The Thrifty Gamer

Being a professional video game tester is a dream job. Most gamers would love the chance to be able to play great video games and get paid for it. Unfortunately though, most gamers think that paid video game testing is too far out of reach and will remain a dream forever. Well luckily, it's not a "dream" and anybody can be a paid video game tester with the right amount of experience and guidance.

The following tips should help you get started with a career in professional video game testing.

Tip 1: Don't Wait For Jobs to Find You, Get Out There and Find Them.

Video game tester jobs are not going to fall from the sky, so you can't expect to find them with a few glances at the Sunday newspaper. Therefore, instead of just sitting around and waiting, be proactive and actually chase those high paying testing jobs.

Make a beeline straight toward the game developers and present your case, no matter how poor or excellent it might be. Let them know who you are, what you do (game tester), and why you would make a great addition to their team/project.

It's important to remember that developers aren't going to hire you on the spot; so, don't let rejection get you down. They have lots of video game testers applying for projects and jobs, which means they can literally be as picky as they want to be. With that being said, be as confident as you can and be sure to let them know of all your gaming accomplishments and deeds. They should know about what games you play frequently, what consoles you own, what communities you are apart of, and any websites/blogs you own or help operate. No matter what the gaming accomplishment, big or small, it will help with landing you a job.

Tip 2: Don't Think "Hobby with Pay", Think "Career With Benefits!"

You have to keep in mind that developers pay video game testers as part of a job. They are not paying testers to merely enjoy video games at their own expense. Therefore, when you land a testing job, don't simply play it to have fun; play it like you are earning a paycheck. Does that mean you can't have any fun? No; it simply means you shouldn't make "fun" your top priority while testing video games.

If you take each and every testing job seriously and give it your all, you should have a much more successful game testing career.

Tip 3: Know What To Expect

The biggest part of being a professional video game tester is knowing the golden rule; which is "You are paid to test games, not to play them." There may be a fine line between the two, but any real game tester will tell you that the difference is definitely there.

The subtle difference between testing and playing is, well, work. A game tester will have to do actual work, such as filing reports & filling out questionnaires; as opposed to a regular game player, who will just relax and play the game at a leisurely pace. Admittedly, the work isn't back breaking, but it is work nonetheless.

The questionnaires are the easier part of game testing, as all the video game tester has to do is answer some general questions about the game and give his/her honest opinion. The reports, on the other hand, are a bit more difficult to do. These reports need to be filed on every bug/glitch that the tester comes across, and they have to be remarkably accurate. In each report, the video game tester has to describe what happened, where it happened, and how it happened. With this detailed information in hand, the developers & programmers will then fix the problem and find out why it happened in the first place. Every video game goes through this basic cycle, which is precisely why video game testers are so vital to the gaming industry.

As you can see, there really isn't all that much work involved with video game testing, but that doesn't mean it isn't a serious profession.

Tip 4: Build up a Network of Reliable Contacts.

Networking is a crucial part of professional video game testing. Although it is quite possible to have a prosperous career without a reliable network, having one just makes things easier.

A network of contacts can actually help your career in many different ways. The biggest thing it can do is give you heads up about new job openings and testing assignments that have been announced. Also, some of your contacts can even act as valuable references when applying for testing jobs. And, as if those two things weren't enough, your network can give you the inside scoop about what's going on behind closed doors.

Much like a video game tester job, a reliable network is not going to just jump out at you. Therefore, you will have to build it up all on your own. The best way to do that is by getting to know the industry and the people who work in it. Anyone that spends time around video games (professionally, of course) can be included in your network; game testers, developers, programmers, concept artists, art designers, graphics designers, technical support specialists, audio specialists, etc. Basically, if they know video games and work with video games, you want them in your network.

Tip 5: Don't Give Up. Keep Trying!

The unfortunate fact is that you are not going to land a video game tester job whenever you want one. As a matter of fact, it may be weeks or even months before you land your first testing job. However, that doesn't necessarily mean that you don't have what it takes; it just means you have to keep trying & giving it your best. Not many newcomers start off at the top of their game, which means you likely won't either. Hence, just give it time. After a few months and a few jobs, you should be able to get your footing and begin advancing in your career as a professional video game tester.

