Turning a Passion for Video Games into a Career 

Finding your dream job can be a bit like navigating a video game—full of unexpected twists and turns.  

As we journey down our career paths, not every step or position may seem to relate to our passions. However, we can make our passions a part of our work, no matter the job. And we can use the skills we develop to build a career around what we love. 

Meet Flávia Souza, one of our Localization QA Testers at PTW Braga. Her journey took her from the world of academia all the way to working in localization for video games at our recently opened studio in Portugal. Let’s get to know her a bit better: 

The spark that lit the flame 

Flávia’s earliest memory of playing video games is when her father set up their new Atari console for her to play the now-classic platformer Kangaroo.  

When talking about her first time holding a joystick, Flávia remarks, “A totally new and marvelous world opened before my eyes. I felt in that moment that I would never be the same girl—and I was not.”  

Since then, video games have always been a part of her life. Whether it’s been roaming a distant world in the latest RPG or navigating the dangers of survival horrors, games have taken Flávia on many adventures. 

Although video games filled her free time, her career took a seemingly different path…  

A way to connect 

Originally from Brazil, Flávia graduated from university in 2003 and for many years worked as a high school English teacher. She highlights that a big part of what made her time teaching so fun was her ability to communicate with her students.  

Relating to them was easy, thanks to an interest they had in common: video games. “Somehow, we could speak the same language. We were sharing the same universe, facing the same bosses, or stuck in the same endless dungeon,” she explains.  

While her time spent teaching was an enriching experience that she remembers fondly, her journey would take another turn.  

Winds of change 

In 2019, Flávia felt a pull towards a career change and sought out some post-graduation courses that were not too far from her original university major: language studies. Eventually she found a program at Coimbra University in Portugal, where she ultimately decided to relocate to complete a Masters in Translation.  

When it came time to writing her dissertation, her life-long passion led her to an interesting decision. Despite her love of literature, Flávia chose to write her paper about game localization—a subject that was rather unconventional in her field of study. Luckily, she found two professors who believed in her ideas. 

For Flávia, this was an exciting time: “I could put all my true passions into it: writing, technology, people, communication, and games,” she says. “It was quite a challenge, academically speaking. Not many people were researching games then.” This only fueled her desire to weave her passion into her project. 

And her hard work was well-received. 

Reflecting on her paper, Flávia highlights a comment that was made by one of her major evaluators, who said: “I’ve never had a console, I’ve never played a game, my kids don’t play games, but after reading your paper, I feel I want to give a video games a try.” 

Bringing a dream to life 

Flávia spent the next two years working as a technical translator until another opportunity to combine her work and passion came to her attention: PTW was opening a new studio in Braga.  

The thought of working in the gaming industry was exciting to her, to say the least. “When I read that PTW was coming to Portugal, I think I sent more than five applications.” She continues, “This would be my moment. I could work with my passion, and I could make a dream come true.” Needless to say, she nailed her interview. 

After finishing the recruitment process and having now worked at the studio for nearly one year, Flávia is happy in her new role. “Now I work every day surrounded by incredible people who share my passion for games. We ensure that games are linguistically and culturally accurate for the target audience, which is incredibly fulfilling coming from someone who knows the importance of this when playing games” she says. “I hope I can contribute to someone, somewhere, playing a game, dreaming about a wonderful adventure, or taking their first step towards following their dream.” 

Reflecting on the many experiences she had along the journey, Flávia says: