Remote Work in the Gaming Industry: What Are the Career Opportunities?

A lot of younger adults in this generation grew up on video games—and are thus looking to work in the gaming industry.

Fortunately for them, the gaming industry has been exploding in recent years. In 2022, the gaming industry generated $184 billion in revenue—that’s more than the film and music industry combined!

As a result, there’s a wealth of remote jobs for all sorts of skills in the industry. And a lot of them are remote too (gamers like staying home, after all).

In this article, we’ll go through the top 8 remote job opportunities in the gaming industry.

Career Opportunities in Remote Gaming Jobs

From game developers to artists and writers to community managers to digital marketers, there are remote jobs for seemingly anyone.  

Here are just some of the most common remote career opportunities for gaming.

Game Development

Game developers are at the core of the gaming industry. They’re responsible for actually creating the video games we know and love through code and programming.

Specific remote game development jobs include:

• Game Programmer: Writes code for game mechanics, physics, and AI/NPC behavior.
• Unity/Unreal Engine Developer: Specializes in utilizing game engines to develop the game’s world and environment.
• Backend Developer: Works on digital infrastructure outside the game, like the servers for online live-service games.
• Game Producer/Project Management: Oversees the team of developers and manages their resources to ensure deadlines and expectations are met.

Game Design

If programmers create the very software of the game, it’s game designers who are behind the essence of the game. They envision its gameplay, mechanics, storytelling, and user experience and work with developers to implement them.

Some remote game design jobs are:

• Level Designer: Creates fun and challenging levels, environments, and maps.
• Gameplay Designer: Designs the game’s core mechanics and progression system, and is also responsible for balancing difficulty.
• Writer/Narrative Designer: Responsible for writing the storyline, characters, dialogue, lore, and worldbuilding of the game.
• Technical Writer: Creates guides, documentation, and manuals for games.

Art and Animation

Visuals are one of the most appealing parts of any video game. And since remote artists can contribute from anywhere, there are many remote art jobs for video games, whether they be freelance or full-time as an in-house designer.

Some remote opportunities in this field include:

• Concept Artist: Develops initial designs and even the overall aesthetic and art direction of the game.
• 2D/3D Artist: Creates the very character designs, environments, and textures.
• Animator: Brings characters and objects to life using the game engine’s motion physics.
• UI/UX Designer: Designs user interfaces that are functional, aesthetic, and fit the game’s broader art style.

Quality Assurance (QA) and Testing

After the game is created, it still needs to undergo QA and testing. After all, nothing can ruin a game as much as game-breaking bugs!

QA testers specifically focus on:

• Finding bugs: they do many things in the game to see if any technical issues arise
• Give feedback: they offer constructive criticism in order to make the game as fun and polished as possible before launch.
• Performance Testing: Checking frame rates, latency, and hardware compatibility.

Playing games for a living? Sounds like a dream come true!

Unfortunately, remember that QA testers need to play the game in specific and chore-like ways—not play for fun.

Esports

But if you are skilled enough at playing video games, then you can be a professional esports player or a coach.

• Professional Gamer: Competes in tournaments in esports titles like League of Legends, Valorant, Dota 2, and Counter-Strike. They get paid via prize pools, fixed salaries from their organizations, and sponsorships. Note, however, that many of the biggest esports tournaments are held in person.
• Esports Coach or Analyst: Lack the skill but have great knowledge about the game? Coaches can provide training and strategic insights to the teams of professional gamers.

Content Creation

If you can’t compete at the highest level or create games themselves, you can still make a good living sharing your passion for them.

You can do this by creating content online as a:

• Games Journalist: Write reviews and cover the latest games news for gaming publications. You can do this either as a freelance writer or in a full-time job.
• Content Creator: If you’re entertaining enough, you can stream your gameplay, post videos, or create social media content about your favorite games for ad revenue on different social media platforms.

Community Management

Gamers tend to flock together on social media and different forums to talk about their games. As such, many remote roles cater to this, like:

• Social Media Manager: Handles a game or game company’s content and engagement on different social media platforms.
• Community Manager: Goes on platforms like Reddit and Discord to interact with official or pre-established online communities about the game. They also tend to gather feedback or market the game in those communities.

Marketing

Like any product, video games need competent marketing in order to sell. Marketing in the games industry is just as important as anywhere else!

You’ll find the same jobs in video game marketing as any other industry, like marketing specialists, copywriters, or video ad producers. Many of these jobs are also remote.

Challenges of Remote Work in Gaming

Working for video games—and from the comfort of your home at that—sounds like a dream come true. And while it can be, there are still unique challenges.

• Communication Barriers: Digital communication is still limited in many ways compared to in-person conversations.
• Time Zone Differences: Coordinating meetings across different time zones can be difficult. After all, many remote workers also tend to be digital nomads.
• Cybersecurity: And since these jobs are all held online, data security is also a source of concern. Digital nomads in particular, who use public Wi-Fi in different places, need to use VPNs like Surfshark.
• Self-Discipline: Working remotely requires strong time management skills to stay productive. Not to mention, being surrounded by games all the time can be tempting to skimp out on work!
  

  

• Waning Passion for Gaming: On the flip side, working for games can cause burnout, leading these gamers to actually get sick of video games.

Conclusion

The gaming industry is at its peak—and is still likely to grow. There are so many remote jobs available for all sorts of skills and career paths. With dedication, you can find a job that might be just as fun and fulfilling as your favorite game!