{"id":1398,"date":"2014-12-10T18:18:16","date_gmt":"2014-12-11T02:18:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.mysliderule.com\/blog\/?p=1398"},"modified":"2023-07-07T23:21:44","modified_gmt":"2023-07-08T06:21:44","slug":"game-developer-portfolios","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.springboard.com\/blog\/career-advice\/game-developer-portfolios\/","title":{"rendered":"Tips on Building a Portfolio for Game Developers"},"content":{"rendered":"

If you\u2019re looking for work as a game developer, it\u2019s better to show employers what you can do rather than just tell them.<\/p>\n

Your background, degree, and resume matter \u2014 but with a portfolio, you can show your programming skills, your ability to think through problems, and your communication style.<\/p>\n

Building Your Game Developer Portfolio<\/h2>\n

It\u2019s a chance to really wow employers \u2014 so you want to make sure you do it right. You don\u2019t need anything fancy \u2014 a simple WordPress site will do \u2014 and write one blog post or two for each major project you\u2019ve worked on. Here are some tips on how to structure your work:<\/p>\n

1. Use tech demos:<\/h3>\n

Show off your program with a video demo that introduces your audience to the game and the features you\u2019ve built. Don\u2019t worry about whether the artwork isn\u2019t great \u2014 in most cases, it won\u2019t matter if you\u2019re applying for a developer role.<\/p>\n

2. Show your thought process:<\/h3>\n

Your final product is important \u2014 show employers how you got there. For each demo, John Pile, programmer at AtomJack Games, suggests asking these questions<\/a>: What was the challenge? What approach did you take to solving it? What would you do differently now? The point is to demonstrate how you solve problems. \u201cAs a programmer, you are a problem solver,\u201d says Pile. \u201cThat\u2019s what a potential employer will care most about.\u201d<\/p>\n

To that effect, you should show your code, and point out any meaningful changes you made to it along the way. You can easily set snippets of your program apart from the rest of your post with the <code> tag in your text editor.<\/p>\n

3. Only include your best work:<\/h3>\n

If it\u2019s not something you would be proud to show another developer you admire, don\u2019t include it. It\u2019s better to have a portfolio of fewer, stronger projects, than a wide array of work that varies in quality. Put your best work first \u2014 and keep your demos relevant to the positions you\u2019re considering, so employers can see the value you\u2019d add to their team.<\/p>\n

4. Use a (very) simple layout:<\/h3>\n

Your portfolio doesn\u2019t need to be flashy \u2014 it does need to be easy to navigate. Employers spend an estimate of 10 to 30 seconds looking at your portfolio, so keep things simple: use black text on a white background and navigation that\u2019s easy to understand. Don\u2019t distract from the work itself \u2014 your screenshots, code or video demos should be the main focus. Finally, remember to make your contact information accessible from any point on your website\u00a0\u2014 so that recruiters know how to reach you.<\/p>\n

If you want to build a practical programmer portfolio, check out this guide<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

If you\u2019re looking for work as a game developer, it\u2019s better to show employers what you can do rather than just tell them. Your background, degree, and resume matter \u2014 but with a portfolio, you can show your programming skills, your ability to think through problems, and your communication style. Building Your Game Developer Portfolio […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":1404,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_eb_attr":"","_eb_data_table":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[125],"tags":[],"marketing_tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-1398","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-career-advice"},"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.springboard.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1398"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.springboard.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.springboard.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.springboard.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.springboard.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1398"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/www.springboard.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1398\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":47640,"href":"https:\/\/www.springboard.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1398\/revisions\/47640"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.springboard.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1404"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.springboard.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1398"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.springboard.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1398"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.springboard.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1398"},{"taxonomy":"marketing_tags","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.springboard.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/marketing_tags?post=1398"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}