Top Game Writer Interview Questions and How to Ace Them

When you get to the end of an on-site interview with a team and they ask you:

If interviews are going well, keep in mind that you are judging the company and team just as much as they are judging you. You should ask questions that show you’re thinking about whether or not your career goals fit with the goals of this team and the duties of the job. This demonstrates that you’re somebody who takes their career seriously and can bring that focus to the team.

That being said, I also know that there are times when you’ll almost certainly accept the job offer no matter what they say in response to these questions. Sometimes you’re new to the industry and you don’t know what your goals are yet. Or maybe it’s just that the job market and interview process aren’t balanced or fair in many ways. most?) situations. I’ve been in that position before. I still think you should ask these questions, even if you have to act like you’re sure you can be picky.

Before I start, I want to make it clear that I’m not a hiring manager and that this is written from the point of view of an individual contributor. I have never actually hired someone, but I do take part in the interview process and have done multiple interviews for jobs myself. I want you to carefully consider which of these tips are useful for you, and remember not to believe everything you read on the internet. .

So, with that in mind, here is a list of questions that I think will help you start a conversation, learn more about the company culture, and decide if this job and company are a good fit for you. You do not have to ask all of them. Pick the ones that you believe will help you make the best job search decision and make the most sense for your role and level of experience.

These will help you decide if you want to do that job by giving you an idea of what you will do every day. You should not ask anything that is already clearly stated in the job description. Instead, you should start with that information and then tailor your questions to get more information.

Everybody will tell you they have a “great team culture”. Ask more specific questions than “what is the team culture” to get less generic replies.

These aren’t direct questions about the job or the culture of the team, but they could lead to interesting conversations and help you learn more about how the team members feel about the company. Use some of these with discretion, and usually towards the end of your list of questions.

Landing a job as a game writer takes more than just creative chops – you need to impress potential employers during the interview process. When applying for game writing roles, expect to field questions about your narrative design philosophy, writing style, collaboration skills, and problem-solving abilities.

I’ve compiled some of the most common game writer interview questions, along with tips to help you craft winning responses. Read on to learn how to ace your next interview and snag your dream game writing gig!

Why Do You Want to Be a Game Writer?

This question gets to the heart of your motivations, Interviewers want to understand what draws you to game writing specifically Are you passionate about interactive narratives? Do you love crafting immersive game worlds? Your answer provides insight into your career goals and enthusiasm for the role,

Good response: “I’ve always been fascinated by the way gameplay and storytelling intersect in video games to create truly compelling interactive experiences. As a game writer, I’m excited by the opportunity to develop narratives that react dynamically to player choice. I love how games enable deeper immersion through environmental storytelling and intricate character development. This role would let me pursue my passion for crafting stories that engage players on an interactive, emotional level.”

What Experience Do You Have With Writing Interactive/Nonlinear Narratives?

Since games involve dynamic storytelling that reacts to player actions, employers want to know you can handle nonlinear narratives. Discuss any experience writing branching stories, stories with multiple endings, or narratives impacted by user choice. Outline your process for tracking continuity across narrative variations.

Good response: “In my last role, I wrote a choose-your-own-adventure style mobile game where player decisions led to dramatic narrative shifts. I mapped out the story branches in advance using narrative flowcharts. This helped me maintain continuity across all possible pathways while still allowing users to shape the story through their choices. The project honed my skills in crafting cohesive, compelling nonlinear narratives.”

How Do You Make Complex Game Narratives Accessible to Players?

Game narratives often involve complex world lore and intricate character arcs spanning many hours of gameplay. Employers want to know you can present these multifaceted stories in a way that remains engaging and easy to follow for players. Discuss strategies like pace modulation, narrative summaries, and subtle exposition through environmental clues or optional dialogue.

Good response “When dealing with complex narratives, I focus on presenting information contextually at relevant moments rather than info dumping everything at once Optional lore entries allow players to delve deeper if interested I modulate the pace to balance action with quiet story beats for absorbing new concepts. Visual environmental cues and optional dialogue dynamically reveal backstory. These techniques promote accessibility without dumbing things down.”

How Do You Write Dialogue That Fits the Context of Different Characters?

Since games feature diverse casts of characters, interviewers want to see that you can make each voice distinct through dialogue. Share your process for getting into the mindset of different characters and reflecting their personalities and backgrounds through speech patterns, word choices, and dialogue delivery.

Good response: “I carefully consider each character’s background, motivations and personality to shape their dialogue. For a streetwise rogue character, I’d use more informal language and slang. An aristocratic knight might speak with sophistication and elegance. I say dialogue aloud to ensure it flows naturally for each character. I work closely with actors as well to polish character voices. My goal is making every character’s speech uniquely their own.”

Share a Writing Sample That Shows Your Ability to Write Evocative Scene Descriptions

Visual, emotive scene-setting is crucial in games to immerse players in each moment. Interviewers may request writing samples to assess your flair for impactful, succinct descriptive writing. Share samples like vivid environment or action scene descriptions that create strong mental images and set an immersive mood.

