Honestly if you’re thinking about working in games and you’re worried about getting a job consider becoming a UI Designer there has been a shortage since as far back as I can remember.

Finding a good UI designer is like winning the lottery.

And I’ll be honest with you all people who want to be UI designers often dont know what to put in their portfolios or which skills to learn. Theyre confused about whether they should focus on art, design, UX, accessibility, research... they find it very overwhelming.

The industry is to blame as well, every company runs their UI teams differently, has their own idea of what a UI designer is, often even with a team of UI people cant properly write clear job ads. UI and UX is this ominous thing to most people and it makes it tough for recruiters

I honestly feel sometimes I should write some articles on UI design or do guest lectures at schools because pushing out all rounder “game designers” is just sabbotaging the futures of these kids. We need specialists not generalists. They should be telling students about shortages

and they should be giving them realistic expectations on which jobs are overly saturated and how pay varies. It also doesnt help that studios are only hiring seniors, leads and mid levels. There are many eager juniors out there but even when junior positions are advertised..

...their portfolios dont reflect the fundamental skills required. UI is not about making concept art and pretty illustrations. If you’re going to apply for a large studio you’re hurting your chances if you just have “cute”/mobile designs. If you design something put some...

... thought into the features you’re designing. How does it work, what kind of states and feedback does it have? How are you presenting the work? Stills? Motion graphics? Interactive prototypes? The more effort you put into conveying what you are designing is a living thing...

... and not just a pretty graphic without context will totally improve your chances. Being a UI designer is so much more than making pretty icons. Its about having a strong understanding of layout, typography, motion, color etc is rarely demonstrated in portfolios. Quite...

... often people apply for jobs with art styles that dont match the studios work. A hiring manager is thinking to themselves “How quickly can I get this person doing the work on our project? Can they design in our genre? Are they a good problem solver?...

... Its not about being able to design for every style either but if you’re a junior/mid level you’re much more likely to get that job if you choose more common art styles used in AAA games such as modern/sci fi or even RPG if the company you’re applying for releases those games

... focus your energy in making 2-5 really great pieces, dont bother compensating with a fancy website and lots of text, show me easily accessivle images and videos on a single page. Design something common llike a weapon wheel, crafting system, maps, tech trees...

... avoid overly basic designs like main menus, HUDs etc. Show how the design changes when states change like availability/affordability of an item or skill. How do you celebrate information to the player when you unlock something or achieve something?...

... these are things you need to demonstrate whether you’re applying for an art role, UX role or hybrid role. As UI designers we’re designing experiences, we are not illustrators or concept artists. Our job is to solve complex problems through interpreting design features...

If you can show you’re a problem solver, that you consider the players needs to perform certain actions through your designs then I promise you companies will hire you in a heartbeat.

Happy to do portfolio reviews or answer questions. UI is such an exciting job, give it a go