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[LectureMaster]

Careers || Naughty Dog

The official website of Naughty Dog, award-winning creators of Uncharted and The Last of Us series

www.naughtydog.com

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Naughty Dog is offering a rare opportunity to join our writing team working on Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet! This role inhabits the intersection where characters meet worldbuilding, creating stories that can be experienced “on the stick.” In this role, you’ll be responsible for conceptualizing and crafting dialogue, engaging lore, and environmental storytelling that enhance locations and gameplay moments.

What you will do:

• Collaborate with the Narrative Director and writing team to create cinematic and gameplay experiences
• Partner with game designers and other departments to create spaces rich in environmental storytelling, ensuring the narrative consistency of the world
• Craft and write memorable and authentic character dialogue and lore
• Pitch ideas for engaging gameplay story beats to other departments and writers
• Maintain documentation and lore within areas of responsibility and communicate all updates or changes to stakeholders in a timely manner
• Regularly provide clear, candid feedback to others to foster iteration and excellence in our narrative
• Thoughtfully integrate feedback and critique
• Research established background and external sources, when necessary

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The estimated base pay range for this role is listed below, this is an hourly rate.
$49.51—$67.78 USD

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[GrayChild]

Has Druckmann finally realized he's one of the worst writers in the AAA industry?

 

[Physiognomonics]

Hiring a writer 4 years after the start of the project? You hire those at the beginning, not end.

They want to salvage back what they can after the feedback from their awful trailer.

EDIT: or maybe it's not about intergalactic but for their next game? The twitter thread is savage!

 

[LectureMaster]

Well, now we know where the chick is gonna go next.

 

[Embearded]

Has Druckmann finally realized he's one of the best writers in the AAA industry?

Fixed that for you.

 

[nkarafo]

And what are the hair color requirements for the spot?

 

[Cakeboxer]

EDIT: or maybe it's not about intergalactic but for their next game? The twitter thread is savage!

Website says: Naughty Dog is offering a rare opportunity to join our writing team working on Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet!

 

[LectureMaster]

The comment section are hilarious. lol

 

[Hypereides]

Okay, that's kind of concerning. Especially, since Neil's comments made it sound like the story was fully fleshed out.

But, who knows, maybe its to reverse some things or add new input to the storyline. However, four years in you shouldn't be looking for new writers.

 

[sono]

Hiring a writer 4 years after the start of the project?

That is what I was thinking was strange too. Did someone leave

 

[LectureMaster]

The writer is responsible for dialogue/lore creation. Then the game is at best early-mid stage of production. Well, see you guys in 2027 - 2028.

 

[Bernardougf]

Ps6 game confirmed

 

[EDMIX]

Hiring a writer 4 years after the start of the project? You hire those at the beginning, not end.

That is what I was thinking was strange too. Did someone leave

...sigh, reading is fundamental. It literally states "join our writing team" , as in the role is to join an existing team of writers.

So this is not to hire "a writer" as in the ONLY WRITER or something weird like that, its to hire someone to join an existing team, they could be writing lore, quest all sorts of world building stuff in the game, things that might be done year 4, not year 1

LectureMaster its hard to say. It depends on what the person might be doing Sony no longer reveals titles that deep out, so its likely they might exist to fill out a role for lore, quest or something like that

 

[sono]

this is not to hire "a writer" as in the ONLY WRITER

OK thanks. I checked now with Grok

"AAA video games typically employ multiple writers to handle the extensive narrative content required for their complex and often expansive game worlds. Based on the available information:

Team Composition: AAA games can have anywhere from a minimum of three writers to as many as eight or even more on a single project. This number can vary significantly depending on the scale of the game, its narrative focus, and the studio's structure.


Roles and Responsibilities: In large AAA projects, there might be a head writer or narrative designer who oversees the story, alongside multiple writers responsible for different aspects such as main story arcs, side quests, dialogue for NPCs, and additional narrative content. This collaborative approach ensures a cohesive story while managing the workload across the game's development.
Industry Practices: The number of writers also reflects the need to cover various narrative elements, including localization, ensuring the story fits within gameplay mechanics, and maintaining consistency across different game sections or expansions.


Thus, while there's no fixed number, it's common for AAA games to have several writers working together to craft their narratives."

 

[cormack12]

I can see this releasing in the last year of PS5, and then when PS6 releases an 'enhanced' edition.