Good response: “Here’s an excerpt describing the final confrontation between the protagonist and antagonist: ‘Rain poured down in icy sheets as the hero stepped onto the tower rooftop. Each ragged breath clouded the air with mist. Across the roof stood the Dark Lord, crimson robes whipping in the squall, eyes aglow with malevolent power. With shaking hands, the hero raised their sword. No matter what came next, this ended tonight.’ This scene aims to immerse players in the high-stakes drama of the moment through strong sensory details.”

How Do You Collaborate With Game Designers to Align Narrative and Gameplay?

Since game writing interacts heavily with design, employers want to know that you can collaborate smoothly across disciplines. Discuss how you integrate your narrative work with game mechanics, level design, UI, audio and art. Give examples of how you ensure your writing complements gameplay.

Good response: “Close collaboration with designers is key to a cohesive experience. I provide narrative documents outlining backstories, character bios and scene descriptions to guide design. I brainstorm with designers to ensure key narrative moments integrate smoothly into levels and mechanics. If certain gameplay elements don’t fit narratively, I adapt the story while maintaining the core vision. My goal is crafting a narrative and gameplay experience where neither element feels tacked on – they work in unison.”

How Do You Construct Game Worlds That Feel Realistic and Immersive?

Believable, lived-in game worlds are integral for player immersion. To assess your worldbuilding skills, interviewers may ask how you develop vibrant cultures, societies, environments and histories to make game worlds feel real. Discuss your research process and approaches to adding engaging world details.

Good response: “I delve deep into world history, geography and cultures when constructing game worlds. To populate the world, I develop unique societal structures, economic systems, political factions, and belief systems, ensuring they logically fit together. The environment tells a visual story as well through architecture, clothing styles and props that reflect cultural aesthetics. My goal is developing cohesive worlds where all elements align into something that feels real and lived-in for players.”

How Would You Compile a Game Story Bible or Narrative Design Document?

Many game companies rely on story bibles or narrative design documents to outline narratives. Be ready to discuss how you’d compile one of these for an in-development game. Cover essential elements like character biographies, main narrative arc summaries, scene details, lore guides and explanations of gameplay/story intersections.

Good response: “For a narrative design doc, I would include character biographies detailing personalities, history and motivations. A story synopsis would summarize the main narrative thread, story locations, and general emotional arcs. I’d compile detailed scene descriptions for important story moments, noting how they connect to gameplay opportunities. Setting and world lore guides would explain cultural dynamics and histories. My goal is equipping the team with everything required to faithfully adapt the narrative vision.”

What Experience Do You Have Adapting Narratives for Different Game Genres or Settings?

Since writers may work on games across genres, employers want to see you can adapt your style. Discuss experience tailoring your writing approach to the conventions of different game genres and settings. Provide examples of how you modified vocabulary, tone, pacing and literary techniques to fit the context.

Good response: “I’ve adapted my writing across genres from sci-fi to western. For a cyberpunk game, I used a terse, punchy style with tech slang. For a fantasy RPG, I employed more elegant prose and scene descriptions to establish an immersive tone. Regardless of genre, I focus on digging into the setting to ensure my writing style appropriately matches the game world. My goal is complementing the overall game experience through a narrative tone and style that feels cohesive.”

How Do You Learn a Game’s Unique Style or Tone When Joining an Existing Project?

Writers often join project teams mid-development and must quickly adopt the game’s established style. Discuss strategies for efficiently learning the tone, characters, style, and vision of a game you’ve come into midstream. Share any examples of smoothing this transition from past projects.

Good response: “When joining an existing game narrative, I schedule extensive meetings with the team to understand the core vision, characters, and narrative pillars. I study gameplay footage and existing narrative materials to analyze tone and writing style. I may write a sample scene capturing the essence of the game’s voice to ensure I can match its style. Maintaining stylistic continuity when joining a project midstream is key, so I make it a priority to rapidly immerse myself in the established voice.”

How Do You Handle Revisions or Changes to Narrative Content Late in a Project?

Game narratives often evolve during development, requiring late changes. Employers want to know you can smoothly implement revisions without derailing existing content. Discuss strategies for gracefully adapting to late narrative shifts while minimizing rework. Provide examples if possible.

Good response: “I’ve navigated many late-stage narrative changes without undue disruption. When revisions are needed, I assess the scope of necessary downstream edits across characters, scenes and dialogue. For minor changes, I can often tweak dialogue and scene details to align with the new direction. More significant changes may require restructuring outlines and narratives documents to guide widespread aligning edits. The key is moving rapidly to reconcile existing content with revisions.”

How Do You Ensure Consistent Characterization Across Nonlinear Narratives?

With multiple writers

support these tutorialsTip me on

When you get to the end of an on-site interview with a team and they ask you:

“Do you have any questions for us?”

