Duties

• Primary Task: Writing dialogue. Must be able to write interesting dialogue in a timely fashion.
• Secondary Tasks: Coming up with story and puzzle ideas.

Experience

Must have at least two scripts that have been used in television or movies, or have at least one novel published by a major, internationally distributed publisher (e.g., WotC, Random House), or have significant game design or game writing experience.

Minimum education:

• Canadian applicants: no minimum education requirement; preferred: post-secondary diploma, certification or degree.
• International applicants: for immigration purposes, minimum education requirement: post-secondary degree or diploma.

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 should be provided.

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?
• Avoid creating an entire adventure module with combat, puzzles, and so on. Focus your efforts on dialogue.

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 and 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.

How to Apply

If you have applied for past design/writing positions, we ask that you reapply for this position with a new application, including a module submission. We will not be considering past applications for previous design positions for this new posting.

Note: Resume submissions not including an example dialogue will not be considered.

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 careers@bioware.com.

Please quote the following competition number in the subject line of your electronic application:

07-WD-SW

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.

Resources to help you apply:

• Product Submission Agreement (PSA)