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LESSON #27:
BREAKING DOWN THE BARRIERS



Today there are high barriers to getting into the game industry. An entire generation who grew up playing video games is now entering the workplace. And a lot of them are talented and hard-working team players. The competition is stiff to get in, and the game companies can be choosy about who they hire. With the economy the way it is right now, it's tough everywhere. You have to use a fresh approach to get a job these days -- especially in the game biz.

Frequently Asked Question: "I've got a degree, I've got a portfolio (demo reel, sample code, as applicable), I've tried everything. But I can't even get a measly interview! What am I doing wrong?"

Like I said in Lesson 3, that's not a good question. The asker hasn't given me enough information to answer it. But just about every time I've done some digging and mined more information from these folks, the same kind of picture has emerged.

From that picture, I've put together a checklist that aspiring game developers can use to improve their chances of breaking through the barriers to entry. (Note: I used the term "developer" deliberately, to encompass aspiring designers, programmers, artists, producers, testers, etc.)

My words here are based on my years of experience at reading résumés of artists, programmers, musicians, and associate producers, from the point of view of the guy who does the hiring. (In case you didn't know, I was a producer at Activision for 12 years. If you didn't know that, then you need to learn to do research better. Explore the nav frame at left.) Today, I'm a freelancer. I teach, I write, I consult. I write game designs. And I write these Lessons to help newbies and wannabes. I do NOT give free confidential advice. Do NOT send me your résumés, your portfolios, your demos for analysis unless you want to pay me to do so. These Lessons and the Q&A Bulletin Board are the extent of the help I can offer. It is assumed that you have also read Lesson 3 and Lesson 4. If you haven't, you should. It is strongly recommended that you check out the topics covered by ALL the lessons before posting a question on the Q&A Bulletin Board. If your question could be answered by a Lesson, the only answer you'll get on the BB is "read Lesson # [whatever]."


BARRIER-BUSTING CHECKLIST



Note: this checklist is in alphabetical order... NOT order of importance. They are ALL important.



1. The Four-Year College or University Degree

How many times have I said it on this site (and in my monthly column on the IGDA site): you must have a college degree. And not just a two-year or three-year degree. You need a four-year degree. The diploma is one of the strongest tools against those barriers to entry in the game biz.

Of course you're going to hear about guys who got in, and moved up, without a degree. But those guys are the exceptions. And those guys aren't trying to break into the biz in today's climate. Don't pin your hopes on being an exception to the rule.

2. The Cover Letter

I heard someone who worked with racehorses talking on NPR as I was working on this lesson. He commented that he liked to watch a horse in its workouts, just like someone involved in sports likes to see how a boxer or a team work out.
This racehorse guy said he wants to see how athletic a horse is, to see its spirit, how it moves.

This made me think of a parallel to this lesson. An interviewer wants to know about an applicant. How knowledgeable he is, to see his passion for games, how he works.

One way to show these things (since a college graduate's résumé is by definition pretty sparse) is with a great cover letter. If you're applying for a creative job, the cover letter is a tool you can use to show off your creativity. You can put stuff in a cover letter that doesn't belong in a résumé. For some ideas about the kinds of things you can mention in a cover letter (which will show how passionate and hard-working you are about games in your own time), see Lesson 12.

If you are aspiring to work as a tester, designer, or associate producer, you have to have excellent writing skills. Programmers by their very nature as engineer types normally have writing skills sufficient to do the job. This last tip is aimed mainly at artists, whose "right-brain" nature frequently makes them much less skilled at writing.

My tip for artists is: get a friend to help you with writing your cover letter. The cover letter needs to use good grammar, punctuation, and spelling. Since in an artist's job it's rare that writing skills are that important, it isn't cheating for an art applicant to have a friend help with the cover letter. (Whereas the aspiring designer, tester, producer, and programmer must write their own.)

It's easy to find lots of information about writing cover letters through a Google search, but I recommend these two sites in particular: And see my Links page too.


