Game studio interviews usually combine a conversation about your experience with a practical test of your craft. Knowing the typical stages, how to handle a take-home test and what to ask in return will make the whole process less stressful and help you judge whether the studio is right for you.
The typical process
Every studio runs its process differently, and smaller studios often compress several stages into one. A common sequence looks like this:
- Application review. Your CV, cover note and portfolio or code samples are read by a recruiter, a hiring manager or both.
- Screening call. A short call, often 20 to 30 minutes, with a recruiter or someone from the team. It checks the basics: your interest, your availability, salary expectations, right to work and notice period.
- Practical test. An art test, design test, programming exercise or similar. This might be a take-home task or a live session.
- Technical or portfolio interview. A deeper conversation with people from the discipline, often walking through your test and past work.
- Panel or final interview. Meeting a wider group: the lead, a producer, someone from another discipline, sometimes a studio director. This stage often focuses on collaboration, communication and fit with the team.
- Studio visit. Some studios invite candidates on site, either as part of the final stage or after an offer. Even for remote roles, a visit is worth taking if offered.
- Offer and references. A verbal offer is usually followed by a written one. References and right-to-work checks normally happen around this point.
The whole process can take anything from a week to a couple of months. It is reasonable to ask at the screening call how many stages there are and how long they expect it to take.
Preparing for the screening call
The screening call is short, but it filters out many candidates. Have clear, honest answers ready for these:
- Why this studio and this role, specifically?
- What you are working on now, in two or three sentences.
- When you could start, and your notice period.
- Whether you have the right to work in the UK, or need sponsorship.
- Your salary expectations. The salaries guide explains how to research a sensible range.
- Whether you are looking for remote, hybrid or office work. See the remote work guide.
Take-home tests
Practical tests are common in games because portfolios and CVs only show so much. Done well, a test lets you show how you think and work. Done badly, by either side, it can eat a week of your life.
Approaching a test
- Read the brief twice. Note exactly what is asked for and what will be assessed. Many candidates lose marks by doing something impressive that was not requested.
- Ask questions early. Clarifying scope, tools or format is a positive signal, not a weakness. Studios want to see how you handle ambiguity.
- Time-box it. If the brief suggests a number of hours, stick close to it, and say how long you spent. Reviewers generally know what is achievable in the time.
- Prioritise. A complete, polished core is better than an ambitious piece that is half done. If you had to cut something, say so and explain what you would add next.
- Document your thinking. A short note on your approach, trade-offs and what you would change is often read as carefully as the work itself.
- Use the studio's style where relevant. An art test for a stylised mobile game should look like it belongs in that game.
When a test is unreasonable
Most studios set fair tests. Occasionally one asks for far more than a reasonable candidate should give unpaid. Warning signs include:
- No time estimate, or an estimate of several full days.
- A brief that looks like real production work for the studio's current game.
- A test set before anyone has spoken to you, for a senior role.
- Unclear rights over what you produce.
You are entitled to ask questions or push back. Options include asking whether a smaller scope is acceptable, offering existing portfolio work that shows the same skills, asking whether the test is paid, or politely withdrawing. A studio that reacts badly to a reasonable question about scope is telling you something useful about how it treats people's time.
Live tests
Some studios prefer a live exercise instead of, or as well as, a take-home: pair programming, a whiteboard design problem, a paint-over or a short level blockout. Talk through your reasoning as you go, ask clarifying questions, and do not panic if you get stuck. Interviewers usually care more about how you approach a problem than whether you finish it.
Common questions by discipline
Expect a mix of general questions and discipline-specific ones. Some examples of what comes up:
Programming
- Walk us through a system you built. What would you change now?
- How would you track down a bug that only happens on one platform, or only sometimes?
- Questions on C++ or C# fundamentals: memory, data structures, performance.
- How do you keep a game running at a stable frame rate? What would you profile first?
- How do you work with designers who want something technically difficult?
The programming careers guide covers technical preparation in more depth.
Art and animation
- Take us through a portfolio piece from reference to final.
- How do you work within polygon, texture or memory budgets?
- How do you respond to feedback you disagree with?
- What tools and engine workflows are you comfortable with?
- Which games' art direction do you admire, and why?
Design
- Pick a game you love and tell us one thing you would change about it.
- How do you know a mechanic is working? How do you use playtesting?
- Talk us through a level or system you designed, including what failed.
- How would you balance a particular system in our game?
- How do you communicate a design to programmers and artists?
More in the design careers guide.
QA
- Write a bug report for this issue.
- How would you test this feature? What would you test first?
- How do you decide how serious a bug is?
- How do you stay focused during repetitive testing?
The QA careers guide has examples of good bug reports.
Production
- Tell us about a project that slipped. What did you do?
- How do you handle a disagreement between two leads?
- Which planning methods have you used, and when would you choose each?
- How do you protect a team from overwork near a milestone?
Questions for everyone
- Tell us about a time you received difficult feedback.
- What have you played recently, and what did you think of it?
- What do you know about our games?
- Why are you leaving your current role?
Prepare short, specific answers with examples from real work. If you are early in your career, examples from university projects, game jams and personal projects are perfectly acceptable.
Questions to ask the studio
An interview runs both ways, and good questions show you are serious. They also help you avoid a bad fit. Choose a few from this list rather than asking all of them:
The project and team
- What stage is the project at: pre-production, full production, post-launch?
- How big is the team I would join, and who would I work with day to day?
- Is the project announced, and does it have a publisher or funding in place?
- What would success look like in this role after six months?
Working hours and crunch
- How does the studio handle the period before a milestone or launch?
- When did the team last work significant overtime, and how was it handled?
- Is overtime paid or given back as time off in lieu?
Ask these neutrally and listen for specific answers. "We don't crunch" is less reassuring than a concrete description of how the studio plans and protects its teams.
Progression and reviews
- How often are performance and pay reviewed?
- What does progression from this level look like?
- Is there a senior specialist track as well as a management one? The job titles guide explains the difference.
- Is there a training budget or time for learning?
Practicalities
- What is the hybrid or remote policy, and is it likely to change?
- What does the onboarding period look like?
- When can I expect to hear back?
Studio visits
If you are invited on site, treat it as part of the interview, but also as your best chance to see how the studio actually works. Notice how people talk to each other, whether the space feels busy or quiet, and whether people seem rested. Ask to see where your team sits. If you meet potential colleagues, ask them what they enjoy about working there and what they would change.
After the interview
- Send a short thank-you. A brief email to the recruiter or hiring manager is enough.
- Note what you learned. Write down the questions you found hard while they are fresh. It will help with the next interview, wherever that is.
- Follow up once. If the timeline they gave passes, a polite check-in is fine.
- Ask for feedback if rejected. Not every studio gives it, but many will, particularly after a practical test.
- Compare offers carefully. Look at the whole package: salary, bonus, pension, holiday, hybrid policy and progression. The salaries guide covers negotiation.
Rejection is a normal part of games hiring. Studios often have many strong applicants for a single role, and decisions can come down to project timing or a very specific skill. One rejection says little about your long-term prospects.
Next steps
- Brush up your application with the CV and cover letter guide and the portfolio guide.
- Browse roles by discipline: programming, art, design, animation, QA, production.
- Research employers in the studio directory and see who is hiring now.
- Search every live vacancy on the job board.