Get Paid For Playing Video Games
Ask many teenagers what their dream job would be and the answer is invariably the same every time: a video game tester. They say this with all the naivety of youth, blissfully unaware and untroubled by the sheer level of hard work and commitment this challenging career can require.
The common (mis)conception of game testing is that people are paid ridiculous amounts of money for playing video games all day. In truth, the pay is not quite as generous as you might think, and the process is far from fun especially if you do it on a continual basis, yet it’s still an appealing career choice for many.
Testing a game is often a tedious, dull, time consuming affair because the tester will be playing through the same segment of the game over and over in an attempt to remove any bugs, glitches and technical issues that may decide to rear their ugly heads. The process is an intricate and pain-staking one, and doing the same thing over and over can really take its toll.
However, the process did not end there and it is important to note that your findings must be legible, comprehensive and easy to understand for the people to whom you will be reporting it to. Your input will directly affect the speed and ease at which the technicians can remedy the fault(s) and so if your communication skills whether verbal or written are not on par then there will be trouble.
Now that we have for all intents and purposes stripped the process bare, the next question we must consider is: just how much money does the average game tester earn for their labor?
There are a number of variables and factors to consider whenever trying to gauge how much in wages you will earn for video game testing, and some factors will weigh more heavily and importantly than the others. Without fail, one of the biggest factors to consider is the actual level of experience that the tester has, and this is both to the issue of seniority as well as passive skills such as proficiency in report writing and error spotting. There is a common mistake that a game tester must limit themselves to a single company, in truth, there is plenty of work to go around and so many testers will supplement their income by doing freelance work with various bodies and groups.
Download the free report How To Become A Games Tester and learn how to break into the games industry without a computer science degree. For free Flash game visit Kwikgames.com
