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By Posted in Careers 175 Comments
This article is part of the Video Game Developer Salary series. See the annual pay for all video game jobs here.
An astronaut with colorful planets
Why shoot for the moon when Reach and Pandora await you?

Table of Contents

  1. Search for Game Tester jobs
  2. Game Tester salary: Overview
  3. Game Tester salary: Factors
  4. Game Tester salary: Details
  5. Other factors that affect Tester salary
  6. Demand for Game Testers
  7. Should I become a Game Tester?

When I was a kid, everybody dreamed of growing up to be an astronaut or firefighter, a ballerina or doctor. Things have really changed! Ask a modern kid what they want to become. Even the old standbys of “rock star” and “pro athlete” have been bumped off the wish list, replaced by something that once seemed out of reach: a job as a video game tester.

By now, most grown-ups know that getting a job as a video game tester doesn’t mean you sit around and play games. But it’s still a great way to break into the game industry. In fact, I’m the poster boy for starting as a tester. I began my career in quality assurance (another name for testing, or QA). Later I went on to become a designer and an engineer, and eventually a director in charge of multiple departments. I did go to school to learn programming, but only after I’d started my QA job.

After you’ve done your research on what a video game tester actually does, you may wonder about a more practical matter: What is an average video game tester salary? Read more »

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By Posted in Careers 320 Comments
This article is part of the Video Game Developer Salary series. See the annual pay for all video game jobs here.
Man wondering How much do game designers make?
You can make games. But can you make money?

Table of Contents

  1. How much do game designers make?
  2. Game Designer salary: Factors
  3. Search for Game Design jobs
  4. Game Designer salary: Details
  5. Other factors that affect Designer salary
  6. Demand for Game Designers
  7. Should I become a Game Designer?

When people find out that I work at a game studio, there’s always one or two in the group that excitedly explain how badly they want to become a video game designer. They love to play games, talk about games, and read news about games. Boy oh boy, they’re passionate about games!

I always encourage them to follow that passion. But I also temper it by describing what a brutally hard job it can be at times. Once their enthusiasm simmers down a bit, the next question is usually a little more practical: How much do video game designers make?

Read more »

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By Posted in Applying 2 Comments
This article is part of the Video Game Developer Salary series. See the annual pay for all video game jobs here.
Game developer salary is on target.
Will you get paid what you’re worth?

When you apply for a job, it’s common for the company to ask, “What are your salary requirements?” If this throws you for a loop, you’re not alone. It’s a hard question to answer. You don’t want to give a too-high number and scare them off, but you also don’t want to sell yourself short.

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By Posted in Applying 4 Comments

This article is part of the Video Game Developer Salary series. See the annual pay for all video game jobs here.

Image courtesy of Jeroen van Oostrom / FreeDigitalPhotos.net
Remember to negotiate your salary before you sign the offer contract.

If you go through the interview process with an employer and end up receiving a job offer (yay you!), the salary they offer could be lower than what you asked for. Should you take the offer, or negotiate for more?

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