Do You Think You Are Ready For a Career as a Video Game Tester? Are You Prepared To Make Up To $120 an Hour Testing Video Games? If You Are, Click Here To Find Out How To Get Started With Your Very Own Game Testing Career.

To Get More Information on Video Game Testing & a Free "Quick Start" Game Tester E-book, Visit This Website... www.GameTestingParadise.com

If you're interested in pursuing a career as a video game tester, but still have some doubts about it, then you will want to read this article. In it, I will answer the questions of most aspiring young game testers and talk about the different games that are tested.

The games you will test as a video game tester largely depend upon the developing company you are working for. The simple fact is that no matter what company you're working for, you'll be testing games that have yet to be released to the public and are nearing the final stages of development. Typically, you will test games in a variety of different genres, which means you should have some level of expertise in all the different types of video games (FPS, MMORPG, RTS, RPG, Racing, Sports, Etc).

If you are a specialist in only one particular game type, such as role-playing games or racing games, and nothing else, then you won't likely make for a good professional video game tester. That's not to say you won't get any game testing jobs. It's just that you won't have as large of a "job field" as most other game testers. Generally speaking, if you're going to make it as a professional video game tester, then you simply must be skilled with different video game genres. There is really no other way to look at it.

Why must you be an "expert" in a multitude of different video game types? Simply because the game company that hires you will determine what type of video games you will be testing. You can't pick and choose what game you want to test; it doesn't work that way, unfortunately. On a side note, many video game tester jobs will involve testing computer games. This is due to the fact that PC video games are prone to having many glitches and bugs. Don't worry about being a PC game tester though, as there are plenty of companies that focus purely on console gaming systems. However, it wouldn't hurt to get some PC gaming experience.

When you're done testing a game, it is yours to keep with no strings attached. This is a great way to amass a library of awesome video games for free. It's true these videos games won't be technically "complete", but that's just a technicality. After all, a free video game is still a free video game.

Generally, the games you will test will be sent via snail-mail, along with a "Glitch/Bug" report form that you will fill out after you've completed the game testing. And, just in case you haven't caught on yet, this means you will be getting paid to play video games from the comfort of your own home!

Video game testers really do have it made. They get paid to play the coolest and most technologically advanced video games, and they get to do it from their very own home. Honestly, what more could any gamer ask for?

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.

If You're Not In A Big Rush To Get Your Testing Career Started and Would Just Like More Information on Video Game Testing, Go To... http://www.squidoo.com/BeAVideoGameTester/

How To Become A Video Game Tester is a commonly asked question onlin, probably because it seems to be such an attractive job! Just imagine being able to get up and the only work you had to do is get paid for playing video games.

That said and it sounds wonderful in theory but what do you need to know to learn How To Become A Video Game Tester? Today I am going to tell you a bit about how video game testing begun and explain why it is not as simple as just playing games for money!

When video games first started in the 80's there really was not much need for video game testers as a lot of the testing could be done by the programmers who were designing the games. This was mainly due to the size of the games that were being designed. As time went on and the video games became more complex there became more and more bugs in the games that the programmers themselves simply did not have time to spot or test for.

This was when the video game tester was born! The reason being was if a game was released that was too buggy and it got bad reviews then this would lead the video game company to lose a lot of money!

So what does a video game tester actually do?

Well in short what a video game tester does is during the building of a paticular video game, when it is nearly complete say 80% it is up to the video game tester to play the game and test for any errors or glitchs that may be in the gameplay, normally they are called bugs.

To learn How To Become A Video Game Tester you will need ti have good attention to detail and excellent communication skills as you will have to relay the info about the video game directly to the company or you might have to write it to them.

The pay for a video game tester can be quite high but does depend on your experience, also if you are wanting to know How To Become A Video Game Tester it is advisable to get a video game tester job part time at first and build up some experience to get the higher paid jobs!

So what can you do to learn How To Become A Video Game Tester?

The first thing you should do is seek out a video game developer as this can be an excellent starting point and they are the most likely to be able to land you a job. Although if you are not lucky enough to know a video game developer then I suggest you search the net for websites of game development companies and either search for video game tester jobs on the website or give them a call!

There are loads of video game development websites out there so if you ring enough you should strike gold. Another way you can learn How To Become A Video Game Tester is to search the net for sites that have done all the hard work for you and contain databases of video game tester jobs!

