I am a college freshman and i am interested in pursuing a path of creative writing for a video game company, any ideas or advice that would be of some help?
I think your best bet is to get together with a few friends and try and release an indie game (or more than 1). It's all about credits to your name. After that, you would probably be able to get in at entry level doing... stuff. Like, general duties etc. Once you're in the door, start grooming yourself to be the person who can do the job you want. Also, internships are still a great way to get in the door, if you're willing to starve. Hell, anyway you look at it, you're going to starve for a while.
What about comics - specifically comics based on current VG titles? Scripting a few of those would be easier and cheaper, get your name out there, and give you a bit of a portfolio.
Check with people who have that job, see what other work you can get writing anything that sounds semi-game related.
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when you talk to the bots...i delete the bots and make you look insane
this is my hobby
Getting into working with and shipping some indie titles would be great, and don't close yourself to learning the other aspects of making a game. Look into pursuing TV and scriptwriting. Many game writers come from that industry, and if you're shooting high, you may even need to beat it as a TV writer for a while. Finally, get involved in the gaming communities and make contacts. Go to PAX and meet people. When you have a portfolio, share your work, and apply wherever you can. Don't limit yourself to story writing. Also consider mission and quest design, which will require you have some scripting knowledge/experience.
Ultimately, you may have to move where there's a job, so be prepared for that.
Of course, traditional creative writing and storytelling won't hurt you. Publish. Many game writers have published stories and novels, and the big AAA game companies are even tapping top-tier novel-writing talent.
Not sure if this helps, but I remembered this thread when I stumbled across this in my internetting this eve...
GAME JOB!
I hate you bot.
I don't play a lot of video games, but based on the ones I have... Honest question- DO they actually have writers? Or do the programmer nerds do it themselves?
Yes, they have writers. Here's the script for Beyond: Two Souls
Not sure if you're still looking for info on the subject, but I stumbled my way into doing some game writing by emailing a project creator on Kickstarter. I loved the look of their concept, so I sent a message expressing my interest and attached a few samples of my work. They replied a few days later, we had a skype meeting, and boom, I was on the team. If you act professional and treat it as a way to gain a foothold, you'd be surprised how many small teams are willing to take whatever help they can get.
Yes agree with the comics approach, I tried scripts of a short while.
Heads up though, its hard as hell to get an artist for web comics. At least it was in my own personal experience.
I didn't know about the novel writing bit, in that industry. Interesting.
Hmm...
I, too, agree find interesting what PC talk you manifest in projectile physics games. Please post excessively more links so I can explore web based flash game developer, I think this would be beneficial for you.
So in other words, video game scripts are big? I guess that explains the 50 hour JRPGs.
What I would strongly suggest is to start small, and get involved in some indie projects to build a portfolio. Make a linkedin account, be proactive on twitter, and network through sites like newgrounds. There are tons of resources for indie game networking, and if you present yourself professionally and maintain a strong online presence on social networking sites, you'll be amazed at the opportunities you'll come across.
One of my good friends is a Nintendo dev, and does indie projects on the side. I'll ask him specifically what sites he uses to find freelance folk and shoot you a PM within the next day or two.
I heard back from my dev friend, and here is his response:
"Haunt twitter on #indieteamup looking for writing gigs. Try the forums at gamedev.net. hit reddit r/gamedevclassifieds. Hit meetup.com for local game dev meetups. Ask the writers special interest group (igda), they get asked this all the time.
He should also look at designer rolls, most independent developers don't know that they need a writer, so they do not advertise for one. There are also threads about this at Gamasutra."
