Start your Career as a Video Game Tester in India

Game testers play video games to test them and inspect their details to ensure they interact as planned and are free of bugs or mistakes that might degrade the user experience. They submit any faults they discover to the game developers so that they can be resolved before the game’s final release. You can determine if you want to pursue a career in game testing by knowing the function of game testers in the creation of high-quality video games. In this post, we’ll look at how to become a video game tester and learn about the job’s duties, abilities, and income.

Video Game Testers: Who Are They?

Video game testers are, in some ways, quality control professionals. Game testers play video games for hours on end while submitting bug reports to the game developers. To ensure that games are interesting and entertaining for players, they test the user experience. You must look for bugs and faults in the games that could lead to a bad gaming experience. A tester’s primary task is to guarantee that every part of the game works as expected. They must ensure that the game includes no faults before its final release.

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Roles and Responsibilities

After being hired as a game tester by a game development business, you may be required to fulfil the following responsibilities:

• Play the games through and take note of the speed and flow.
• Continuously test all pre-release games to ensure functionality and identify flaws.
• Examine the games, user manuals, and advertising materials for accuracy and authenticity.
• Document faults and errors, as well as the actual gameplay procedures that resulted in those issues.
• Create error reports, store them in databases, and provide developers with thorough feedback.
• Replay and retest the games to ensure that the developers have fixed any bugs and to look for any new ones.
• Give suggestions to game developers on how to improve the user’s gameplay experience.
• Collaborate with the quality assurance team to develop quality assurance guides and materials.
• Investigate rival video games and generate an evaluation and comparative reports.
• Protect the privacy of video games that the company has not yet distributed to the public.
• Attend industry events, conferences, and workshops about game testing.

Kinds of Game Testers

Different game testers specialise in different areas of game testing and perform specific jobs. Some of the most popular categories of game testers are:

• Finding errors and problems with game mechanics, controls, and features is the responsibility of functional testers. To ensure that the game runs smoothly and without any major issues, functional testing is performed.
• Compatibility testers: These people check if a game works with different hardware and software setups, including operating systems, graphics cards, and controllers.
• In order to ensure that the game is accurately translated and that cultural subtleties are taken into account, localization testers specialise in testing games in a variety of languages and cultures.
• Performance testers ensure that the game runs smoothly and is optimised for different platforms and devices by measuring parameters such as frame rate, load times, and other performance indicators.
• User experience (UX) testers are interested in the entire player experience, which includes level design, interface design, and game mechanics. They offer opinions on gameplay, level design, and the overall user experience.
• People from the general public frequently volunteer to test games as beta testers before they are released. They offer opinions on the game’s features, mechanics, and overall quality.

How to Become a Video Game Tester? (Step-by-Step Guide)

You can become a game tester by taking the following steps:

Pass Your Class 12th

You may not need a 10+2 Higher Secondary Certificate (HSC) to work in the game testing industry, however, passing the exam may be advantageous. It can teach you the fundamental communication and writing skills required of game testers. Also, many game development firms favour people with formal schooling. Their eligibility criteria may include certification, diploma, or degree requirements in computer science, game creation, or quality control. Higher education requires the HSC.

Be a Video Game Fanatic

If you want to work as a game tester, you must be able to play video games and enjoy doing so, as the job may take hours of gameplay. As you search for potential problems, you may be required to execute repetitious activities at various game levels. For example, you could turn the game on and off several times to see how long it takes to load or if you can do other things while playing, such as conversing with other players or downloading games.

Acquire Technical Knowledge

Gaining a technical understanding of games, their dynamics, and the aspects that improve the user experience will help you become a better game tester. As a game tester, you may be required to use game development kits and gaming systems on a regular basis. Also, having technical understanding allows you to better discuss the technical specifics of the games with the game developers.

Sign Up To Be a Beta Tester

Being a beta game tester might assist you in developing the abilities required for game testing. Many game development businesses allow end consumers to beta test goods that are 95% reliable and ready for market release. The beta testing period is limited, and the game production business provides specific instructions when you download the game about what they want you to test. You submit a report to the company after testing, and they may use the information to enhance the product.

Improve Your Testing Abilities

To be a game tester, you must be able to focus, pay attention to details, and have great technical writing skills. Game testers frequently play games for extended periods of time in order to find problems. The game developers may ask you how you found the bugs, therefore keep detailed records of all procedures made during testing. While you may engage with the game creators in person, over the phone, or via email and texts, you must be able to describe the issues clearly.

Get a Bachelor’s Degree

A bachelor’s degree is not required for work as a game tester, but it may boost your chances of landing a position with one of the top game production companies. You can pass competitive college entrance tests such as the All India Entrance Examination for Design (AIEED), the Common Entrance Examination for Design (CEED), and the National Institute of Design Design Aptitude Test (NID DAT). After that, you can study game design, computer programming, software engineering, software development, software testing, or software quality assurance for four years.

Make a CV and a Cover Letter

A strong resume that highlights your video game testing abilities and experience with game consoles and computers might help you land job interviews. Reading job adverts for game testing roles and reading the skill criteria can be beneficial. Compare them to the talents you have and use the information to design your resume and personalize your cover letter. Following their creation, proofread the resume and cover letter for spelling and grammatical issues. Detail-orientedness is required for game testers, and you should demonstrate this in your job application.

Submit Job Applications

You can investigate the top game development businesses, look for available game tester roles on their websites, and apply. Even if no openings are available, you should send the company a professional letter expressing your interest in working with them. Video game testing positions can also be found on job boards such as Indeed, professional networking sites, and social media. Search for positions such as game testers, quality assurance testers, QA testers, and development testers.

