I've just received an email from Chris Kline, the Lead Programmer for Irrational Games over in Boston. They have programming internships on offer for Bioshock! If you're interested - read on!

Irrational Games, creators of critically acclaimed games such as System Shock 2, Freedom Force, Tribes:Vengeance, and SWAT 4, is currently seeking programming interns for their upcoming title "Bioshock".

Interns will be responsible for supporting the programming team on a wide variety of development tasks. These tasks might include any of the following:

• Bugfixing
• Game system feature implementation
• AI support
• User interface implementation
• Tools development for Design, Art, and Quality Assurance
• Visual effects development (implementation of HLSL shaders, particle systems, frame buffer effects, etc.)
• Core game engine functionality
• Did I mention bugfixing?

Candidates should exhibit the following:

• A love of games:
  Creative passion is important in all aspects of game development. We need interns who love computer games, play them regularly, and can talk about them intelligently.
• Willingness to undertake any task required:
  This is a perfect opportunity for an ambitious and skilled programmer to gain experience in the game development process, but interns will not be able to pick and choose their own tasks. We're looking for someone who is eager and excited to undertake any task necessary to bring the game to fruition.
• Service-oriented personality: Code is not an end in itself! Game development is a team effort, and the programming team works in support of the design and art teams. Candidates should think of the other teams and their fellow programmers as clients, and strive to achieve the needs of the team.
• Excellent communication skills: Good communication is vital to building great games. Interns will need to be able to work effectively with other team members to gather requirements, write planning and technical documents, and respond to feedback in a prompt and professional manner.
• Technical chops: Our interns will need a strong and demonstrable understanding of C++ and software engineering principles, and the ability to come up to speed rapidly on a massive codebase.
• Directable creativity:
  The intern should be comfortable taking direction from a staff engineer, but able to work creatively and independently. We'll throw you off the dock; you should be able to swim.

Desired related skills include:

• Experience in the games industry
• Experience in computer animation
• Experience in reactive artificial intelligence
• A strong foundation in the principles of 3D computer graphics; experience with DirectX 9 and HLSL
• Experience working with the Unreal Engine is a strong plus.

Positions will be unpaid -- in return for your efforts we will provide you with a T pass, experience working at one of the most respected companies in the industry, and your name in the credits of any titles you work on. If this sounds like something you are interested in, please email a resume, cover letter, references, and sample code with a description of its context and purpose to the address below.

The position will be Quincy, MA (just outside of Boston, accessible via the subway).

Christopher Kline
Lead Programmer
Irrational Games, LLC (Boston)
ckline@irrationalstudios.com

If you're not up for an internship, you could always apply for the job of Rendering/Engine Programmer for an undisclosed title!