Job Posting for Dialog Writer

[Quintaros]

A local game company put a job posting for a writer on the careers page of my university's website.Ã,  I think I've heard the company name mentioned once or twice in these forums (BioWare) so they must be doing all right.Ã, 

The posting was available to all faculties so it seems as though they're scouting for talent more than experience or a background in computer science.Ã,  The one requirement they do have is that the applicant has a familiarity with RPGs and fantasy.Ã,  I've never played an RPG but I gather from discussions here that they have some similarities to Adventures.Ã,  The primary duty of the position would be dialogue writing.Ã, 

How similar/dissimilar are conversations in RPGs with those in Adventures?

Is the player character in an RPG a blank slate for the player to define or does he/she have a pre-defined personality?

The applicant has to submit a sample dialogue with his resume.Ã,  They would prefer the submission to be created using their Neverwinter Nights toolset but I have no experience with that and the submission deadline is too soon to learn it.Ã,  I was thinking of making a 2 or 3 room demo in AGS with minimalist backgrounds and a few NPCs to meet.

Any helpful ideas/comments would be appreciated.

Here is the information from the posting:


Organization Name    BioWare Corp
Job No    1904
Job Title    Writer (Competition # 11-WD-WR-05)
Term    Permanent Fulltime
Job Start Date    June 01, 2005
Target   
   Faculty of Arts
   General (All Faculties)
   Faculty of Science
- Computing Science


Job Description
DUTIES
Primary Task: Writing dialogue. Must be able to write interesting dialogue in a timely fashion.
Secondary Tasks: Coming up with level designs, story and puzzle ideas.

Familiarity with the fantasy genre and role-playing games is a must. Should have some experience with the NWN editor. Examples of work must be provided (see below).
Required Submission: An example of writing via the Neverwinter Nights toolset must be provided for you to be considered for the position. However, an exception can be made if you have appropriate experience (eg. previous relevant experience) and education, and do not have access to the NWN toolset. If you are eligible for this exception we will contact you with an alternative submission option.
Here are the guidelines for the module:
- Make the module short. It should be a short interesting story that can be played within 15 to 30 minutes.
- Start the story off with a bang! If it doesn't catch our interest with the first character, your submission will likely be discarded.
- There should be at least 3000 words of dialogue within the module.
- We will be judging your ability to write dialogue that is interesting and has personality. The characters you are writing have to be engaging in a manner that immediately draws in the reader.
- The dialogue must be fun and easy to read, not overly verbose.
- We will also be judging the structure of your dialogue. Does the dialogue flow logically? Does the player feel in control of the conversation?
Examples of the style of game dialogue that we are looking for: Baldur's Gate 2. Planescape Torment. Neverwinter Nights.
COMMON WRITING SUBMISSION MISTAKES:
1. Overly verbose dialogue. Dialogue should be succinct & easy to read.
2. Dialogue where the player has very little interaction. The player should feel that he is talking to an NPC, not being talked at.
3. Modern sounding dialogue. Do not use modern anachronisms or slang. Fantasy characters shouldn't sound like they come from the 21st century.
4. Boring first character. The first character the player talks to sets the tone for the entire module.
Note: Resume submissions not including an example dialogue will not be considered.
Job Qualifications
Experience: Must have familiarity with non-linear storytelling techniques in interactive entertainment.
Minimum education - Canadian applicants: post-secondary diploma, certification or degree (preferred).
International applicants - for immigration purposes, minimum education requirement: post-secondary degree or diploma.
Application Instructions
Please submit a resume.
Please include a covering letter.
Contact   
   Leanne Korotash
200, 4445 Calgary Trail
Edmonton, AB T6H 5R7
All submissions must be accompanied by a signed and completed Product Submission Agreement. It should be faxed to 1-780-439-6374, and the module and resume emailed to writer-jobs@bioware.com. Please quote the following competition number in the subject line of your electronic application: 11-WD-WR-05 Due to the volume of applications we receive for our job postings, we are unable to respond personally to telephone inquiries regarding the status of an application. As well, only candidates being considered for interview will be contacted at this time.
Application Deadline - May 19, 2005

[AGA]

Hahahahahaha, BioWare "must be doing alright"? They are probably the biggest (and, imo, most skilled) RPG developer of modern times...

If you want to get to know RPGs, try Planescape: Torment (which BioWare released the engine for, in fact), or Baldur's Gate (same engine).

[2ma2]

BioWares dialogues is mostly predefined in such a sense that NPC's are fixed, but you may do a bit what you please with your character. Judging from those games I've seen, the dialoguetrees are rather straightforward, and because of the setting (good/evil, lightside/darkside, open palm/closed fist) there's basically one reply for being a goody goody or downright evehl, and one more or less neutral reply.

But more or less, if you don't know WHAT gameplay you're writing for, it is impossible to tell whether it is similar or not. What I have seen is basically the LEC-trees, albeit more shallow. Then you can have like "Ben Jordan" uses, where there's no actual reply, more or less an instruction such as "insult" "ask about ___" "compliment" etc..

I'd say a one room tryout in AGS, with complex dialogues that affect each other, or perhaps several rooms showing off different styles of dialogue structure.

[Rui 'Trovatore' Pires]

If it wasn't for the "permanent fulltime" thing I'd apply. But I have other things to do with my life. Pity.

[quintaros at work]

If it wasn't for the "permanent fulltime" thing I'd apply. But I have other things to do with my life. Pity.

In truth, I probably wouldn't accept a job either but it would be a priviledge just to be considered.

[Rui 'Trovatore' Pires]

Bit of a waste of effort, then. Especially if we have to learn how to use NWN to do it. Especially when a DOC file would be perfectly suited for their purposes.

[quintaros at work]

Bit of a waste of effort, then.

That's a matter of opinion.  I certainly don't feel that way.

[Rui 'Trovatore' Pires]

True, true. Granted, it is gratifying to know that we could have done it, if we'd wanted to. And it IS true that such exercises are never really a waste, especially since it could be the start of something bigger.

Ah well, to each his own. Gotta love freedom of expression.