3. Email

I used to advise wannabes to call on the phone, visit, and use snailmail. But the industry has changed. H.R. departments (Human Resources) are increasingly relying on email as the method of choice for receiving applications. But ya gotta do it right, people! Research each game company you're applying to, and write an appropriate cover letter target to the company and the job. Don't write a cut-and-paste template with "To whom it may concern" and use it for every company. Make sure your email doesn't have a stupid subject line as discussed in Lesson 24! Put your name in the subject line, and the job you're applying for. Make sure your attachments (your résumé, for instance) contain your name in the filename. I can't tell you how many résumés I've received that were named "résumé.doc" - the newest one overwrote the oldest one, when I saved them to my applicants folder, so now I have just one!

4. Location, Location, Location

I'm sure you've heard that an employer will pay moving expenses for a new employee to relocate to be near the company. That applies for experienced professionals only. Game companies won't pay relocation expenses for an entry-level candidate who's fresh out of college. If you live in West Podunk, you have to move to where the game companies are. There are several "hotbeds" of game companies around the continental United States. The major hotbeds are the San Francisco Bay, Los Angeles, Seattle, San Diego, Dallas, Salt Lake City, Chicago, Boston. (If you live in Canada, the hotbeds are Vancouver, Montreal, and I suppose Toronto but do your own research.) There are also game companies located here and there. But for someone trying to break through the barriers, you need to be in a hotbed, and the bigger the hotbed the better. See the Game Biz Links page and do some research.

Find out where the game companies are. If you live in a coldbed, start packing. Move.

5. Networking

Networking means developing relationships with people (it doesn't have anything to do with wireless access points or cable hubs or anything like that). Even if you aren't a team player, even if you're a lone wolf who refuses to work in the game biz on anything but your own terms (which if you ask me is an ignorant, arrogant, and self-destructive attitude), you will find that networking is crucial to working in the game biz. There are several ways networking can work; the following are just a few ideas. You can figure out your own ways too.

6. Perseverance

If you've been rejected, get back on the horse. Keep on trying. If you don't apply for a job, you definitely won't get one. Do more research. Find more companies. Find different kinds of companies. Join the IGDA, and attend local chapter meetings. If you don't have a chapter in your area, form one. Keep gnawing at it like a bulldog to get at that juicy marrow inside.*

Another common job-hunting pitfall is to simply sit and wait to hear about job openings. By the time an opening is widely known, it's probably already been filled. You have to be pro-active. And by all means, don't wait for the economy to get better, or for the game biz to pick up. There are openings all the time, and most of them don't get posted in the newspaper want ads.

* (And somebody please stop me from using silly mixed metaphors all the time.)

7. Portfolio, Demo Reel, Demo Disc, Sample Code

Aspiring artists have to have a portfolio and/or demo reel (demo disc).

Aspiring musicians and sound engineers need to have a demo reel (demo disc).

Aspiring programmers have to have sample code, and, if you've made a demo, a demo disc.

Aspiring designers have to demonstrate their skills somehow. If you have artistic skills, then you need a portfolio and/or demo reel (demo disc). If you have programming ability, then sample code and, if you've implemented something you've designed, a demo disc. If you've designed levels or mods using mod tools, you need a demo disc. If you've written game designs, they could possibly go into a design portfolio.

Here are the general rules on whether to use paper, videotape, CD, DVD, or website as your portfolio medium if you are an artist:

For still images - send a PAPER portfolio. Best to deliver by hand during an interview. Second-best is to snailmail it. Paper portfolios are the easiest to use, hardest to ignore, and very standard.

For moving images - make a demo reel on VHS tape. Best to deliver it by hand during an interview - second-best to snailmail it. Everybody can just pop a tape into a VCR easily. Make sure the tape is rewound before you deliver it.

The downside of CD - If you deliver your stuff on CD, the recipient might not have the codecs you use, may have to download a driver or a viewer. Also, with a CD, the recipient has to do some amount of navigation to view the multiple things you are sending on the CD. You do not want to inconvenience the recipient in any way.