The worst thing you could do is say “no”.

If that’s the case, then what DO you ask?

What would my day-to-day job look like?
What role would I have on the team?
What expectations does this role have?
What are the tasks that need to be done for this role, and how fast should they be done?
Which set of tools do I need to use? Why did the team choose this set for this project?
How do you see this role developing? What do the long-term prospects look like?
What kind of learning opportunities will I have?
Who will I be working with directly the most? More specifically, what kind of people (3D designers, artists, engineers) will I be working with?
What roles do I directly support and what roles do they support? In other words, who will ask me for help and how do I ask for help?
What team size will my role be supporting?
Get specific about the work that your field does and come up with your own questions that will help you learn more about what the job entails.
If you want to know if you’ll get to work on the things you want to work on and use the skills you want to use, ask about them. If you get a vague or “maybe” answer to these questions, it’s likely that the answer is “no.”

Everybody will tell you they have a “great team culture”. Ask more specific questions than “what is the team culture” to get less generic replies.

How long has it taken to make this game? When do you plan to release it?
How is work divided up and given out? Do you have producers? How do relationships between producers and developers work?
How do people on this team give and receive feedback? For example, engineers might ask about the code review process, while artists might ask about the meetings or other ways that feedback is given.
How does the company decide what games get made?
What are this team’s philosophies regarding individual growth?
What do you think this team thinks about [diversity, collaboration, mentoring, inclusion, or something else that’s important to you]?
What kind of growth
What kinds of team leadership roles does this company offer, and how do they work? For example, does the title “lead” come with a higher salary?
How does the hierarchy work on this team in particular? Who is in charge of my department, and how does their team work?
What is this team’s approach to communicating across disciplines, and who makes it possible (producers, etc.)?
What kinds of team-building activities does this group do? Who plans them? Do you hold events that bring together people from different fields?
Does this team have any hangouts that just happen? For example, tabletop Fridays were set up by the employees, not by the leaders.
Does everyone on the team share any interests? For example, do half of them like K-pop? Who is their BTS fan?
How many times does this team crunch? What do you think about crunch?
Does this company have employee resource groups for people of all kinds of identities? For example, does it have an LGBTQ Leadership Group or a Women’s ERG? Can I get in touch with someone who runs this group? When I interviewed with Blizzard, they changed my schedule so that I could meet with someone from the LGBTQ Council. It was helpful to talk to her about how they treated trans people. If Blizz did it, other companies can too.
How does this company make sure that pronouns are easy to find? Are they on nameplates? In the company directory?
Can you tell me more about the medicines and procedures that your health insurance covers? Could you show me the list that the insurance company gives you about this plan before I sign up for it? (If you have medical needs that your health insurance needs to cover, this is an OPTIMAL question!)
Do you hold hackathons or other events where people can try new things on your team?
What does the company think about side projects? How do they get approved? Can I join game jams when I’m not working for the company?

When I was interviewing before, they asked me, “What’s your favorite thing you’ve worked on for this team?” I LOVED that question.
This is only a question to ask if you’re not interviewing a manager. Who will I be reporting to, and what’s your experience with them? Make sure you ask this in a nice, upbeat way. Take their responses seriously if the interviewers respond negatively!.
I love this one. What should I ask that I haven’t already? During interviews, I’ve always gotten a good answer, but other developers have given me mixed opinions on whether or not it’s a good question to ask. Use your best judgement!.

Game Industry Interview and tests | Gamedev selection process

FAQ

What skills do you need to be a game writer?

A creative writing background is of great value to game writing, as is some knowledge of coding and/or digital art design.

How to prepare for a game developer interview?

Include code samples, game projects, and any contributions to open-source games or game jams. Prepare to Discuss Past Projects: Be ready to talk about your role in previous projects, what challenges you faced, and how you overcame them. This demonstrates your experience and ability to learn from past work.

What questions do interviewers ask a game designer?

By asking this question, interviewers want to know if you possess the creativity, adaptability, and understanding of different player preferences to design games that cater to a wide range of audiences. This demonstrates your versatility as a designer and your potential to contribute to a diverse portfolio of projects within the company.

What does a game writer do?

In the later parts of the game’s production when things are mostly finished, the writer works tirelessly to playtest the game and proofread everything to make sure that their work is well represented. So that’s a good overview of what a game writer does. Next, let’s talk about how you could start working toward a career as a game writer.

How do I prepare for a game design interview?

As you prepare for your upcoming interview, it’s important to not only demonstrate your passion and talent in designing engaging gaming experiences but also showcase your understanding of game mechanics, user experience, and collaboration with cross-functional teams.

What do Interviewers look for in a game developer?

Interviewers want to know if you’re able to create an experience that appeals to a wide range of players. This question also helps them gauge your understanding of different player types, as well as your ability to adapt game mechanics and features to cater to various skill levels and preferences.