 

[LectureMaster]

 

[Rush2112]

‘Immersive worlds’ and ‘dynamic characters’:

Basically, they want someone to write their stupid open world quests and npcs.

 

[Fake]

What a fucking mess.

 

[lh032]

best outcome is that the new writer is actually good.

But the problem still lies with the protag design.

 

[StereoVsn]

And what are the hair color requirements for the spot?

That is a trick question. Requirement is no hair! You know, artists putting themselves into their work and everything!

 

[vivftp]

This isn't anything unusual. We've known for years that this project had a writers room working on it, so there's a team of writers

Naughty Dog's Next Game Is "Structured Like A TV Show"

Naughty Dog's next project will even feature a writers' room.

www.thegamer.com

It's likely a massive game and new writers could be brought on board for any number of reasons (ie. someone left, to add to the capacity of the writers room, DLC...)

 

[Bernoulli]

The estimated base pay range for this role is listed below, this is an hourly rate.
$49.51—$67.78 USD

---

Is that high in the US?

 

[DownLikeBCPowder]

 

[Three]

Edit: Nope I was wrong it does

 

[vivftp]

Edit: Nope I was wrong it does

Just replying to your pre-edit post, but yeah it says it here:

Naughty Dog is offering a rare opportunity to join our writing team working on Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet!

Here's the part that many of the geniuses in this thread are missing because they're tripping over themselves to dunk on Neil or Naughty Dog

Naughty Dog is offering a rare opportunity to join our writing team working on Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet!

 

[adamsapple]

If they're still writing the game, that must mean the game's pretty far. Since writing and story mo-cap is usually one of the earlier steps of the process.

 

[SF Kosmo]

Hey kids, are you looking to get hyper-scrutinized by an army of angry culture warriors who will scour everything you have ever done to affirm the narrative that you are a malevolent plant who wants to destroy their hobby because reasons?

God, who would want to work in the game industry anymore.

 

[Duchess]

Perhaps they're hiring for the next game in the series?

This is clearly going to be the first of many games set in the same universe, so ...

 

[vivftp]

Perhaps they're hiring for the next game in the series?

This is clearly going to be the first of many games set in the same universe, so ...

It specifically states it's for this game. The game could be anywhere from 1-2 years out. Typical AAA game production these days is about 2-3 years of pre-production and another couple years of full production. The writing team could be needed to add to and fine tune content up until later in development. Plus many Sony games do DLC, so there's that too.

 

[Fess]

The writer is responsible for dialogue/lore creation. Then the game is at best early-mid stage of production. Well, see you guys in 2027 - 2028.

Launch title for PS6 in 2027, cross gen release so a PS5 version too for maximum user base.

Or late PS5 2026 release and then an enhanced PS6 remaster 6 months later for some double dipping money.

The job seems to be about fleshing out the world building and environmental story telling. I assume the main plot is done.

 

[SF Kosmo]

Perhaps they're hiring for the next game in the series?

Or modern AAA games often have teams of dozens of writers and they are staffing up for production...

Just now I tried to look up how many writing, narrative, and quest design people worked on Star Wars Outlaws (first recent similar game that popped into my head) and counted about 40.

 

[Hookshot]

"Once upon a time there was a woman person called Jordan, she was they were the boss and was were the most bad ass of bad asses but she they had to run away and shave her their head because actually she was they were a bit lame rubbish. She they had a sword that might be musical and beat up robots because it was futuristic."

I don't want the job after all.

 

[vivftp]

Launch title for PS6 in 2027, cross gen release so a PS5 version too for maximum user base.

Or late PS5 2026 release and then an enhanced PS6 remaster 6 months later for some double dipping money.

The job seems to be about fleshing out the world building and environmental story telling. I assume the main plot is done.

It's pretty much a guarantee that the main plot is in place. The game began pre-production 4.5 years ago and would be in full production now. Pre-production is where a lot of those things get hammered out, but fine tuning could always happen even into full production.

 

[poppabk]

It's likely a massive game and new writers could be brought on board for any [bpnumber of reasons[/b]

Writer - But wouldn't they be covered in spores and immediately get infected when they took their gas mask off
Druckmann - I AM A GAMING GOD

The next day:

HOT JOB ALERT
Are you a writer driven by a passion for crafting immersive worlds & dynamic characters? If so, Naughty Dog wants to hear from you. #narrativejobs #Druckmannislord #truebeliever

 

[Angry_Megalodon]

Or modern AAA games often have teams of dozens of writers and they are staffing up for production...