I hope this has helped you learn How To Become A Video Game Tester and helps you find your dream job!

Michael Fieldings is a qualified computer programmer and has ten years experience in IT. He writes articles and product recommendation on anything that can better your IT World!

For more info on How To Become A Video Game Tester and to learn how you can get your dream job in as little as 1 week Click the link below How To Become A Video Game Tester

It's possible for you to become a video game tester. You can't just become a video game tester just like that. There are some things you need to know, have and do in order to become a game tester.

What are the things you need to know?

There is a reason why game manufactures assign jobs to interested video game testers. Your responsibility as a video game tester is to discover bugs in any game you are given to test. If you aren't experienced in playing video games, I tell you, you are not qualified for this job. Tell me; are you able to detect bugs in a video game? What is these bug you are talking about? Bugs are errors made why designing video games. As a human being, we have this spirit in us that tells us that this thing should be this way, that way or the other way round. If you are the type that has been playing games since you were a kid, I believe you would be able to detect bugs. Your job as a video game tester is just to detect bugs, write it in a report and your assignment is through, the next step is to submit to the report to the company, and then wait for your pay check. I tell you, detecting bugs is not so easy but you can do it. What you need is a short course on how this job is done and with it, you would conquer.

The short course I am talking about will guide you to successfully pass your first test. If you are able to impress the person that gave you the games to test at first, you've got a contract to continue to test and test games until you don't want to test anymore.

Furthermore, the compensation for testing games is encouraging. Won't you be okay with $40 to $150 per hours times the total number of hours you spend testing a particular game? There is no way you won't be okay with that salary. The video game industry is a multi-billion dollars industry, it even makes more revenue that the film industry.

Salary of a video game tester

The pay is okay compared to other testing jobs. You are paid with regards to the number of hours you spend testing games. The pay ranges from $10 to $150 per hour, which means that the more hours you spend testing video games, the more money you are going to earn.

Where to find a video game testing job

After you are familiar with what video game testing is all about, the next step is to apply for a video game testing job. This is another difficult stage of a video game testing career. It would be easy if you have the connections and know how to make them, but if you don't, it won't be so easy like eating hamburger and coke. All hope is not lost because I am going to offer you a guide on how to find one. How am I going to do that? It's possible to see a video game testing ads on the newspaper, classified sites and game magazines. Find these stuffs, both old and recent ones, and check if you can see any openings. If you see one, use their contact information like email, phone no or website to locate them and enquire if there is any opening for a video game tester.

Think of any game manufacturing company. Let's say, Microsoft Xbox, Sony, Nintendo and the rest of others. They normally post openings for video game testers in their website. I recommend you browse through their websites. Who knows? You might be lucky to find one. Apply for it with sufficient reasons why you are going to make a good testing job. Video game companies accept ages from 15 and above. There's no special degree to get a video game testing job but if you've got one in a video game related field, it will be an advantage. If after trying all these and you are able to get one, I recommend you try out some websites that have the listings for game companies that are hiring. One of them is gametestingground. They have a database of video game companies looking for video game testers with their contact info, how to apply and make sure you get the job.

GameTestingGround is a site that contains step-by-step guides on how you can learn the works of a video game tester and they also have listings of video game testing openings around the States. Visit them today and begin your video game tester career. Check it out at http://gamertestinggroundreview.blogspot.com/

What if I showed you how you can make $2000 per month, just by playing games?

Don't believe me? By the end of this article your perspective on work will have completely changed. Why? Because you'll have learned that you don't need some run of the mill job to make a living. And you'll have greater insight into how you can slowly accumulate wealth as a video game tester by doing what you love. At the end of this article, I provide a link that will get you started right away. In the meantime, read on to learn more about this fantastic money-maker!

It must be every young person's dream to get one of the video game tester jobs available in the industry. And now that dream is completely possible for anyone who shows interest and takes just a little initiative. That's right, you can have a video game tester job by next week if you put your motives into action today.

All video game tester jobs have immense appeal to everyone who enjoys video games. Imagine being paid to do what you enjoy doing most of all. One reason for applying for one of the video game tester jobs is that it gives you a foot in the door of the video games industry. Of course those who have programming or artistic qualifications may find it easy to break into the industry without applying for one of the video game tester jobs but for those without such qualifications it is not so easy.

