Jobs In The Video Game Industry: What To Expect From An In-House Position
If you've dreamed about working full-time for one of the big names in the video game industry such as Nintendo or Sony, you probably have already done your research and discovered the requirements you'll need to meet to get hired. Assuming you've already finished the necessary courses and built up some references from freelance work, you may now be ready for a full time job with one of the large players. Be warned though, it's not all sunshine and roses. Here are some things to be prepared for with a full-time video game industry position.
1. Game Ideas Are A Dime A Dozen
Whatever you do, don't expect to get any respect for your "game ideas". Large video game design houses already have all the ideas they need for new titles. The only thing they really need is people who can bring those ideas to life. That's why programmers and those who can design computer graphics and animations are in such high demand.
On the other hand, if you can come up with ways for your company to bring a game from idea to market faster, cheaper or more profitably, you'll find that your employers will be all ears. After all, even the the video game industry, profit is still the bottom line.
2. Game Design And Development Takes Time
If you're the kind of person who likes to see quick results once a project starts, you're going to be in for another surprise. Game development is a slow and tedious process with most games taking anywhere from 6 months to several years before they are ready to be released.
To make things even less rewarding, most companies will have several games in development at the same time. That's because they know that most of the games they produce won't be top-sellers and they want to lessen their risk. You have to be ready to handle months or more trying to make your title the best even while knowing your company has likely spread its bets around.
3. You Need To Be A Team Player
Even if the game you worked on turns out to be a hit, you're probably not going to get all the recognition you feel you deserve. That's because most projects in the game industry will require you to work as part of a large team. Different members of the team will be responsible for different aspects of game development.
In fact, you may not even see those working on other parts of the game during development, as there maybe another person or group of people responsible for pulling all of the pieces together. If you're not a person who can appreciate the inner-satisfaction of a job well done along with your paycheck, this can be a real downside to working full time for a big name in this industry.
4. Bonus Tip: Don't be too discouraged though. There are still other jobs in the video game industry that can be very rewarding both personally and financially, such as being a freelance video game tester. In fact, you can find many of these types of opportunities by visiting: http://www.BeAGameTester.com right now.
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