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So if you are reading this, that means you are interested in getting to the video game industry as a game tester. That's good! While being passionate about video games is a HUGE part of the job, there is a LOT more to the job. This thread will provide answers to the following questions:
1) "What is a Quality Assurance (a.k.a QA)Tester?"
2) "What is a bug?"
3) "What is the difference between a QA Tester and a Beta Tester?"
4) "What makes a good QA Tester?"
5) "What does the typical day for a QA Tester look like?"
6) "Is being a QA Tester fun?"
7) "Do you get the choice of games you test?"
8) "What school/classes do I have to take to become a QA Tester?"
9) "Where do I go to apply for a QA Testing position?"
10) "There are websites that claim you can test games from home!"
First and foremost, let me tell you a little about myself. I work in the Video Game Industry as a Quality Assurance Tester, where I currently test video games all day for a living. I am what is called a "Professional Video Game Tester". I started out just like you. I have played video games my entire life and even though a lot of people told me that getting this job is near impossible... THEY ARE WRONG! I have since worked on Rock Band (PS2), Rock Band 2 (PS2, PS3, XBox 360, Wii), Rock Band Track Pack AC/DC, Rock Band Track Pack Country, Rock Band Classic Rock. My name is in the credits for these games and trust me when I say, the road getting there was a pain in the ass... but well worth it.
1) "What is a Quality Assurance (a.k.a QA)Tester?"
A Quality Assurance Tester is the same as a video game tester. The only difference is that a QA Tester is the industry title. If you walk up to someone in the industry and say, "I want to be a video game tester!" They are gonna walk away and pay no attention to you. So if you want to be a tester, you need to start looking into the proper terms. That's also the reason why a lot of people don't know where to look. They are looking for the wrong job title. So remember... If you want to be a tester, it's called "Quality Assurance Tester".
2) "What is a bug?"
A bug is the industry term for a glitch or a malfunction in the design. If you have ever played a game where you can walk through a wall and you know your not supposed to be able to... THATS A BUG! QA Testers look for bugs in the games all day! That's just what we do!
3) "What is the difference between a QA Tester and a Beta Tester?"
A "Beta" Tester is someone who begins playing the game during "Beta Phase". There are multiple phases that come before "Beta"! "Beta Phase" is when the game almost complete but there are still bugs to be find. As a QA Tester, you journey doesn't start in "Beta Phase"... it starts in "Pre-Alpha Phase" "Pre-Alpha" is where the programmers have put the code in, the designers and artists have put in the shapes, and there is nothing else! During this phase, NOTHING is polished and NOTHING looks good. Think of it like taking Gears Of War... and give it Final Fantasy 7 graphics. Yeah... it can look that bad.
Anyone can be a Beta Tester, but ONLY QA Testers get the adventure of starting from Nothing and Working towards Something!
4) "What makes a good QA Tester?"
A QA Tester is a lot of things, none of which is lazy. You have to be very hard working, attentive to detail, focused, able to handle stress, the ability to work 12 hours every day (for 7 days a week, for 8 months straight), a team player, the ability to take direction, the ability to write an in-depth detailed report on every bug that you find, and most importantly, passionate about gaming.
5) "What does the typical day for a QA Tester look like?"
Well, you go in at 8AM, you check the database to see what bugs have been fixed and what bugs you can test to make sure they are fixed, have a meeting with the team to discuss where the game is at and what needs to be worked on, get your recent "build" (or most recent version of the game) and play through the game. Run through every door, run against every tree, bush, building, boulder, car, wall, etc., Try to jump over ever fence, mountain, rock, etc. Basically... try to break the game in as many ways as you can think of. Once you find a bug, you go onto the computer and type up a 2-3 page report on what the bug was, how you found the bug, what you did to make the bug happen, what the bug is supposed to do. Rinse and repeat for 12 hours a day, 7 days a week, for 8 months straight.
6) "Is being a QA Tester fun?"
At the beginning of your QA Career, HELL YEAH IT IS! Come on! Your playing video games for a living!!! Then once the sparkle leaves your eye and you realize that you are here to work, everything kind of slips. It is still the best job I have ever had, by far. But you have to realize... this job is not about having fun. You are there to make sure the game is as perfect as possible so that when the game hits store shelves, others can enjoy it. The real fun in the job comes from you noticing a problem and helping the developers fix it. It's because of your attention to detail, you can prevent gamers from getting pissed that the game crashes when you go to character creation! Things like that. So in short... YES! It can be very rewarding... especially once the game is done and your name is in the credits!!
7) "Do you get the choice of games you test?"
