on experience.

But a new option has more recently appeared, and for many people it’s a way to learn programming faster, and usually cheaper: online coding boot camps.

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By Posted in Culture, Tools 4 Comments
Dig Dug didn't make the list, but it's one of my personal favorites! (GDC 2011)

If you want to make video games for a living, it’s incredibly helpful to learn a bit of video game history. Which games made the biggest impact on the world, and why? Which iconic games changed the course of video game design forever?

Playing historically important games is not just for fun. It will also make you a better game developer. It will help you understand the evolution of games as an art form, and experience the kinds of features and mechanics that history’s best designers used to create engaging and successful games.

In other words, by studying the games that shaped the industry, you can learn from the successes (and mistakes!) of the past. Then you can bring that knowledge to the table when you’re designing of your own games.

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Like any massive industry, the game industry has more than its share of acronyms, abbreviations, and jargon. Industry jargon helps people on the inside communicate more easily, but makes it hard for outsiders or newbies to understand what’s going on. How can you search for the information you need, if you don’t even know which terms to use?

If you’re new to the game industry, the glossary below will get you up to speed fast. It avoids “power user” jargon, instead focusing on the key terms you’ll need during your job search, or your first year on the job.

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By Posted in Culture No Comments

Historically, video game companies have struggled with diversity. Even though female game developers have made important contributions since the beginning, the fact is, game teams were largely staffed and run by people closer to the “nerdy white guy” stereotype.

The problem is, games tend to reflect the backgrounds and interests of their makers. So it’s not surprising that a lack of diversity on game teams has resulted in a lack of diversity in games — in terms of protagonists, characters, stories, and accessibility.

But all that is changing, and fast. Here are three important ways the game industry is working to make games, and game development, more accessible, diverse, and inclusive for everyone.

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By Posted in Culture, Interviewing No Comments

When it comes to work life balance, all companies are not created equal. It might feel uncomfortable to ask about work life balance in a job interview – after all, you want your potential employer to know that you’re a team player who’s not afraid of hard work. But the job interview might be the only chance you get to discuss this important topic, before you end up in a job that doesn’t value your personal life.

So if you’re interviewing for a new job, how can you figure out whether a company respects their employees’ work life balance – before it’s too late?

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By Posted in Tools No Comments

What is visual scripting?

When making video games, sometimes it’s not desirable or practical to create everything using a programming language. That’s where visual scripting comes in. Visual scripting can be used to create in-game events and control game objects, but without writing any code. So instead of typing code in a language like C++ or C#, visual scripting lets you use an easy to use, drag-and-drop interface.

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By Posted in Careers No Comments

About Naughty Dog

Headquarters: Santa Monica, California, USA
Company type: Developer, publisher
Number of employees: 350+
Most famous products: Crash Bandicoot, Jak and Daxter, Uncharted, The Last of Us

Naughty Dog was founded in 1984 by Andy Gavin and Jason Rubin, who later sold the company to Sony Computer Entertainment in 2001. Since then, Naughty Dog has become one of the most successful and well-regarded game developers in the industry, particularly for their high-quality narrative-driven games such as Uncharted and The Last of Us.

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By Posted in Applying 19 Comments

Do you want a job in the video game industry, but you don’t know where to apply? Then you’ve come to the right place – game companies post their job openings online just like any other company… if you know where to look.

It’s not always easy to find the job boards for game companies near you. Sometimes, it can feel like a game of Hide-and-Seek.

That’s why I’ve done the legwork for you. Below, you’ll find a list of job boards for the top game companies in 25+ countries around the world. Just click the job board link for the game studio you want, search their listings for a job you like, and hit “Apply.”

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If you’re planning a career as a video game developer, your first step is to learn to code in a language that professional developers use to make the greatest games in the world. But which one of the many game programming languages should you learn first?

It’s a big decision. Programming languages take a long time to learn, and you don’t want to waste time learning to code in a language that’s just the “flavor of the month.”

Instead, you want to learn a language that’s valued by top game companies like Valve, Riot, Blizzard, or Nintendo. Which programming languages will help you get hired at a top game company?

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