Just now I tried to look up how many writing, narrative, and quest design people worked on Star Wars Outlaws (first recent similar game that popped into my head) and counted about 40.

Which is why it sucks. 40 writers can't write a cohesive story/worldbuilding. It's already difficult to make 2 writers agree on stuff, let alone 40. They must spend most of their time arguing. You just need a focused small team of 4-5 committed writers and another one that spots mistakes and inconsistencies unnoticed by the first group and that's it. Good books are written by one person and are far more complex than any videogame writing.

Then, companies complain about high budgets. No shit. They can't get any more inefficient.

 

[mitch1971]

Nose ring optional?

 

[Moses85]

The Game is Lightyears away.

 

[cormack12]

 

[DownLikeBCPowder]

Hey kids, are you looking to get hyper-scrutinized by an army of angry culture warriors who will scour everything you have ever done to affirm the narrative that you are a malevolent plant who wants to destroy their hobby because reasons?

God, who would want to work in the game industry anymore.

Come on.. A lot of criticism many of these devs receive is not unwarranted. You have developers talking about how gamers are garbage, talking down to the people who made them wealthy and successful. That's just the tip of the iceberg, forget the entire ideological warfare that's been transpiring.

 

[SF Kosmo]

You just need a focused small team of 4-5 committed writers and another one that spots mistakes and inconsistencies unnoticed by the first group and that's it. Good books are written by one person and are far more complex than any videogame writing.

Modern open world games often have scripts in excess of 500,000 words. Longer than the longers George RR Martin novel. It's can be a lot.

But yes Ubisoft has more redundancies than most because of the amount of work done by support studios and the like. Maybe this game will "only" have 9 or 10 writers working on it, as was the case with God of War Ragnarok, for example.

But the point remains: people reacting as if this means they don't have writers yet are being silly, there is obviously already a team in place they are just expanding as they ramp up production.

 

[Fabieter]

Maybe there is still hope for the game if some writers can undo wokemanns work.

 

[SF Kosmo]

Come on.. A lot of criticism many of these devs receive is not unwarranted.

And a lot of it is, or grossly mischaracterized, or held to a standard disproportionate to their role in the company. And the fact is, between the culture warriors on both sides you're bound to find someone to upset one of the mobs of you dig deep enough.

Who wants that? Fuck it, get a job writing copy for a bank or some shit and make twice as much money and not have to deal with culture wars gremlins. I would never work in the gaming industry.

 

[DownLikeBCPowder]

And a lot of it is, or grossly mischaracterized, or held to a standard disproportionate to their role in the company. And the fact is, between the culture warriors on both sides you're bound to find someone to upset one of the mobs of you dig deep enough.

Who wants that? Fuck it, get a job writing copy for a bank or some shit and make twice as much money and not have to deal with culture wars gremlins. I would never work in the gaming industry.

I don't blame you.

 

[Rivdoric]

I'd gladly apply but i'd need to learn proper english first.

We fwench don't weally speak gwood engwish you know.

 

[jason10mm]

Well, now we know where the chick is gonna go next.

At least her in game model will be pleasant to look at unless she gets beaten with the western dev female ugly stick.

 

[Topher]

This isn't anything unusual. We've known for years that this project had a writers room working on it, so there's a team of writers

Naughty Dog's Next Game Is "Structured Like A TV Show"

Naughty Dog's next project will even feature a writers' room.

www.thegamer.com

It's likely a massive game and new writers could be brought on board for any number of reasons (ie. someone left, to add to the capacity of the writers room, DLC...)

Yeah. Standard staffing decisions more than likely.

 

[Insanemaelstrom]

Could be an induction that the game is still far off or could be hiring while they do final polishing and tuning. Basically a new hire that write collectible stuff or small side quests while checking other writers stuff for grammer and spelling, etc.

 

[SmokedMeat]

Oh shit, the Veilgard writers are probably looking for work.

 

[Crayon]

Its a job opening. Some of you acting like college girls in a cancel mob.

 

[reinking]

At least her in game model will be pleasant to look at unless she gets beaten with the western dev female ugly stick.

If you say so....