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King

Game Developer Intern Review

at King

Internship (1 Month+)

Computer Science

London

Review Submitted: October 2021

Overall Rating

4.9 /5

The Overall Rating is the average of all the ratings given in each category. We take those individual ratings and combine them into one final score!

5/5 - Overview of Role
5/5 - Skills Development
5/5 - Support and Guidance
4.5/5 - Company Culture
5/5 - Overall Experience
5/5 - Future Career Prospects

Overview of Role

Please give an overview of your role and what this involves on a day-to-day basis.
Each day, I would be involved in several meetings (mostly Agile - e.g. daily stand-ups, retrospectives) and planning sessions for bug fixes or new features. I would then program to attempt and fix the bug or implement the feature, and the cycle would continue the next day.
The Farm team works in 2-week sprints, with a series of "tickets" to complete each sprint. Each person gets assigned one ticket at a time, which they work on - and they complete the tickets and contribute the resulting code to the repository.
Were you given much responsibility during your placement / internship?
Yes - I was given plenty. I took ownership (either in full or in part) of several exciting, important features, including some AB tests, bug fixes, and things related to entirely new gameplay mechanics.
Additionally, I was responsible for my own time and my tickets, which would include communicating with other teams and employees to ensure the features I work on are the best they could be. Although I was supported by a manager and buddy (both assigned by King), I was given responsibilities and encouraged to work my way.
Please rate how meaningful the work you were doing was
5/5

Skills Development

Have you learnt any new skills, or developed your existing skills?
Absolutely! I have learned much about gameplay programming, UI programming, and generally working in C++. Additionally, my manager and buddy encouraged me to develop my existing skills - such as giving public presentations to the rest of the development team. I was supported throughout though, and I was not forced into any of it.
The most important skills I learned are the soft skills - cross-craft communication, reviewing other people's code, Agile working skills (such as pair programming), and so on.
How would you rate the training provided during your experience?
5/5
How would you rate your development of industry-specific skills during the experience?
5/5
How would you rate your development of personal / soft skills during the experience?
5/5
Please rate how these skills have helped you in your career development
5/5

Support and Guidance

How much support and guidance did you receive during your placement / internship?
Tons of it! I was assigned a manager and a buddy, with frequent meetings and occasional reviews where I would hear feedback from others on the development team, and be given the opportunity to improve in response to that feedback. Additionally, they both made sure I took part in social events to get to know people at King, and they encouraged me to develop my skill set, and offered help and advice wherever they could!
How would you rate the support and guidance from your line manager?
5/5
How would you rate the support and guidance from the wider team?
5/5

Company Culture

What was the company culture and general atmosphere like?
Brilliant. Everyone was friendly and helpful. There were frequent social and diversity events, and plenty of internal channels for people to talk and get to know each other. Good work is important, but there was also plenty of emphasis placed on making sure that you are supported and encouraged every step of the way. I made loads of friends at King, and I'm very grateful for the opportunity to be a part of the culture there!
How would you rate the inclusiveness of the culture?
5/5
How would you rate the social opportunities?
5/5
How would you rate the diversity initiatives?
4/5
How would you rate the charity, sustainability and corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives?
4/5

Overall Experience

To what extent did you enjoy your placement / internship?
Very much! I honestly had a fantastic time, met loads of very talented and awesome people, and improved as a developer. It fully exceeded my expectations for an internship experience - nobody treated me like an intern, just as another developer. Furthermore, I had a very enjoyable social experience, and I usually don't like that kind of thing. I would definitely leap at the chance to go back, and I certainly hope to next year!
Please rate your level of enjoyment on your placement / internship
5/5
Please rate how your experience met your expectations
5/5

Future Career Prospects

Please rate the future employment prospects at King
5/5

Recommendations & Advice

Would you recommend King to a friend?
Yes
What advice would you give to others applying to King
Your soft skills are the most important part. Write clear, easy-to-understand code, and make sure you brush up on your coding interview skills. These people will already know (from online C++ tests) how good of a programmer you are - they want to know if you're someone they can work with.
More generally, be friendly, humble, and open to learn. Research those interviewing you, and ask them interesting questions. You can get in without prior games industry experience - I did!
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