The Art of Networking at GDC

For the past 10 years I have worked with numerous individuals in the field of gaming who were looking to begin their careers as developers or artists. In that time I can honestly say that I have never witnessed a better opportunity for making this happen than at the annual Game Developers Conference held each year at the Moscone Center in San Francisco.

Tips for the 1-page resume

There are many "right" answers to how to do a resume correctly. The following is what I think about when I am crafting one for an employer.

I try to include these 5 sections as my base: Summary, Skills, Game Projects, Work Experience, & Education. As my relevant work experience grew, I cut out the Game Projects section, which was dedicated to any game projects that weren't for an employer.

Industry Interview: Anne Chilldon, Volition

The following is an interview we conducted with Anne Chilldon in 2013.

Anne Chilldon was born and raised Florida and entered the game industry in November 2007 working her way up to Lead Game Designer at Gorilla Systems Inc. She has been at Volition Inc in Champaign, Illinois since June 2010 as a Game Designer.

Industry Interview: Nicholas Lance, Naughty Dog

PINGD: What convinced you that the game industry was the right place for you?

For as long as I can remember I have always wanted to make games. I was particularly influenced by the DOS adventure games of the 90's. They were always interesting to me because the stories were often times much more cohesive than stories in other genres of games. Growing up I knew that I wanted to make games, but college really focused me towards wanting to craft narrative experiences.  Ever since I have always tried to move into positions that would let me be involved in shaping narrative in games.

Industry Interview: Sheri Graner Ray, Zombie Cat Studios

Sheri Graner Ray is the CEO and Founder of Zombie Cat Studios in Austin Texas - a small indie studio  focused on educational and training games as well as small entertainment titles. Formerly the Studio Design Director for Schell Games, Sheri worked with Jesse Schell on both original and licensed titles. She has been designing computer games since 1989 and has worked for such companies as Electronic Arts, Origin Systems, Sony Online Entertainment, Kings Isle, the US Navy, Kraft Foods, Cartoon Network, and many others. She is author of the book, “Gender Inclusive Game Design-Expanding the Market” which was nominated for Game Developer’s Book of the Year in 2005. As an award-winning designer, her title GeoCommander was named Best Serious Game, Government Division at the 2008 I/ITSEC Serious Games Showcase and Challenge. She has been awarded the IGDA’s Game Developer’s Choice award and has been on the Hollywood Reporter and WGEN’s list of top women in games. A sought after speaker, Sheri has spoken at conferences worldwide on the subject of games, gamification, gender and games, and application of games to STEM.  When she's not making games, she and her husband Tim are involved in time trials and road course racing in their Corvettes.

Industry Interview: Grant Shonkwiler, Epic Games

The following is an interview with Grant Shonkwiler in 2013. Since then, he has become a Producer at Epic Games.

“So really for me it was anything I could be involved in that would expand my circle of people. It could be as simple as going to watch a movie and talking to people, or going to talks and talking to the people on the panel as well as the other students there that I didn’t know.”

"I have been passionate about games and people my entire life. I've done just about everything there is to do in this industry, except art...my drawing sucks, and I love it all. But most of all I love leading great teams and building communities. This has led me to my current role at Epic Games, where I'm working with the amazing Fortnite team."

Industry Interview: Harvey Smith, Arkane Studios

Harvey Smith - Arkane Studios Co-Creative Director and One of the minds behind Deus Ex and Dishonored chimes in on Social Media and how to grab his attention. The following interview excerpt was conducted in 2013 as "Networking Nerds" with Harvey.

Cover Letter Tips

Think about the purpose of the cover letter. Why does it matter? It is usually a brief, to-the-point message that tells the employer:

• Who you are
• What position you are applying for
• When you are available to be contacted
• Where you currently are, geographically
• Why you want to work for this company
• How you are the right fit for the position

(Notice how I just used the "who, what, when, where, why, how" method you learned in elementary school? It definitely applies to most meaningful documentation you'll ever create.)

What is a Game Jam?

So what is a game jam? It’s an event, usually held locally (but often online jams exist), where folks of all talents (art, code, audio, design, production...really, anything is useful) come together and just have fun making games. While some jams are competitive and have prizes, game jams are usually meant to be collaborative. You can make new friends, learn new skills, understand more about game development, or mentor newcomers. If you think you lack the skills to be useful at a game jam, you’re dead wrong. I often learn a lot in a crash-coursed game jam event over a single weekend.