jobs in the games industry
DESCRIPTION
A recent presentation I gave to UWE students about how to get a job in the games industry.TRANSCRIPT
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Jobs in the Games Industry
What you should know to maximise your employability
chances!
By Lukas Roper
[email protected] @LukasRoper
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Who Am I?
• Programmer at Opposable Games.
• Recent graduate from UWE.
• Completed an unpaid internship on
a sandwich year at Fluffy Logic.
• Attempted to create my own
business Lucky You Games.
• Developed an independent game
“AChromatic”
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Before you worry about employers…
• Be sure to take advantage of your current situation.
• Your second year should be about consolidating your skills.
– And you should aim to develop some sort of speciality.
• Your third year should encompass your skills to create products that prove
you’re ready for employment.
• You’re in a time rich situation
– So use it to build up your portfolio.
– University work is great but you need more.
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Common Misconceptions
• You are not owed a job just because you have a good degree.
– It’s up to you to prove that you are better then the rest.
– Thousands of other students will be in the same position.
• Junior games industry jobs pay poorly compared to other IT industries.
• Most offices will generally feel “relaxed”.
– But you’ll be expected to work just as hard as any other business.
• There are no “shortcuts”.
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Your C.V, Covering Letter and Portfolio
• Your C.V:
– Should be concise.
– Should explain work experience, skills, qualifications, mission
statement.
• Your Covering Letter:
– Needs to be tailored to each employer.
– Explain why you’re the most suitable for the job.
• Portfolio
– Should be an expanded version of your C.V.
– Should be another form of contact.
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The application process
• If you’ve applied for a job in any industry most of these points are valid:
– Find out exactly who the application should be sent to.
• If in doubt, ring the office and explicitly ask.
– Be ready to take a phone call from employer during office hours.
• Creates a bad impression if you’ve taken a call and it sounds like
you’ve just woken up…
– Don’t be downhearted if you get rejected.
• Try and get feedback if possible.
• Learn where you went wrong and try again.
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The interview
• Be sure to prepare:
– Be confident you know exactly how to get there.
– Arrive with plenty of time to spare.
– Dress appropriately.
– Research the employer’s games and products.
– Be prepared to be tested on your skills
• Plenty of books available with interview questions in.
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8 tips to impress an employer
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Have a showable product.
• Try to have a product that you’re ready to show potential employers during
your third year.
• Make it easy to distribute.
• Be ready to show the source code.
• Don’t be afraid to collaborate with fellow coders and artists.
• My game “Achromatic” is an example.
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Get a secondary skill
• Get some knowledge of other parts of the workflow.
• Helps to develop an all round understanding.
• Can come in useful, especially when working for smaller companies.
• There’s no room in companies for people that can’t socialise.
• Communication is often more important than your personal skill level.
• Enables you to be more confident at interview.
Be sociable
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Don’t be modest
• You can’t be modest about your achievements.
• Too much competition.
• But don’t lie or over exaggerate achievements.
• Portfolio site.
• Social Media.
Be Online
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Work Experience
• Consider every opportunity even if it’s unpaid.
• But be wary of:
– Ensuring that the internship provides what you are expecting (especially
if you’re unpaid).
– That you make your intentions clear of what you are expecting from
your placement.
– That you’re doing it for the experience and not because there’s a
chance of a job at the end.
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Keep with the trends
• Be aware at what skills are required by employers:
– Unity 3D experience is highly sought after at the moment.
– just because it is now, does not mean it will be later.
• Check job specs often to see what skill sets employers are after.
• Some requirements rarely change:
– C++ skills are generally always desirable.
• Be ready to change and learn something new.
• Try where possible, to tailor your university work to something that will be
relevant when your seeking employment.
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The most important tip of them all!
It’s one you probably all know!
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Network, Network, Network!
• You must be networking!
• Contacts are key!
– And there is nothing wrong about using them to help you further down
the line.
• Plenty of opportunities to meet people, conferences including:
– ExPlay
– Develop
– And many more!
• Employers are much happier to give jobs to people they know.
• The games industry is tiny.
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A few things to avoid…
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Don’t be a dick to anyone.
• Quite an obvious tip.
• But as mentioned the industry is tiny.
• Word travels of those who aren’t worth working with.
• Need to present yourself as a professional person.
• This tweet re-enforces my point:
• Don’t be those people!
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Don’t be too picky
• Take whatever you can get (within reason).
• This will enable you to gain experience and enhance your C.V.
• Experience is the biggest hurdle for graduates.
• You can then use this to choose a more preferable job.
Don’t assume everyone’s male• It is mostly a male industry…
• But be wary that anyone could be viewing your work.
• So don’t make work that alienates people.
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If all else fails…
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Start your own business
• Don’t be afraid to start a business yourself.
• Not as expensive as you may think.
• Plenty of free software available for new businesses. For example,
BizSpark.
• Funding opportunities are available to pay for development of apps and
games.
• Wide personal development.
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Placement Opportunity
• Opposable Games are likely to be announcing some sort of summer
programming placement.
• Job spec will be announced soon! (Will likely involve development using
Unity 3D).
• Follow @OpposableGames and/or myself @LukasRoper for more details.
• Now is the opportunity to learn Unity to enhance your chances of being
successful.
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Questions?