Archive for January, 2009

How to Make a Video Game Players Guide

So you play video games and maybe you are pretty good at them. Maybe you have thought about making video games but the task seems a bit daunting. If you have some ability to write and keep a lot of information organized you might want to try writing your own game guide.

Here are some tips to help you write terrific video game guides.

Don't limit yourself to just playing video games when searching for game tester jobs. Helping all levels of gamers by writng game gudes is also an alternative.

If you are interested in the pursuit of making video games but don't know where to start, writing a game players guide is a good first option. It will give you a good understanding of the playability of games and how they are structured.

You don't have to be a great writer to create a great guide but you do have to know some basic rules. It will also give you some great insight and experience toward making your own games in the future.

Decide which type of game guide you are going to write

paid to play video games,becoming a video game testerThere are many different types of guides and the first thing you need to decide is which type you are going to write. There are four different types and the first type is the walk-thru. This is the most common type where you guide the player through a series of steps in the game. This could be a complete guide or just a guide to a certain portion or quest. The second type is the character guide, which explains many of the different skills, options, and abilities of a specific character type. The third type is the beginner's guide, which helps beginners get familiar with a game, how it works, and how the interface operates. The fourth type is a performance guide, which helps players achieve certain levels and goals within a game.

Once you have decided which type of guide you are going to write you need to embark on the most important step of the process -you need to start a notebook and take notes. You might have a great understanding of the game but your reader doesn't; and when writing your guide you may leave out small details that are simple for you but are not known by your audience. Take a lot of detailed notes and never make assumptions as to what the reader of your guide knows. If your guide is going to be long and complex you may want to use flowcharting techniques to help you understand the choices and decisions that are made in the game. Flowcharting is a great way to manage complex tasks with lots of decisions.

Get a Second Opinion

Another critical thing you should do when writing a guide is to get an impartial opinion from somebody else. This can be a friend, colleague, or even an anonymous person that you find on a forum or website. The important thing is that you have the person actually try to use the guide without you giving them any hints or tips. This person will give you feedback and tips about sections that were hard to understand or that didn't seem to make sense. Consider any feedback to be the most important part of the process. It is easy for you to go through your guide -after all you did write it. But another person going through it doesn't have the same understanding as you do. So get some feedback and make any changes that would clarify things for other players. An important thing to think about here is that if you have to explain anything at all to the test user of your guide then something needs to be fixed in the guide. It should be completely stand alone and understandable without you explaining anything. You won't be able to explain things to all your readers right? If your test reader has questions you should write them down and incorporate your answers into the written version of the guide.

Some Final Tips

You should always write spoiler alerts at the beginning of your guide or at different sub-sections. Let the reader know that you are going to solve very specific problems and tasks in the game. Some people like the problems to be solved for them but many players like the challenge of figuring certain things out for themselves. By writing spoiler alerts you give your reader the option and the control over how he or she plays the game.

If you are attempting your first game guide you should consider doing a small one. Take on the challenge of only a small portion of the game or only a certain task or quest. This will help you build some writing skills and will help you avoid the discouragement of not finishing the guide. Writing a large guide can be a daunting task and it can be easy for you to give up on it. Start with a small guide and complete it so you get the satisfaction of having the project done.

Chances are that you are very passionate about a particular video game and you have a lot of knowledge about it. You probably enjoy playing the game a lot and by writing a players guide you can show off your expertise and get even more enjoyment by helping other people play the game. You don't have to be a great writer to put together a great guide but you do need to follow some simple rules: keep the information organized, communicate clearly to your audience and get somebody to test your guide then pay careful attention to any feedback you are given.

For more articles, information, product reviews, and tutorials on the exciting world of making video games for free check out the author's website at:Make-Video-GamesCreative resources for making video games.

By Will Kalif
Published: 2/9/2008

 

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 Game Tester Guide

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Most site owners and webmasters would like to have regular “follow” links for their site? This site is running top commenter, comment luv and keyword luv, which allows me to reward follow links for quality comments without back links.

In order to receive a follow link you must provide quality comments. Low quality comments are things like “great site,” “keep up the good work,” “can’t wait to learn more.”

Quality links add to the conversation, engage someone to respond to you and provide others with an opportunity to know more about something you have knowledge on. Share an experience, give someone some advice, ask some questions and you will have add quality content to this site and receive your follow link.

Since low quality comments will be deleted, it makes sense not to waste my time or yours. In order to get a link, stay on topic, and add to the original post. Follow these simple guidelines and you will be rewarded with a follow link.

What Can A Video Game Tester Expect?

What Will I Make as a Video Game Tester and What Will I Do?

Video game testers obviously have a creative career on their hands. But just how great is it really? Do they get paid tons of cash for playing video games all day long? Or, is it just like any other job, which will come with both benefits and drawbacks?

Professional video game testing is without a doubt way better than the majority of jobs out there. However, being a paid beta tester, like any other job, does have a few downsides. As you can probably guess, these downsides are not too terrible to put up with, but they do actually exist and every single game tester has to put up with them.

Earnings of a video game tester

 be a game tester,game tester requirements

There isn't a specific amount of money you'll begin making once you decide to begin professionally testing video games. Wages vary from developer to developer, so it's hard to give an exact figure on what a video game beta tester can or will be paid. Having said that, don't fully believe advertisements that say beta testers are paid $120 an hour. Even though it's not a full blown lie, it's not really truth either - Game testers can earn a very good living, just not THAT good of a living.

At a rate of $120 per hour, a professional game tester could earn $600 per day just working a minuscule 5 hours. In all honesty, you'd have a really tough time finding a professional beta tester that gets paid even half that amount for a complete days work.

