The Interview

Types

When you've finally found a studio who is interested in you, they willinvite you for an interview to discuss your skills and the job either on thephone, or face to face; depending on the type of interview. In general thereare three types of interview; some studios use all of them, others just one.

• #1 The phone interview.

• Remote interview, they will phone you.

• Usually done when the candidate lives far away, when thestudio is not entirely convinced yet of your qualifications, orsimply as a first step.

• Usually the first step, and rarely the last step. If the call goeswell, they will probably invite you over for an on-site interview,although there are exceptions. There is a slight chance theywill hire you straight away based on your telephone interview.This is especially the case when they are already convinced ofyour skill or very stressed for employees, but it can also be anindication that the studio is too poor to pay for an interviewtrip. It can also mean that they rush through the recruitmentprocess and don't take hiring people very seriously. This canhave negative consequences such as a badly assembled teamor quick to fire/lay off policy on the other end. It could beeither or even both. I highly advise you to visit a studio beforeaccepting a position. We’ll get back to this later on in thechapter.

• #2 The mass interview.

• Takes place at some kind of key location such as a booth at aconvention, a university, or a rented conference hall in somebig city.

• Company interviews many candidates at the same time. Thiskind of interview is quite impersonal as you are just one of themany.

• Also usually just the first step. The mass interview is a way toquickly filter out the good and the bad from a large mass ofapplicants. If you are interesting enough to them, they'll likelyinvite you back over later for a more personal interview.

• Only large and wealthy companies have the resources and theopportunity to hold these types of interview sessions.

• #3 The on-site interview.

• Takes place on-site in the studio itself.

• Personal, the interview has been set up especially for you.

• Likely the last step before they make a decision.

• We will return to what to expect from an on-site interviewfurther down below.

How many interviews you have to go through all depends on the type ofcompany and where the company is located. If you live nearby, they willprobably invite you over right away. If they are located far away on theother hand, they will probably phone you first, after which they invite youover if the phone call went well.

Apart from the phone interview and with an exception for some very largecompanies, people are usually hired after just one interview. Being invitedto an interview also pretty much means you will likely get the job;especially if you live far away. In general the rule is the farther away youlive, and the poorer the company, the more likely an invitation for aninterview means a contract. Unless there are problems that come up duringthe interview, of course.

A well-mannered and financially healthy studio will refund your interviewtravel costs and, if necessary, arrange transport and a place to spend thenight for you. All of this costs them time and money. If they are notgenuinely interested in you they won't go through so much trouble. Themore it costs them to bring you in for an interview, the more likely it is thatyou will get the job.

Of course for everything there is an exception. No matter how much itcosts them and how enthusiastic they are, without the contract in yourhands anything can still happen and they could still choose someone else.The managers you may speak to are trained to be enthusiastic. They aresimply doing their job and a good conversation doesn't necessarily meanthe manager likes you much. Keep your feet on the ground. We will returnto this later on.

One thing you certainly shouldn't do is inform everyone about yourinterview and the job you think you are about to get. I have seen plenty ofpeople who update their site or make a post on a big forum to announcethey will be hired by some studio. Not only is doing this highlyunprofessional, you will also make a big fool of yourself when it turns outyou do not get the job after all. If you do not have the signed contract inyour possession, don't do foolish things because anything can still happen.

What To Expect

Of course every studio has its own way of doing things and there is noreal road map as to how an interview goes but the following will give you anindication of some of the things that may come up.

When they invite you in (or phone you), usually just one or two keydevelopers will ask you the usual questions such as who you are, what youdo, what you did, and what you are looking for. They will ask specific thingsthat are important for the position they have open. For example,experience with this software, or that application. These sorts of questionsare usually quite relaxed and friendly and basically, in terms of atmosphere,it's similar to sitting around a table and discussing your work with a bunchof likeminded people. Relax and just talk about what you've done, when youdid it, why you made something, why you made certain choices, how itworks, how long it took you, and so on.

Also, make sure that you have something legitimately valuable to sayabout your work. There is nothing more boring than an applicant whodescribes every screenshot as “this is a piece of my work and it representsa soldier/gun/tree/whatever!”. Usually, the developers can determine whatit is by themselves, and it is pretty obvious that it’s yours (It better be!).What they really would like to hear however, is how you made it, whatsteps you went through to get to the end result, why you chose to do it thatway, what your intention was, what you value most about it yourself, andso on.

Before, after, or during the interview they will show you around thestudio, or at least the department where you would be employed. They willlikely show you the project you would work on and you might have a chanceto talk to some developers.

After that they either send you home or they'll conduct another interview.Sometimes they’ll even call you back in for a second interview later on. Thisis especially a possibility in a larger studio who don't mind the extra costsassociated with another trip or if you live nearby.

Their Questions

So, what kind of questions can you expect? Here is a list of frequently askedquestions.

• Who are you? Can you describe yourself briefly?

• What have you worked on and made in the past?

• Why should we hire you?

• What kind of addition would you be to our team?

• Why are you interested? Why did you apply to our company and notsome other random company?

• What kind of tasks do you like most?

• What tasks do you dislike most?

• What do you consider your greatest success and why?

• What was the most fun project you worked on up to now and why?

• Can you handle criticism well? How do you do so?

• What's your best quality?

• What's your worst?

• How would others describe you?

• Where and how do you see yourself in five years time? How do youthink you’ll get there?

• What motivates you?

• Are you comfortable working with deadlines and time constraints?

• What do you expect from the office? Any special requirements?

• Are you applying elsewhere as well?

• Would you be interested in extra schooling?

• What kind of games do you like or dislike and why?

• Can you handle working full-time 40 hours a week on a projectwithout getting bored?

• Can you handle relocating without running into emotional trouble?

While you usually don't get asked typical questions like “describe yourselfin three words” in games industry interviews, some do ask these types ofquestions. Even though it is unlikely you will be asked these questions, itwon’t hurt to prepare for them; especially if you’re interviewed by a largerstudio.

The best way to prepare for questions is often to try and guess whatquestions you will be asked prior to the interview and think about what youwould answer. Basically come up with all the possible questions and therespective answers to them and then learn them roughly by heart. You willbe able to answer the questions much quicker if they are asked, and thatwill make you look more confident and like a quick thinker. However, don’tanswer all the questions as soon as they’re asked – sometimes a smalldeliberate pause while you appear to be thinking can indicate that you don’trush your decisions, which is also a trait that employers like to see.

Your Questions

A job interview does not just exist for the company. It also exist so you,as the interviewee, you can ask them questions and figure out whether ornot you even want to work at their company. You are interviewing themwhile they interview you.

Apart from the obvious questions (what they are working on/how big isthe team/what tools do they use/and so on), which you probably alreadyknow the answer to after their introduction, there are several otherquestions you can ask them on a job interview.

• What is the ambition of the company? What does it want to achievein the next five to ten years?

• What do you hope to achieve with the current game/project?

• Can you describe the organization and the scheduling? What kind ofsteps do you take to minimize the need to work overtime? (a veryjustified yet dangerous question as it can make you come across aslazy.)

• What exactly will my tasks include and what will you expect of me?

• How much creative freedom will I have?

• What are the most important house rules? (working hours/eatingbehind the desk/and so on)