You got the job. Congratulations! Now the real learning starts. Your first months as a junior artist are some of the most exciting of your whole career, and probably some of the most nerve-wracking too. You don't know yet how fast you'll progress, where you'll shine or what mistakes you'll make. That's OK. It's all part of the journey.
All those hours you spent on every nut, bolt, pixel and polygon for your portfolio will have served you well, but you won't really know the job until you're sat at that desk. The good news is you'll find out quickly, and you're not on your own.
Who's who
Your day-to-day manager is the Lead Artist. They look after your workload and decide what you work on. The Art Director is your indirect boss, and they're focused on the art itself. Your Lead works with a Producer to block out your schedule, usually in weeks. If you're a prop artist and a hero prop takes a week, that's four props for the month. Simple, right?
Most studios will also give you a buddy, someone on the team to help you settle in. If nobody's been assigned, my advice is to find the friendliest artist you've met so far and start there. And never be afraid to ask questions, but do listen to the answers and write them down. Especially if, like me, you've got a 64KB memory.
Probation is an extended interview
Almost every games job starts with a probation period, however hot a shot you are. In the UK it's typically three to six months; in the US it's often 90 days. It sounds scary, but nine times out of ten it's straightforward. Your workload starts light while you learn the pipeline and the tools, then the real tasks arrive and before you know it you're working on your first commercial game.
Your Lead is looking for pretty simple things: hitting the goals they set, turning up on time, fitting in with the team and communicating well. Above all, they want to see that you listen and act on feedback. Early on, everything feels different, even your favourite software. It's like working with boxing gloves on. That passes.
Reviews and feedback
Expect short stand-ups to catch problems early, and regular reviews where each artist shows what they're working on to the Lead and Art Director. Those reviews are gold. You get instant feedback from your seniors, and you get to see everyone else's work, which is the best inspiration there is.
I'll be honest, I struggled with reviews early on. I'm an introvert, and standing up in front of the team was not my favourite thing. If that's you, watch how the confident people do it: how they talk about their work, and how they take questions and criticism. You can learn a lot even lurking at the back of the room.
And when the feedback comes, and it always comes, don't take it personally. If they don't like something, it doesn't make your work bad. It's just not what they wanted. Bend with the wind. The inflexible artist breaks under the strain. The flexible one makes the changes and bounces back.
It's OK to make mistakes
When I interviewed Amber Marie Edwards for the book, she told me her first months were mostly fear. She had to learn new software in two weeks and was convinced she'd be let go for making so many mistakes. She wasn't. Her team helped her see it was fine not to know everything straight away, and within a couple of months the fear had turned into excitement. She was promoted after about 11 months. Her advice to her younger self was simply: "just breathe!"
Mistakes are part of the process. What matters is how you learn from them and bounce back.
Pace yourself
You'll be eager, and that's great, but this is a marathon, not a sprint. If you're voluntarily working 12-hour days in your first month, what's left in the tank when the project really needs you? You're responsible for your own wellbeing. Give it the same attention you'd give a new art tutorial.
Don't worry about where your peers are, either. Some will be ahead of you and some behind. Focus on your own work, find your weak spots and build them up. Some things just take time, and experience is the only thing that gives you that.
What's different now
The book came out in 2021, and the fundamentals above haven't changed. But a few things have, and they're worth knowing.
You might be starting from home. Plenty of juniors now start remote or hybrid. That makes settling in harder, because you can't overhear the conversation at the next desk or tap someone on the shoulder. So be deliberate about it. Ask your questions on Slack or Teams, turn your camera on in stand-ups, and book a quick call with your buddy when you're stuck rather than quietly spinning your wheels for a day.
There's less slack than there used to be. After the layoffs of the last few years, studios hire fewer juniors and expect them to contribute sooner. You'll still get a settling-in period, but it's shorter, and showing that you can take feedback and turn it around quickly counts for even more.
Ask about AI tools early. Some studios use them in the pipeline, some ban them outright, and plenty are still working it out. Don't guess. Ask your Lead what the policy is in your first week, before it becomes a problem.
If you're still at the start of the journey, read how to get your first job as a game artist and how to negotiate your first salary. Level Two of my book, Game Artist: The Ultimate Career Guide, covers the junior years in full, including contracts, benefits, studio structure and the art pipeline, with the whole interview with Amber.