“Hi, I want to get into game development, help with advice!” – Have you come across such posts in professional chats or groups? Of course, yes.
But have you read the responses? They write all sorts of things: take courses, don’t take courses, do all the test assignments in a row, don’t waste time on tests, look for internships, build a portfolio, don’t even think about going into game development, it’s already crowded here. And so on.
There’s a risk for newcomers to get confused and take the wrong path.
In this article, you’ll find reasonable recommendations for juniors that can genuinely help on the path to the games industry.
InGame Job Advice for Newcomers
- Don’t overestimate educational courses. They provide general insights into the industry and profession, which can help you get oriented. But to land a job, you need practical experience. Don’t wave your certificate during an interview; you’re taking courses for yourself. Of course, list any certificates on your resume, but don’t think it’s equivalent to practical experience.
- How to gain experience? By working on projects for yourself, game jams, or through education, aim for the real market. Learn which games are popular on which platforms, and which genres are trending. And don’t criticize mobile casual games; it’s unprofessional.
- How else to gain experience? Complete test assignments! No, no one will steal your valuable intellectual property. Let the experienced seniors debate whether to do tests or not; someday you’ll be able to do them too. But for now, don’t miss the chance to find out what companies really want from you.
- Take your portfolio seriously. It’s better to have a few well-crafted examples there, corresponding to the skills you’ve listed.
- Communicate with colleagues and seek mentors. Learn from others’ experiences. It will help fill in knowledge gaps and inspire you to move forward. Also, a recommendation from someone in the industry can play a significant role in getting hired.
- Study the history of the industry. It’s embarrassing not to know the names of those who took the first steps in game development. The older generation may be easy to criticize, but there’s always something to learn from them.
- Improve your soft skills to negotiate properly, present yourself well. This also includes managing your finances and time.
- Ask for help with your resume. Attach a decent photo, not a blurry selfie, or don’t attach one at all. Most candidates fail at this stage. A good resume shows respect to the recruiter and saves time for everyone.
- Set achievable goals and work towards them sequentially. For example, the path to becoming a game designer through QA is too convoluted and inefficient.
- Don’t try to pretend you know everything. In the eyes of the employer, it means you don’t really know how to do anything well, and you don’t even understand what you want. Choose 1-3 strong areas and focus on them.
- Don’t be late for interviews. If something goes wrong, notify and apologize. Yes, it sounds simple, but many people don’t follow this and immediately reduce their chances of employment.
- Research salary market trends beforehand and be prepared to answer questions about your salary expectations and justify them.
- Keep a log of all your negotiations with companies. Who responded to you, who gave feedback and what kind, who is the contact person, what is the status of your negotiations. Make yourself a table and record everything that happens to you.
- Don’t hop from one job to another. Try to carefully choose vacancies and work at each place for at least 1-2 years. Frequent job changes raise many questions for employers. No one wants to invest resources in a junior who may quickly jump to another employer.
- If you have to choose between a job with a high salary but no growth prospects and a company where you can work with experienced people and get closer to your goal, choose the second option. It’s better to earn less money at the beginning but gain valuable experience. Be sure – it will pay off later.
- Find time for games, TV shows, books, including classics. Knowledge of popular culture greatly helps in game development.
- Pay special attention to the games of the company you’re negotiating employment with. Knowing the projects of a potential employer is very useful and will work in your favor.
“As a Ubisoft Recruitment Lead, here are my top tips to help you get started:
Getting into game development can be tough. While a broad skill set is useful, specializing can make you stand out. Whether it’s programming, art, animation, or game design, focus on what you love and dive deeper into it.
There’s no magic wand or secret wizard to make you a successful specialist. Keep learning, networking, and applying, that’s the key success point when you are trying to enter any direction. But theory and passion usually aren’t enough, you need hands-on experience through game jams, pet projects, internships, and freelance gigs. Your passion for games will keep you going.
Everyone in the industry started somewhere, so let’s face it: game dev isn’t easy, but it’s worth it for the love of the game”.
If you have anything to add to the list of recommendations for newcomers to game development, feel free to share in the comments!
Keep an eye on junior vacancies in the InGame Job Discord channel.