The downside of DVD - Even in big game companies, not every recipient is equipped to handle DVDs in his office. He may have to go to another room or office to use a DVD player or DVD-capable PC.

The downside of web portfolios - You SHOULD have your portfolio on a website, but the best way to give people its URL is in an email, in which the link is clickable without having to type the URL. But you shouldn't be using email as a job search medium - it's useful for follow-ups after interviews, or to coordinate details once an interview has been arranged. The URL must be short, easily typable, and without any confusing characters ("oh" versus "zero" and "one" versus lower-case "L" for example - these are not a problem if you don't throw a number into the middle of what looks like a word). But getting to the URL isn't all there is. Then you have some sort of site navigation system that the hirer will have to deal with. He could well miss some of your best stuff, or he might have to download a plug-in. You don't want to inconvenience the hirer in any way.

8. Realistic Targeting

The barriers at the big publishers are much stronger, wider, and higher than the barriers at smaller game developers. Do your research. Know the difference between a developer and a publisher. If you've been getting shot down by the big publishers, stop frustrating yourself and lower your sights. Go for a position at a smaller development company. They're all over the place. Do your research.

If you've been applying only for "Game Designer" openings, and getting shot down left and right, then lower your sights. Apply for realistic (less "sexy") job openings. You have to get your foot in the door and prove yourself before you can become a "game designer."

I sometimes hear from wannabes who hope to get a job working in the game studio of a famous Japanese game maker like Square or Nintendo. I always tell them, "plan to go to college in Japan. Learn how to read and write Japanese fluently." That just makes sense, doesn't it?

Your friends will be impressed if your first job is at E.A., but that's a very big if. Maybe your friends won't be so impressed if your first job is at Podunk Games, but you could well love working and learning there. After having several successful years and projects at Podunk, if you apply to E.A., your chances of getting in there are higher. If you really want to leave Podunk. And that's not so small an if.

Smaller barriers are easier to break down than bigger barriers. That's just common sense. You are a sensible person, aren't you?

9. Research

I said above (Location, Location, Location) that if you live in Nowheresville you need to do research on where the game companies are, and move there. That's not the end of the research you need to do. (And make no mistake, it is YOU who needs to do it - nobody can do your research for you. Besides, it shows the game companies that you're a hard-working person if you walk in having done your homework.)
You have to know about the company you apply to. Play their games. Read their website. Learn the names of some of the people by reading their game credits. Be prepared with answers to the usual interview questions, and be prepared with good questions about the company.
Know what kind of job you're going to want to get. Read game credits. Read articles about game development - look for articles online, and get Game Developer magazine (I think you can subscribe on Gamasutra - do your research!). Join the local IGDA chapter. If there isn't one, start one yourself. Don't know Gamasutra? Don't know the IGDA? See the Game Biz Links page and do some research.
Practice for the interview. Know about the typical interview questions, and be prepared. You can Google on "typical interview questions," or just check out these two preferred links:

10. Résumé / C.V.

Of course you have to have a résumé or C.V. Here in America we call them résumés. In the U.K. they call them C.V.s. Maybe there's a difference between a résumé and a C.V. I don't care. I just use the word résumé. If you call it a C.V., make a mental adjustment as you read this.

If you're a recent graduate, it wouldn't be unusual for your résumé to have nothing on it but your education. That's okay. Your other stuff, the things you did in your spare time on your own out of your passion for games, goes into your cover letter.

And for God's sake, put your name in the filename of your résumé! You wouldn't believe how many résumés named "resume.doc" I've received! And guess how many I still have in my applicants folder - just one. And why's that? Because the second one overwrote the first one, the third one overwrote the second one, and so on. Same goes for "resume.pdf" - I only have one of those, too. If your name is Kyle Spears, your résumé's filename should be "Kyle Spears resume.doc" (or "Kyle_Spears_resume.doc" or "KyleSpears.resume.doc" or "Spears_Kyle resume.pdf" - you get the idea).

