Good sites with gamedev jobs?

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    • I would say you need to first research the area you are looking to go to, and if that is worldwide than you have a large area to search. Here is what I did, and it landed me a job before I even finished school.

      - Make a comprehensive list of all of the game development studios in your search area (mine was Toronto and the GTA).
      - Identify the type of games the studios make, if you are a C++ dev with no iOS experience, and they program in objective-C, the job is less likely to be suited for you, however, this isn't a deciding factor, if I was asked to do flash as a C++ programmer, I could still perform the duties required.
      - Also identify the studios you dream of working at, it doesn't hurt to set your sights high as well and apply for where you dream of going, don't expect to get a lead programmer position if you don't have a large amount of experience, but it doesn't hurt to let them know you are interested.

      With your list of companies, you can start to do the following

      - First off check their website, most companies have their own dedicated job postings, especially bigger studios like Gameloft, Rockstar, Ubisoft, etc.
      - If you are an alumni at a game dev school, ask to be placed on their job notifications list, I receive 1/2 a dozen job listings every week or so.
      - Network with the dedicated recruiters for these companies on LinkedIn, they want you to get the job so they can also get paid, you can usually find them by simply searching the company name and looking for a title like '<company name> recruiter>', they almost never make their profile private so they are easy to find. Make sure you really target them personally and express your interest in their company, and let them know of any job listings that caught your eye with the company. Something else to consider is timing, if you have a good portfolio (which you really should try to develop), you can send in your resume which includes your LinkedIn and portfolio website, and also connect with them on LinkedIn simultaneously. This could be a deciding factor if they are beginning to look for a new developer who not only has sent them a killer portfolio but has also made a personal connection with them and expressed great interest in the position.
      - Cold E-Mails, this isn't really the top method to use, but sometimes just scoping out a company is worth the email, send the email the same you would to any other listings, specifying that although you did not see any current job listings, that you have a great interest in the company and the games they make, make sure you have something in your portfolio that really pops, this way when an opening does come up, they can say "What about that guy who sent us the portfolio with the 'x' in it, has he re-applied?".

      The reason I didn't specify any job listing websites was because I never used them to get a job in the industry, I personally found company specific websites had the largest amount (and most up to date) of job listings out there.
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      The post was edited 1 time, last by mholley519 ().

    • Scanning job resources I came to the conclusion that most of the jobs are located in US, I was surprised that there are only couple of large companies in Europe (and obviously small companies won't hire foreign workers due to visa problems). I'm interested why EU guys don't do development as much as US guys...
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    • Yes, the vast majority of game development is done in the US. I believe the reason most game dev is out here is because we, along with Japan, were some of the early pioneers of modern gaming.

      The sad reality is that your path into professional game development will be much more difficult than most people. :( I still encourage you to go to GDC. That's probably your best bet.

      -Rez

    • The sad reality is that your path into professional game development will be much more difficult than most people. Frown I still encourage you to go to GDC. That's probably your best bet.


      Yeah, I understood it already.

      Right now I got two [local] offers and struggle what to choose. One of them is non-gaming Unity programming with higher salary and I'm experienced for this job, but weaker perspectives. And another one is from NVIDIA which is very cool, but the salary is seriously lower due to my lack of experience of native graphics development and also with greater perspectives...

      I have approximately a day to make this choise.
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    • My advice is this: choose the one where the day-to-day job will make you happiest. As long as you make enough to survive, money is really not what's important. I took a 40% pay cut moving from a job I hated to a job I loved and it was the best decision I ever made. Besides, once you get the experience, the money will follow.

      -Rez
    • Originally posted by rezination
      My advice is this: choose the one where the day-to-day job will make you happiest. As long as you make enough to survive, money is really not what's important. I took a 40% pay cut moving from a job I hated to a job I loved and it was the best decision I ever made. Besides, once you get the experience, the money will follow.

      -Rez

      Thanks for the advice. I took NVIDIA offer for which I have been preparing since last year. Also brief negotiation increased salary as well! :D So everything should be fine now.
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