We're usually pretty clear about what we're looking for when we're hiring. Between the title, qualifications, and desirable skill list, a candidate should be able to get a good idea of what the job's roles and responsibilities are.
Some job descriptions are more detailed than others, but those in the field should be able to pick out the relevant skills and things. For example, this current opening listed at EA's website for a [mid-level designer on the Sims franchise] is very specific about what they are looking for. They use proprietary tools to build content. They are a live service game. They need systems-driven gameplay. They want technically-minded applicants to work in a mature environment making content for a live service.
Some are a little less detailed, like this [entry level Technical Designer position at Zenimax Online Studios]. However, you can still get a lot of information from what's written here - scripting skills, making gameplay and content, working with a team, experience with industry tools, breadth of skills like combat, narrative, and level design. This is likely a scripter who can help be the glue that gets prototype and placeholder gameplay elements up and running.
If you look at enough of these, you start seeing the similarities in what they are looking for. As you start picking them out, you can tailor your resume to show the hiring manager that you can do the things they're looking for. For the first job, you want to show that you can work within a solid framework on a tight schedule and within known limitations. For the second job, you want to show you've been able to stand up lots of different kinds of gameplay in an off-the-shelf engine like Unreal or Unity.
[Join us on Discord] and/or [Support us on Patreon]
Got a burning question you want answered?
- Short questions: Ask a Game Dev on Twitter
- Short questions: Ask a Game Dev on BlueSky
- Long questions: Ask a Game Dev on Tumblr
- Frequent Questions: The FAQ