For links to sites where you can get information about writing résumés, see my Game Biz Links page and Google "how to write a resume or CV."

11. Tailor Your Cover Letter

[Added January 1, 2008, after receiving a "spammed" application, and not for the first time in the past few months.]
Email is the most common method of sending in résumés today - that and filling in online applications. When you email your résumé directly to an employer, your email IS your cover letter. You absolutely must tailor your cover letter to the job for which you're applying. Research the company, and their products. Reply to the bullet points in the job advertisement - address the job's requirements and show how you fit those.

The exception to this is if you are dressing up your cover letter with graphics or colors. If you're doing that, then yeah, attach your cover letter to your cover email. But don't just say "See resume and cover letter, attached." Paste the words from your cover letter into your cover email.

You mustn't "spam" numerous employers with one email, using a generic cover letter. That shows all the employers that you're just lazy and unimaginative.
For links to sites where you can get information about writing cover letters, just Google "how to write cover letters" and see my Game Biz Links page.

12. Apply to the Right Company

When I say "the right company," I don't mean high-prestige companies. I already talked about realistic targeting in bullet 8 above. Rather, "the right company" could mean two other things:

1. The company that'll use your skills and interests fully.
2. The company that'll get you the job you're looking for.

As to #1, If you're a hardcore FPS fan and would be miserable working on anything else, then you need to work to identify and target FPS developers. But don't spend all your resources relocating to an area where there's only one FPS developer, who might well not hire you. And actually, on the flip side, professionalism means honing your skills working on whatever kind of games you are assigned to work on. If you are a hardcore kinda guy and you are offered a job at a casual edugame company, you have a tough decision to make. Professionalism is one thing, and blending well into the company culture is another.

As to #2, game companies are increasingly coming to rely on staffing agencies to get their Q.A. testers and temporary help. Usually, if you apply to the company directly, they'll tell you the name of the staffing agency they get their testers through. But game companies are notoriously tightlipped, meaning you might not hear back from them at all. So if you're trying to break in through Q.A., look not only at the game companies near you, but the staffing agencies as well. But you gotta call the right staffing agencies. Don't bother with the ones that just supply secretaries and receptionists - do your homework. Find the technical staffers, the ones that supply IT workers and stuff. Do your homework, and make sure you apply to the right company.

13. Do Your Homework

It's really important to research thoroughly. Know what companies there are in your area. Read their websites and follow them in the news. Here in Los Angeles, game industry news is covered by the newspaper's business section, but a lot more news can be learned by subscribing to the industry trade dailies. I mean email newsletters like Game Daily Biz and GamaDaily. Do your research. Find important news sources like those (and others), find out how to subscribe, read them.

It's really important to be on top of your specialty. If you're a programmer, learn about the different specializations within programming. Try your hand at each of them, and know which ones you're best at, and what openings there are locally in that specialty.

And it's not just about researching companies and job pigeonholes. Learn about the people too, and related organizations like the IGDA, and websites with discussion forums like IGDA and GameDev. And don't just do a little research. It's a neverending matter of keeping up, staying on top of industry news, not just locally but globally.

For the fun of it, let's have a Negative Checklist too - things NOT to do.

Conclusion

Here's that checklist. Print this out and make checkmarks next to the things you are doing. If you're doing them all, good. Keep persevering - "hang in there, baby" - ganbatte kudasai, as the Japanese say. If you are NOT doing something on the checklist, well, now you know what to do. You have to stand out from the crowd to be noticed, you have to shine brightly to get hired, and you have to work well with the team to keep the job. It ain't easy, but if it was, hey. Everybody'd already be doing it. Read Lesson 26 to read more about the concept "it ain't easy but so what, go for it, you're a winner."

Recommended reading: "So You Want to Work in Games..." at http://www.gamedaily.com/articles/features/so-you-want-to-work-in-games/71362/?biz=1.

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© 2003 Tom Sloper. All rights reserved. May not be re-published without written permission of the author.