Joining in on discussion about whether and how much domestic game companies like Sony and Nintendo favor prestigious diplomas when hiring fresh graduates, a Japanese X user recently shared a detailed account of his experience applying – and failing, to work for Nintendo.
For reference, the topic revolves around what’s commonly known as an “academic background filter” in Japan. This refers to companies (usually big-name businesses with hundreds of new graduates applying every year) screening out job applicants based on which schools they attended before even considering other factors. As a result, certain companies become (unofficially) known for hiring only people coming from specific universities. Although the practice is still fairly common in Japan, Nintendo is generally considered a filter-less company in this context, as it’s been shown that employees come from varied academic levels and backgrounds.
But X user Murahashi, who is now a science PhD and professor of Information Engineering, says Nintendo doesn’t need one in the first place. Murahashi applied to work for Nintendo in 2015, after completing his master studies, and was caught off guard by how rigorous the testing process was (albeit admitting that he approached the whole thing a bit too lightly).
“I’d heard that Nintendo doesn’t use any kind of academic background filter when hiring new graduates. But when I actually took Nintendo’s recruitment exam, the very first web test was extremely difficult, and I remember thinking: Makes sense, no need for a filter when this alone sifts out the candidates.”
Murahashi is referring to an aptitude test here, which tests candidates on general subjects like mathematics and English. The difficulty level and time limits of Nintendo’s aptitude test seem to have stood out to Murahashi from all the companies he’d applied for – however, the real surprise (and reason for his ultimate disqualification) was what came after he’d passed this test.
“Once you clear the web test, the next stage is the technical interview, which includes a practical programming exam. And this is not the kind of test where a vague understanding will get you through, you really have to think through the program (algorithm) properly. That, too, was really difficult… (and also where I failed).”
In a more detailed recount of the experience on his blog, Murahashi explains that of all the companies he and people he knew applied for, no others tested job candidates with a practical programming exam. The test included five coding problems, ranging from basic to complex, to be solved in C language within a time limit of 30 minutes. Applicants’ screens were watched in real-time by an examiner. With some gaps in memory, Murahashi gives a general idea of what the test looked like:
- Basic integer summation using a for loop
- FizzBuzz-style problem
- Find the nth term of a sequence like the Fibonacci numbers
- (Forgot this one)
- Find the area of a triangle defined by three points in 3D space
Murahashi’s posts on X earned a lot attention, including a response from Motoi Okamoto (who worked for Nintendo for 10 years before becoming a producer at Konami). Okamoto says that around 1997, Nintendo had to actively work on strengthening its in-house development capabilities (due to lack of third-party support for the N64), which led to an increasing number of employees from prestigious science universities joining the company.
“Of course, it’s not just about superficial academic credentials,” he adds. “I get the impression that Nintendo is increasing the number of people who are innately intelligent and have a strong passion for making games entertaining, which is also a result of their brand image.”
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