Average Wages: Annual earnings of a paid beta tester can range from a low $15,000 to an immense $80,000 or more. Monthly salary can range from $1000 to a high $9500. Weekly wages can be anywhere from $350 to a whopping $2000.

The wages you are paid as a professional beta game tester relates directly with the gaming developer you're employed with, not to mention the amount of work you can take on.

What you will be paid to do as a professional game tester

Contrary to what you may have heard, video game testers are not paid to just sit on their behinds all day long and play the coolest video games. In truth, testing a video game and playing a video game are two ENTIRELY different things. Even though you will still likely have fun doing the job, it will not be nearly as much fun as you first thought. Why is this? Simply because game testing, as mentioned, is NOT all fun and games - there is actual work involved.

video game testing jobs,test video games

Instead of merely being paid to judge the "fun"aspect of a newly developed video game, testers are paid to locate what most coders and programmers can't, which happens to be bugs & glitches. Video game programmers will easily find & identify the bigger, more problematic glitches and bugs; but when it comes to the smaller and much less obvious ones, video game developers solely rely on the best game testers to get the job done as quickly and as efficiently as possible. In light of that fact, as a professional video game tester it is YOUR JOB to play the assigned video game however long it takes so that you can find, re-find, and then document all possible in-game bugs & glitches!

If you're truly ready to make a full time living playing & testing video games, then you need check out the "Become a Game Tester" e-course. It will tell you everything you need to know and it will even show you how to jump-start your game testing career both quickly & easily. To find out more about the guide, visit GameTesting Paradise.

By Sean Saunders
Published: 7/4/2008

 

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Get Paid To Be A Video Game Tester

Get Paid to Play Video Games

Do you want to get paid to play video games?

Imagine receiving all the newest video games for free. Now imagine being paid up to $50 per hour to test and give your opinion about those video games. This is what a video game tester does. Video game testers play video games before they come out and tell the manufacturer what they like and dislike about the game. This way the public will get the best possible product.

                                                          paid to play video games,testing video games

People are making hundreds of dollars to test video games and give their opinions about them. You do not need any special skills to be a video game tester. All you need is the gaming system for the game your are going to test. Here is a quick way to get a job as a video game tester.

Finding a video game tester job may be difficult unless you know a programmer that works for ea games or sony. It would also be difficult to try and get a company to hire you for a video game tester position. The best way to find a video game tester job, and usually any job for that matter, is to find someone on the inside and work through them. Many companies will post these jobs on their website so just do a search for video game developers and you will find many. Go to their website and see if there is a posting for a video game tester. Here are a few to try: ea.com, capcom.com, lith.com, atari.com, and konami.com.

Once you are hired as a video game tester you will receive your games to test in your mailbox. The game will come with an assignment to fill out that will include things you like or dislike about the game. Usually the company wants you to look out for errors in the game. Make sure to read your assignment and understand what the company wants you to look for. Each company pays different and they will tell you the hourly pay. When you have completed testing the game return your findings to the company, they will most likely provide you with a return envelope for this.

Now you just have to wait for them to send you a check for being their video game tester. After completion of each job, you will get a check in the mail from the company you worked for. The best part about being a video game tester is that you get to keep the game that you tested!

how to become a video game tester,paid video game tester jobs

This article was meant to guide you in your search for becoming a video game tester. This is a great job because you can set your own hours to play the game. Good luck in your quest to become a video game tester.

Don't wait another second, visit Get Paid to Play Video Games

By Bryan sup
Published: 12/7/2006

 

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Network Your Way To A Video Game Tester Job

Video Game Testing and Networking With Others

There are a lot of different aspects of paid video game testing besides playing games and making money. The truth is that it is not all fun & games. To truly be a successful video game tester, you have to network with others.

Starting a career as a video game tester is not typically easy. To be honest, it can be downright brutal if you just rush in blind and hope for the best. To make things a bit easier for yourself, it may be a good idea to get acquainted with the basics of being a professional video game tester; or more specifically, the importance of networking as a tester.

 game tester career

Networking is a very important aspect of game testing. Not only will it improve your chances of advancement in your career, but it can also be a great way to find out whats going on behind closed doors within the industry. Are you guaranteed to have a better career with a network of reliable contacts? No, but it will surely help with the cause.

Building up and maintaining a reliable network is not an easy task. You can't sign-up to a website and expect them to give you all of the contacts you'll ever need. It just doesn't work that way. However, that doesn't mean you shouldn't exploit as many websites as possible. As a matter of fact, websites and forums are great places to begin with your networking efforts. Why? Simply because they are filled with people who know a lot about video games and the video game industry.

Websites & forums devoted to video games and game testing are created practically every day, which means you are in no short supply of people to network with. Although, if you do happen to have trouble finding a forum that focuses on the video game industry (which is highly unlikely), there is link to a game developers forum directly below. It should be an excellent place to make a few contacts and get started with your networking.

http://www.igda.org/Forums/

"Is networking really that important?" In a simple word, yes. A quality network will play a large part in your video game tester career. Generally speaking, a reliable network is the difference between getting an "okay" testing job and an "Outstanding!" one. Your network could lead to that huge job that pays almost triple what any other testing job has paid; Or, your lack of a network could lead to that embarrassingly small paycheck that causes you to wonder why you became a professional video game tester in the first place. All in all, your network will either make or break your video game testing career.

how to become a game tester

Sean Saunders Spends Most of His Time Playing Video Games And He Now Has A Very Successful Career as a Professional Video Game Tester. If You Too Would Like To Get Started With Paid Video Game Testing, Visit Gamer-Testing-Ground.com, The Number One Resource For Video Game Testers Everywhere.

By Sean Saunders
Published: 1/5/2008

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