Games tester

Do you dream about having a job where you get paid to play video games? As a games tester, that's exactly what you'll do!

You'll play console or online games many times to spot bugs and mistakes. You'll take a note of these and pass them on so they can be fixed before the game goes on sale to the public.

Testing is a vital part of producing any game. You’ll re-play the game over and over again, being persistent and disciplined in choosing all the options so you can test it from every possible angle. You’ll find and record any programming faults (bugs).

In this role, you'll be the game's first public user! You'll cast your eye over it first to report on its playability and recommend improvements.

Your tasks might include:

• playing games in detail and in as many ways as possible

• assessing a game's performance against what the designer intended and comparing it to other games on the market

• noting problems within the game and suggesting improvements

• trying to recreate the problem and recording the steps you took

• checking accessibility options needed to help people with disabilities to play the game

• reading the text on packaging and in instruction manuals to make sure it's accurate

Games testers have to meet strict deadlines. You'll work closely in a team that includes other testers, programmers, artists and designers before the game is released. Once it's on sale, you'll work with customer support teams.

In some testing positions, you may check and translate in-game instructions and manuals for overseas markets.

• Screen Skills – discover more information about getting into the gaming industry

• University of Bradford – 'my life as a video games tester'