Background: Gaming

Video games have been a part of my life ever since I got my first computer. At first my only actively played game was solitaire, and that was only if I succeeded in booting up the PC correctly. I remember having to type in a few very specific commands into the DOS menu before having a hope of seeing the Windows interface. That’s why whenever I successfully got into Windows I felt like I had overcome a huge obstacle. I always imagined a gnarled and stumpy little troll blocking the road to my OS; having to answer the grotesque creature’s cryptic riddles.

I eventually mastered the art of booting up my PC, though, giving me more time to fiddle with the various programs and applications it came with. There was only Minesweeper and Solitaire at first, but my grandparents soon found tons of educational games for me to play as well. Those kept me pretty occupied for a few months; teaching me all kinds of 1st grade math and reading.

What really got me into video games, however, was Sim City 2000. That game was the first game that kept me up all night long; stealthily eluding the detection of my parents when I had cities to build passed my bed time. The bright glow of the monitor surrounded by an ocean of darkness was so comforting and inviting to me. It became my own personal paradise; wrapped in a warm blanket while I built my own city, flew in an X-wing, solved riddles or got my ass kicked in Street Fighter 2.

There are a lot of people out there who will tell you that playing video games is nothing but a waste of time. I beg to differ, because those countless hours of gaming bestowed a wealth of knowledge upon me. From solid hand-eye coordination to critically analyzing your current problem and figuring out a solution with what little resources you have, video games have been invaluable to me in my personal and professional life. They offer a quick escape from the stresses and troubles of everyday life. They can tell such wonderful and enrapturing stories or leave you in a pathetic heap of tears from the sorrow or terror you feel from a truly grim or frightening game.

Gaming is an ever-growing canvas for talented developers and designers; pushing the boundaries of technology and literature to produce the best experience they can create for their audience. With Virtual & Augmented Reality so close to making their official debut in the mainstream, one can only assume that it’s going to usher in a new age of gaming.

I hope to write more about gaming and the future it has, and I personally can’t wait to see what VR can really do.

 

Background: Quality Assurance

How do I even start with this one? Quality Assurance is a vital part in any product. In Software Development, testing is done in multiple stages during the development cycle. It’s all a process of pass and fail scenarios determined by the design document for the software. Basically, does it work? Yes? Next! Does it work? No? How so? If you have a good eye for detail and a passion for breaking things then QA might be for you. That’s just a very loose definition of what is expected of someone working in QA.

I started my career in software testing at a contracting company in Redmond. This was back in my college days when I wanted to get my foot in the door at some reputable software companies. My first official software testing title, and I’m not joking here, was “Bullpen Tester”. This was basically a place where all the eager game testers go to “get paid to play”, as they often exclaim while trying to imitate what’s “hip” and “cool” with the “gaming crowd”. This obviously attracted all types of gamers looking to get some extra funds while going through college. It all seemed so awesome when I first started.

The term “Bullpen” was a very apt description in many regards. You showed up at the building, entered the doors, and proceeded to wait in a small room with a few dozen other testers. Work was not guaranteed and if they didn’t pick you, you went home. I could go on about how, yes, some people didn’t have very good hygiene practices and, yes, that was pretty horrible at times; but that’s just me getting sidetracked. This was my first testing job and it got me into software development and quality assurance.

Some very important lessons were learned on my first few weeks on the job. You weren’t there to make sure the game is fun. You’re there to make sure it works. A lot of gamers make the mistake of thinking that testing games would be the exact same thing as playing them. This is a grave error to make, as it tends to lead to frustration followed by madness. What kept me sane was the drive to find and report the errors I found so the developers can fix them. Sounds simple enough right?

Well if you’re anything like me, you’re going to want the issues you find to be addressed and fixed before the product comes out. Unfortunately, this is not always what happens. The term “Won’t Fix” is probably my least favorite thing to see when getting my issues back from the developers. It means they know the issue is there, but they simply won’t fix it. I always understood if the issue wasn’t that severe, but when the developers are sending back software-breaking bugs as “Won’t Fix” you get a little discouraged.

Most of what I’ll be writing about in this blog will probably have to do with Software and Gaming in general. From testing games to reviewing them, it’s all in the details, and once you start testing, you never stop.