Game Design Careers

Video Game Tester – Quality Assurance

The game design career with the fewest requirements for entry is that of Video Game Tester.  Also referred to as Quality Assurance Testers, game testers carry out the critical task of actually playing through games with the express purpose of identifying errors, glitches and game play issues.  Every aspect of the game must scrutinized from story continuity, level loading, player commands and interactivity, etc.,  all the way down to art and animations.  When an issue or potential problem is identified it must then be documented and described in detail.  Several playings of a game may be necessary to perform an accurate evaluation.   A full report of the testing results must then be compiled by the game tester.  For this reason a Video Game Tester must be highly observant, patient and focused, not to mention be a skillful video game player.  One must be able to work under deadline pressure without compromising his/her ability to catch details and must also be able to express well on paper that which he/she has seen.

The job of Video Game Tester is the lowest paid of all the game design careers.  Video Game Tester starting salaries typically max out around $30,000 USD per year.   However that still isn’t a bad starting wage considering Video Game Tester is one of the few positions in the game design industry that doesn’t necessarily require a college degree.  Experienced testers can ascend to the position of Lead Quality Assurance Tester and potentially earn up to $60,000 or more annually.  Many professional Video Game Testers do their work from home while others work at their employer’s game development facilities.