As we have mentioned before being a Game Designer is often seen as the Holy Grail in careers in gaming.

Two videos to bring to your attention.  The first is a basic overview into what makes a great game designer and the skills and experience EA look for……

The other video, is a longer presentation called: ‘Mum, Dad, I want to be a Game Designer’, given at the Swansea Animation Festival last year. With over 11,000 views and a 5 star rating this video is fast becoming a key insight into game design:  (NB it is 50 minutes long)

Hope this helps.  EArl

Mirror’s Edge:  Lauded for its creativity as a first person action adventure

© 2009 Electronic Arts Inc. All rights reserved. All trademarks are the property of their respective owners

Imagine the blast you would get working on a game like Brutal Legend

Hey all.  I thought now was a good time to recap our series on EA Career Paths.  What we have endeavoured to achieve is to provide you with a series of videos and advice on the different roles available within a number of disciplines like art, programming/software engineering, production etc   Then give you an idea of the skills and experience required for each role.  Lastly, based on the experience of our managers, we have tried to define ‘what great looks like’ in that discipline.

Based on the emails I have been receiving and feedback overall, this is a popular series.  It is also great to hear from Deans, Professors, Teachers on the merits of this advice.  Rest assured we will continue to provide you advice which will benefit your career in the games industry….preferably at EA!   As a reminder we have so far covered:

Art:  http://tiny.cc/iTJqu

Programming / Software Engineering: http://tiny.cc/4vO5U

QA (Games Testers):  http://tiny.cc/uy3Gj

Marketing & Sales:  http://tiny.cc/Prdbk

Project Management: http://tiny.cc/22r77

Producer:  http://tiny.cc/McxoN

Don’t forget….check out the latest vacancies at:  www.jobs.ea.com

Glad this series is proving of value.

EArl

Shine a light on your career path……

© 2009 Electronic Arts Inc. All rights reserved. All trademarks are the property of their respective owners

Maybe you get to test games like Dead Space Extraction on the Wii?

Games Testers are one of the most sought after roles in gaming.  Often they are seen as glamorous roles….with testers playing games all day….and getting paid!  Sounds like utopia.  Obviously, this is not the case and QA (Games Testers) roles are a lot more complicated than that….and a lot more scientific and process related than you would imagine.  QA roles are now careers that you can progress and gain promotion up to Directorship level.  So what do testers do?…………..

Quality Assurance Technicians, or Testers, perform a vital role in game development, testing, tuning, debugging, and suggesting detailed refinements that lead to higher quality and better playability of the finished game. The job involves playing (i.e., testing) the game in a systematic way, analyzing the game’s performance against the designer’s intentions, identifying problems, and suggesting improvements. In effect, they act as the game’s first audience, reporting on playability and identifying any aspects which could be improved. Testers are responsible for assuring quality in the final product and for finding flaws in a game before it goes public.

If you would love to be a games tester, we are recruiting now and have opportunities across the world.  As usual, first port of call is www.jobs.ea.com

To provide more insight, take a look at this video overview…..

EArl

Testing is underway for NFS Nitro on the Wii…very cool

© 2009 Electronic Arts Inc. All rights reserved. All trademarks are the property of their respective owners