There are two main types of video game tester jobs - paid and unpaid. The paid variety of video game tester jobs entails going into work every day (or at the very least reporting into work from home). The unpaid jobs involve the circulation of Beta versions of the software to volunteers for early feedback and help with debugging. Paid is obviously preferred and knowing this, we've provided a sweet little link at the bottom of the page that will give you more information on getting a paid video game tester job.

Having one of the video game tester jobs doesn't necessarily mean an easy life beckons. It is essential that video games are bug free and that they work as they should. Sometimes those who hold the video game tester jobs have not been involved in the original design of the game and don't have a vision of what the aim of the game is. In this case it is easy for functionality to be identified as a bug when it is in fact supposed to be there. And...that's pretty much the only negative I can think of. Other than that, you're getting paid for going about your regular routine. I should however warn you that just because you don't have to work 40 hours a week testing games, you should take this as some kind of a "whatever" side gig. You should treat the tester jobs you are given with some seriousness. After all, once you earn the respect of the software company you are testing for, you never know what doors can open up. Be smart and think long term.

It is not enough for those in video game tester jobs to simply find bugs. They must be able to record how they found the bug; what steps they had taken before the game crashed or behaved unexpectedly. They must be prepared to go the extra mile to help the developers provide the necessary fix.

It is, therefore, essential that those in video game tester jobs have a flexible approach to their work and an ability to look for a bigger picture when working. You may be asked by some software companies to really get involved in solving problems by listing specifics when reporting a bug. Again, look at this as a positive aspect to having a video game tester job. You're actually looked at as having a respected opinion. If you enjoy playing video games and show the hiring company a professional attitude, you will be given all sorts of opportunites. Maybe you have an interest in Designing Video Games. Maybe you have an Interest in making Video Game Music. Maybe you enjoy computers and are looking to get into the Information Technology field. In any of these cases, a Video Game Tester Job can provide the exact gateway you're looking for.

Other than that, you're home free to a sweet paycheck for passing the time away in your most enjoyable fashion. It's not as difficult as you may think to get a gig testing video games. I've included a link below to a site that will show you exactly how to do it. So click away and find out how you can reel in some extra dough having a great time scoring touchdowns, killing aliens, infiltrating the enemies base or playing any other game you can thing of.

Are you still sitting on your butt playing the latest PS3 game and NOT GETTING PAID? Don't be such a sucker. You can be making some sweet sweet cash right now for going about your normal video game playing routine. Click Here To Learn More About How To GET PAID Testing Video Games

The job of the video game tester is very lucrative these days. It is seldom that the passion is transformed into a job. While working as a video game tester one gets to play the video games, which are not even released. Moreover they are paid to have fun. The video game testers have to play the game and post their reviews on that particular game. They also have to come up with the ideas of making the video games more popular. The video game testers can work from home and make all the necessary interaction with the manufacturers through the Internet.

How to approach

The video games industry is expanding heavily these days. Thus the opportunities for a video game tester are also increasing. The only criterion for the video game tester job is experience. Applying for a video game tester job though is an easy task but is time consuming. The first step is to post a profile on the Internet. The profile must be updated regularly regarding the various recent experiences with the video games. The video game manufacturers do not directly appoint the video game tester. First one has to buy membership of their online gaming websites. Then they get to play many of the video games already been released by the manufactures. After a certain time the manufactures assess the quality of the gamer. Then only the video game tester is officially appointed. Landing a job for the video game tester requires immense amount of patience.

Benefits of the job

The video game tester job does not require any educational qualification. So anyone armed with ample amount of experience in gaming can apply. The job is lucrative for more than one reason. The prime reason is that one can pursue their passion for gaming. It is like having fun at the workplace. Due to the nature of the work one can even continue with his other regular occupations. Another value added feature to this job is that the tester gets access to the unreleased games. Sometimes they get the full version of the unreleased games. The job of the video game tester is also monetarily promising. It often happens that the testers sell the full versions of the game they receive from the manufacturers.

The job of a video game tester is gaining popularity among the gamers with each passing day. Thus with growth in the video games industry the openings for the job is also widening.

Rick West is an experienced video game tester teaching thousands of people around the world how to get video game testing jobs