How to get a job in games industry

In early October IGDA Finland Lahti hub and Baltic Explorers project combined their effort and organized an event for people interested in working in games Industry. This is a short summary of the sold-out How to get a job in Games Industry event.

[alt text: Black box with text “How to get a job in the Games Industry. 5.10.2022.” Also logos of the partners are visible: IGDA Lahti, Baltic Explorers, European Union, Interreg Central Baltic and Barona] — Image 1. Marketing picture of the event. (Tilsala 2022)

Tips from HR specialist

Opening presentation of the event was given by Arja Martikainen, senior HR advisor at Barona and an investor who has her focus on games and growth companies. Martikainen has worked for two decades in Finnish technology and creative industry companies.

In the beginning of the presentation Martikainen reminded that Finnish game industry can be divided in four: Entertainment, Gambling, Serious and Esports. Even if entertainment game companies are the ones that come to mind first, it is good to keep in mind all four categories when seeking a job in the industry. (Martikainen 2022.) Veikkaus, a Finnish gambling game company, for example employs around 1 400 gaming industry professionals (Veikkaus 2022).

The next tip is to keep your eyes open for trends. At the moment, it seems that for example VR (virtual reality), and especially AR (augmented reality), are coming back. VR thecnology is used in much broader scope than just in entertainment games. Starting a career outside games can help you grow your know-how and portfolio if you make right decisions (Martikainen 2022.)

[alt text: Restaurant looking space that has multiple tables and people sitting. Screen that has presentation in it can be seen in the background.] — Image 2. Arja Martikainen participated the event via Zoom. (Image: Mika Savolainen)

It is also good to remember that some roles have more applicants per open position than others. For example, programmers, animators and game designers are in higher demand than artists, sound designers or managers. If you are working in the lesser demanded area, starting your career as a freelancer is one option. Some roles are also considered as entry roles to the game industry and some are the ones you work your way into. Producer, for example, might have started as an artist, a programmer or in various player support roles and a game designer might have a background in game testing. (Martikainen 2022.)

There are also some ways you can improve your possibilities in landing a game industry job. Being interested in games and the industry is usually a basic requirement. Next, networking and treating people in different events nicely is a good start. Participating in game jams and testing different roles during them might help you understand better what are your strengths. They also show that you have teamwork and time management skills. If you have possibility to make and publish your own games, you are starting to be even a more outstanding candidate. (Martikainen 2022.)

Platforms to help job seeking

There are multiple different sites where you can find open positions in the games industry. If you are interested in jobs from Finland, gamejobs.fi might be a good starting point. Link to gamejobs.fi

[alt text: One person presenting in the front. Multiple people sitting and looking at their phones in a restaurant.] — Image 3. Katri Putkonen from LAB University of Applied Sciences was guiding participants in creating a profile to the Game Dev Talentpool. (Image: Mika Savolainen)

LinkedIn is obviously one of the leading platforms that recruiters and head hunters use so having your profile in good condition is a must. You can also try to spot the hidden possibilities by following the industry widely, when company gets funding it usually will start recruiting more people. You can be one of the first applicants. (Martikainen 2022.)

During the event a new platform, Game Dev Talentpool, was launched. The platform is free to use and is aimed to help connect indie game developers with new talents like students.
Link to the Game Dev Talentpool.

Authors

Ria Gynther works as a RDI Specialist at the LAB University of Applied Sciences and as a Project Manager in the Baltic Explorers Project.

Mika Savolainen is a board member of the IGDA Finland Lahti hub.

References

Martikainen, A. 2022. Presentation at How to get a job in Games Industry event 5.10.2022.

Tilsala, T. 2022. Getting a job in games industry. Cited 10 Oct 2022. Available at https://www.facebook.com/events/1592801814486145

Veikkaus. 2022. About Veikkaus. Cited 10 Oct 2022. Available at https://www.veikkaus.fi/fi/yritys?lang=en

Links

Link 1. Northstart. 2022. Explore all open game industry positions in Finland. Cited 10 Oct 2022. Available at https://gamesjobs.fi/

Link 2. Baltic Explorers. 2022.Talent Pool. Cited 10 Oct 2022. Available at https://gdtalentpool.eu/

Link 3. Baltic Explorers. 2020. Project. Cited 10 Oct 2022. Available at https://balticexplorers.eu/