Be Ready for the Job Interview

Along with your resume and cover letter, it is a good idea to prepare a list of frequently asked game tester interview questions and rehearse answering them. Typical questions for game tester positions may include your game testing experience and understanding of various types of games. Interviewers may also inquire about the testing methods and procedures you employ to ensure error-free games.

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Skills Required

A video game tester must have the following abilities:

• Good communication skills (verbal, writing, and listening)
• Working knowledge of spreadsheets, word processing applications, and project management software
• Good and current understanding of video games, video game consoles, and PC games
• Ability to swiftly learn new skills
• Capable of maintaining focus in a fast-paced setting.
• Excellent problem-solving skills and attention to detail.
• Ability to adapt to rapid changes in game testing priorities.
• Excellent work ethic and comprehension of game secrecy
• Ability to operate alone with little supervision
• Collaboration skills with game developers, designers, artists, technical writers, and other professionals.

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Benefits of Becoming a Video Game Tester

The benefits of becoming a game tester are given below:

• Engaging with the most recent games before the general public-  While innovations appear to be produced at the speed of light, the testing intervals between gaming software formulation and release might last years. This is a rewarding element of the job for individuals who are loyal to the game and take joy in being a part of its progress.

• Entrance into the industry- While the employment of a video game tester is low in terms of experience and income, it can lead to greater positions in the video game development and design industries. Employees who begin as QA testers can begin to grow their networks, gain exposure to the latest advancements, and eventually advance to higher-paying roles in design or engineering.

• Flexibility sufficient to balance a degree- Part-time online degree programmes in software engineering, game design and development, computer science, and other fields are available around the country. Working as a game tester and being able to manage an online degree is a terrific bonus for the prospective industry leader while pursuing the academic road.

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Duration Required to Become a Video Game Tester

The video games are assigned to be tested by the game creation business, and the testing length varies depending on the game. It may be a short period for small and simple games, but it can be a lengthy process for larger ones, and it may even take months for game testers to complete these. The work needs a great deal of concentration, attention, patience, and perseverance. In such games, game testers must play every game level and attempt every potential game combination.

If the game has numerous characters, it is your responsibility to test each one and their interactions with the other characters at all game levels. This could entail hundreds of hours of game-playing time to test hundreds or thousands of game variations. If a game is too large for a single game tester to test, the game production business may delegate different sections to different testers. During that period, the testers may need to replay the games numerous times to check and recheck for defects and create detailed testing logs.

Average Salary

A game tester’s monthly compensation in India is ₹19,315 on average. The precise compensation rate varies depending on the game development company, location, job assignments, work hours, experience, abilities, and necessary equipment. Skilled game testers who work full-time for large game development firms may be paid more. In comparison, game testers who work part-time or on restricted contracts may earn less.

Where to Find Jobs as a Video Game Tester?

Vacancies for game testing employment are typically advertised on the websites of gaming firms. You should keep an eye out for similar possibilities at your desired game company.

Also, numerous employment forums on the internet are wonderful places to find video game testing positions, and a simple web search will bring them up for you.

As a gamer, you might have had fun playing in one of the nearby gaming companies. Check. They could work as game testers.

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Is the Job Worth It?

Given the quantity of knowledge you’ve absorbed so far, you might be wondering if you should start with the first step toward becoming a game tester. It may appear to be a difficult vocation, but it is also enjoyable, lucrative, and increases your problem-solving abilities.

Consider yourself a member of a game development team that increases manual dexterity thinking and bridges social divides. You can boost your career by becoming a game developer. What about access to pre-released video games and various gaming platforms?

Hence, if you enjoy playing video games but have an instinctive desire to point out problems in the design, becoming a game tester may be the appropriate choice for you.

Tips to Become a Successful Game Tester

Here are a few additional pointers on how to excel in your first job as a game tester and grow your career more quickly.

• In your bug reports, use consistent terminology. Investigate your company’s best practices for bug documentation, and use the same language as your peers from the start. This method will assist you in avoiding misunderstandings with developers and reducing the likelihood of duplicate bug reports within your team.
• When feasible, include more evidence of the problem. While it is critical to write precise and succinct bug reports, a single screenshot or video clip can frequently describe the problem much better than words. Make sure to include such evidence wherever it may be useful.
• Keep an open mind. You may find up testing a wide range of games, including some you dislike. Alternatively, you may enjoy gaming on your Xbox but need to test mobile games at work. Remember that regardless of genre or platform, all games require thorough testing.
• Continue to learn. Keep up with industry developments if you want to advance your career. Learn everything you can about new technology and services. It is also beneficial to conduct an ongoing study on the primary needs for more senior roles in video game QA. This can help you realize which abilities are in demand and what you need to study to advance.

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Other Related Careers

Experience in ‘game testing’ might also lead to other opportunities. This is a list of employment paths you can take after earning a degree in computer science.

• Video game programming
• Video game design
• Software design
• Software quality assurance
• Software testing
• Writer
• Lead programmer
• Artificial intelligence programmer
• Graphics programmer
• Network programmer
• User interface programmer
• Concept artist
• Art director
• Animator
• Lead artist
• Audio developer

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Video game quality control testers are in high demand. Not only do huge development organisations such as Electronic Arts, Sony, or Ubisoft provide game testing positions, but little mobile phone game companies do as well.

Finally, you may not want to stay in the game testing posture for an extended period of time. After gaining sufficient experience as a game tester, you should consider moving on to positions such as QA management, game programming, graphic design, or game technical writing for a promising career in the gaming industry.

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