Steel Penny Games

Since it appears that nobody teaches anyone how to get hired in the industry, and those that have don't talk to those that haven't, I'm going to take a moment to take the full burden off the hiring managers and make it the applicant's duty to follow the rules. I'm sure that will work. Mmmmkay.

Here is the Golden Rule. Study it. Memorize it. Sing it to yourself in the shower. Meditate on it. Then, and only then, send in your resume. Here it comes... Are you ready?

Time is the most precious asset game developers have.

Yes, I said it! There, the secret is out.

Don't:

1. Tell me you'll work for free (a) just to get a job in the industry, (b) to gain skills, (c) because you love my work, or (d) because it's more exciting than washing cars all day. If you're worth anything at all, I'll pay you. If you're not, you're worse than free--you'll cost me time. Refer to Golden Rule.
2. Send me an email with a resume that contains nothing relating to the position you're seeking in the games industry. Cut out the irrelevant stuff. If your experience is short or non-existent, don't send me your resume at all. I'll look at it, and be pissed for wasting time reading it. See Golden Rule.
3. Send me an email asking for a job without any way to see your work. How can I possibly jump up and down and say "Yes! I need this person!" if there's absolutely nothing I can judge about your work, or how I could possibly need you.
4. Request a job for free after you've been told no for a paid position. If we can't find a place for you, it's generally not because you're too expensive. Sorry.
5. Make jokes or give long-winded diatribes about how games are a dream job. Yes, we know. The most critical part of this exchange is what you can do for us. We'll find out about your humor and opinions if we decide to interview you. Don't misunderstand, we do care. Just not yet.
6. Assume a degree from any school is a significant bargaining chip. Your piece of paper will not paint us a texture or code us a shader. But it should have provided you with a nice senior project to show off and a proxy for some practical work experience. That's of interest, so by all means demonstrate it.
7. Apply without any significant background in at least playing games. You'll be expected to know what they are when you get here. It's not like foreign language immersion where you can just hang out, pick it up and BS your way through. This is a profession, after all.
8. Ask for an internship/entry level position after quitting another game company. If you haven't progressed beyond that point with them, you're probably not going to. Again, sorry.
9. Tell me about a game idea you have. They're essentially worthless. We have our own. Sorry. If you're hired, that's when you spring the bikini blazer waggle karate dodgeball game on us.
   

Do:

1. Send a brief email explaining what position you want to perform.
2. Attach a relevant resume (less than 100k) in .rtf, .doc, or .txt only. Do not insert images in your resume (except a headshot if you're an actor, or exceedingly vain).
3. For artists, include a link in the email to your work and resume. This is a no-brainer. Your web site doesn't need to be fancy. It'd better be easy for me to find stuff. If you require me to install a plugin, you just lost my attention.
4. For programmers, send at least one good code sample. It should be a single class declaration and implementation, relevant to games in some way. If you don't know what is relevant, don't apply. Seriously. I'd really like to see a screenshot or video of something you've completed, too, so I don't have to execute anything. If it's a game, so much the better. Give one sentence to explain what it is, how much was your work, and how long it took you.
5. For designers, send me a free copy of a retail game you've done from start to finish. Paper game, computer game, card game, I don't care. It has to have rules and be fun. We don't hire designers externally with no experience. Most places don't. Sorry.
6. Have references who will vouch for you to their dying breath that you're cool as hell, the best drinking pal, the smartest frood in the room, the go-to-guy who gets-it-done right, the greatest undiscovered talent who doesn't know he's all these things. Or at least some of them. If you aren't one of these people, this industry is too small for you. Every game company needs people who are exceedingly talented and easy to get along with. Friction is a tremendous drain on productivity.
7. Find out what we do. Check out the people who run the company. Ask insiders what they think of working there. If you take initiative to apply for a job only to reject an offer, or leave shortly after starting, your name is added to the Naughty List forever. All the hiring managers play bingo together on Thursdays, and we share lists. (No, not really. We play poker. (And there's no list. Don't sue me.))

Well, I hope that's enough practical and apparently uncommon sense for now. For those who aren't grinning, I tried my best. For those that are, good. We need more of that.

AUSTIN, TX -- Steel Penny Games, an independent Austin, TX-based game developer, announced their acceptance into the Nintendo WiiWare developer stable, and is busy at work on an original IP title set to release in mid-2008. Steel Penny Games states that the upcoming title blends a challenging puzzle game with dramatic fantasy environments and appealing characters for an exceptionally satisfying experience. Other details about the upcoming product are not available at this time.

The company, organized in early 2007 by former Naughty Dog veterans Jason Hughes and Andrew Gilmour, joins the ranks of studios initially focused on digital distribution. Steel Penny Games president Jason Hughes described their strategy as "the modern equivalent of the garage method for an independent to gain a foothold in the industry--a unique opportunity WiiWare presents that we appreciate." At Naughty Dog, Hughes was a senior graphics tools engineer, and Gilmour was a senior background artist.

The team at Steel Penny Games have spent the past year building a proprietary engine geared toward the Wii platform's capabilities, and creating a new intellectual property to span a series of games. Hughes elaborated, "I am impressed with the egalitarian approach Nintendo has taken toward WiiWare developers. It allows the risk burden to shift back onto the creative developers."