Ask many teenagers what their dream job would be and the answer is invariably the same every time: a video game tester. They say this with all the naivety of youth, blissfully unaware and untroubled by the sheer level of hard work and commitment this challenging career can require.

To the overwhelming majority of people, the mere idea of being paid cold hard cash for the privilege of playing games all day is just enough. On hearing that they do not wish to probe any further , they just want the job. This is a real shame because if they did dig a little deeper, they would realise that the job is a LOT tougher than that, and it’s not suitable for everyone.

Testing a game is exactly that: the tester will be required to repeatedly play through the same few segments of the game time and time again, usually without a break until they unearth any and all bugs they can find. The tester must keep their eyes open for these bugs and then record their findings.

However, the process did not end there and it is important to note that your findings must be legible, comprehensive and easy to understand for the people to whom you will be reporting it to. Your input will directly affect the speed and ease at which the technicians can remedy the fault(s) and so if your communication skills whether verbal or written are not on par then there will be trouble.

Therefore, it should be (hopefully) clear that video game testing is not quite as enjoyable or as fun as simply blasting a few multiplayer games with your pals but there can be no denying that yes, the job does involve a lot of playing. That then leads us on to what most people ask next - just how much can the game tester hope to earn?

It is not really possible to simply provide a round figure or a precise prediction and this is because there are a number of variables that will affect the final salary. Not surprisingly, the level of experience the tester has will count heavily in their favour and so a tester who has a clearly established work portfolio with a number of provable successful projects will command a higher fee than a rank novice. The salary offered can and will differ between different companies although irrespective of how much they happen to pay for your work you can be rest assured of one thing - the work you do will be a major feather in your cap, and the experience you’ll gain gives you a big advantage when going for other games related jobs.

Click for a free report on how you can start earning your own games tester salary and break into the games industry to test games for a living.

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