How ironic - TTLG Forums

Hoopz on 6/12/2003 at 00:34

...a day after the release of Deus Ex 2:

QA TESTERS

GENERAL QUALIFICATIONS
The Ion Storm Quality Assurance team is seeking candidates to fill part-time and full-time temporary positions at our studio in Austin.

(http://www.ionstorm.com/jobs/)

That explains a lot, doesn't it?

jstnomega on 6/12/2003 at 01:56

I hope the wannabe applicants have to pass a drug screen.

Check that. I couldn't care less any more.

Shoshin on 6/12/2003 at 05:13

Could they possibly be testing, I don't know, maybe Thief 3?

Udasai on 6/12/2003 at 05:39

I pity the fool in the Austin job market...ISA could offer their QA staff coffee and danishes for wages. In fact, that might be the problem....

twisty on 6/12/2003 at 09:57

I'm not sure what a reasonable wage is in the US, but $US10 an hour sounds like a rather low wage for a QA employee.

daveodeth on 6/12/2003 at 14:04

its about 6-7 quid in the UK, nowhere near enough to live of here.

SneaksieDave on 6/12/2003 at 15:09

(http://swz.salary.com/salarywizard/layoutscripts/swzl_compresult.asp?zipcode=&metrocode=119&statecode=NY&state=New+York&metro=New+York&city=&geo=New+York%2C+NY&jobtitle=Software+Quality+Assurance&search=&narrowdesc=IT+--+Computers%2C+Software&narrowcode=IT05&r=salswz_swzttsbtn_psr&p=&s=salary&geocode=&jobcode=IT10000150&altername=Enter+search+term)

In case that link doesn't work, go to salary.com, choose computer software, choose NY,NY, then on the next page choose software quality assurance and create a basic report. (...And if you don't want to do that either, here's the result - low 25 percentile is $55k, and high 25 percentile is $76k.)

Then please mail the results to ION STORM so they can get a freaking CLUE. Morons.

And here's another thing, Ion - you don't hire "part and full time temp" QA people for your projects. QA is a job that needs to be done THROUGHOUT the project, so that your project doesn't become SHITE. Sound familiar?

:mad:

Edit! I repeat: MORONS!

David on 6/12/2003 at 15:41

You do not get $55k for playtesting a computer game, which is all these QA positions are. Playtesting. Hell, I would be suprised if you got $55k as project lead. Game development is not as well paid as you might believe, it is only averagely paid.

I am almost literally rofling that you believe you can get fifty-five thousand dollars for playtesting a PC game :laff:

Elenkis on 6/12/2003 at 16:04

Quote:

In case that link doesn't work, go to salary.com, choose computer software, choose NY,NY, then on the next page choose software quality assurance and create a basic report. (...And if you don't want to do that either, here's the result - low 25 percentile is $55k, and high 25 percentile is $76k.)

Hahaha... Now find the average wage for QA in the gaming industry.

SneaksieDave on 6/12/2003 at 17:01

Quote:

Originally posted by David
You do not get $55k for playtesting a computer game, which is all these QA positions are. Playtesting. Hell, I would be suprised if you got $55k as project lead. Game development is not as well paid as you might believe, it is only averagely paid.

I am almost literally rofling that you believe you can get fifty-five thousand dollars for playtesting a PC game :laff:

I never said that I believe you can get 55k playtesting a PC game, did I? Please feel free to check. But in fact, you're helping make my point. Look at the condition so many games (DE2 included) come out in, today. That's because all game companies DO hire, is teenage playtesters. They don't hire true SQA professionals. My point, exactly, is that that is what they NEED TO START DOING! Hire people who work in the world of "real" software, not "entertainment" software (note: *I'm* not personally making a distinction, and that's part of my point... get it? (double deep parens for the truly clueless: software is software)), and meet regularly with project leads and development leads and develop test plans based on developer-written and signed-off functional specifications, etc. I'm talking about being a professional here, with tried and proven techniques used in the software development industry. Not hiring a pimply teenager to play yer game a few times before throwing it off to production.

And, believe me I know how poorly the game industry tends to pay. I worked in it for a short time, before I decided I wanted a regular job that pays well, has benefits, and requires fewer than 80+ hours a week. Game development is -not- fun, nor is it lucrative.

Quote:

Hahaha... Now find the average wage for QA in the gaming industry.

Precisely. I'm sure it's very low. In fact, I'm quite sure that in most cases the "QA Dept." in game production is generally one person (the department, and manager) who basically brings in interns to play test. They're handling the entire role incorrectly.

To summarize the point for anyone missing it: the games industry needs to start hiring software quality assurance professionals (many who are programmers themselves), who are experienced in software development lifecycles and know what they're doing, and play a very important role in software development today (take a look around), instead of temporary teenagers to "pl@y t3st gamez!!1". Anyone can play test. You do, every single time you load up a buggy piece of crap software that should've never been released.

They're in need of people who can assure the quality of their product.