Want to Break Into the Game Industry? Just Give Yourself a Job, Says Valve

In a moment awkwardly out of touch with reality, Valve’s Chet Faliszek spoke today at the Eurogamer Expo (full video above) in which he addressed one particular frequently asked question:

How do you get yourself a job in the games industry? This is the answer: you just give yourself one. It’s that simple.

In fact, it’s not that simple, as many independent developers will tell you. In fairness, Faliszek’s speech was not all bootstrapping platitudes, as he also discusses getting involved in online indie communities and starting with small, proof-of-concept style projects to cultivate feedback. But, naturally, Faliszek also suggests struggling indies submit their work to Valve’s own Steam Greenlight… you know, the one with the $100 submission fee.

“There are no gatekeepers,” Faliszek said, even though Steam is widely acknowledged as one of the major platforms through which independent developers reach consumers. “There are no requirements,” he added, which is closer to the truth, as Greenlight’s current crowdsourced approval system lacks any sort of standard. “You’re in control of your own destiny,” he continued, which… gah. I’m not even touching that one. I’m just going to post this Youtube clip and go look at kittens for a while.