This is a very common misconception that I have found with most people who think about game testing. I ask them, "How would you like to play Barbie? How would you like to play My Little Pony for 12 hours a day??" Almost everyone says, "Oh hell no! I wouldn't play that. I would test something cool!" The thing is, you don't get the choice! You are given the game and you have to do as your told. And when you get frustrated with it... you have to keep playing! If you get so sick of hearing the same damn song over and over... you have to keep playing!
8) "What school/classes do I have to take to become a QA Tester?"
A lot of people think you have to go to school to be a tester. Please... If you are going to try and move up in the industry as an artist, programmer, etc... THEN GO TO SCHOOL FOR THOSE THINGS! If you are going into the industry wanting to be a tester... DON'T WASTE YOUR MONEY! There is no school or class you can take that will directly help you learn how to be a tester. It's just something you have to do and learn about when you are doing it. If you really want to learn how to... Load up your favorite game, look around for a bug (not a bug that others have found). Once you find it, restart the game and try to make it happen again. If you can make it happen 3 times back to back, you have what it takes! I can find atleast 5-10 bugs in EVERY game that I play. If you can too, then you are ready!
9) "Where do I go to apply for a QA Testing position?"
Start looking at the websites for the companies around you. If you live in Austin, TX, look up Sony, BioWare, Blizzard, and Trion. Look around! See what companies are near you and go to their websites. DO NOT CALL, DO NOT GO THERE! If you call, you wont be able to talk to anyone and no one will call you back. If you go there, you wont be able to get in! All of the doors are locked and you have to have a badge to get in. Just go online! Look under "Careers", and look for "Quality Assurance Tester". Follow the steps they list on how to apply and do it! This is THE BEST WAY TO APPLY! Simple as that!
10) "There are websites that claim you can test games from home!"
For anyone considering doing this... DON'T DO IT!!!! Its a SCAM!!!! YOU CAN NOT... again... you CAN NOT be a game tester and work at home!!! If every company let you take the game home to test, there would be soooooo much leaked information on the net and there would be no excitement about anything. There would be burned and ripped copies of the game before the damn thing was even done. Think about it people... You wanna be a tester and work at home, sign up for a closed beta or something.
If you have any questions I did not answer here, please ask them! I will answer any questions as best as I can.
Someone asked ... ~~ Whats the pay like? ~~
The industry standard pay is $10 an hour
1) "What is a Quality Assurance (a.k.a QA)Tester?"
2) "What is a bug?"
3) "What is the difference between a QA Tester and a Beta Tester?"
4) "What makes a good QA Tester?"
5) "What does the typical day for a QA Tester look like?"
6) "Is being a QA Tester fun?"
7) "Do you get the choice of games you test?"
8) "What school/classes do I have to take to become a QA Tester?"
9) "Where do I go to apply for a QA Testing position?"
10) "There are websites that claim you can test games from home!"
First and foremost, let me tell you a little about myself. I work in the Video Game Industry as a Quality Assurance Tester, where I currently test video games all day for a living. I am what is called a "Professional Video Game Tester". I started out just like you. I have played video games my entire life and even though a lot of people told me that getting this job is near impossible... THEY ARE WRONG! I have since worked on Rock Band (PS2), Rock Band 2 (PS2, PS3, XBox 360, Wii), Rock Band Track Pack AC/DC, Rock Band Track Pack Country, Rock Band Classic Rock. My name is in the credits for these games and trust me when I say, the road getting there was a pain in the ass... but well worth it.
1) "What is a Quality Assurance (a.k.a QA)Tester?"
A Quality Assurance Tester is the same as a video game tester. The only difference is that a QA Tester is the industry title. If you walk up to someone in the industry and say, "I want to be a video game tester!" They are gonna walk away and pay no attention to you. So if you want to be a tester, you need to start looking into the proper terms. That's also the reason why a lot of people don't know where to look. They are looking for the wrong job title. So remember... If you want to be a tester, it's called "Quality Assurance Tester".
2) "What is a bug?"
A bug is the industry term for a glitch or a malfunction in the design. If you have ever played a game where you can walk through a wall and you know your not supposed to be able to... THATS A BUG! QA Testers look for bugs in the games all day! That's just what we do!
3) "What is the difference between a QA Tester and a Beta Tester?"
A "Beta" Tester is someone who begins playing the game during "Beta Phase". There are multiple phases that come before "Beta"! "Beta Phase" is when the game almost complete but there are still bugs to be find. As a QA Tester, you journey doesn't start in "Beta Phase"... it starts in "Pre-Alpha Phase" "Pre-Alpha" is where the programmers have put the code in, the designers and artists have put in the shapes, and there is nothing else! During this phase, NOTHING is polished and NOTHING looks good. Think of it like taking Gears Of War... and give it Final Fantasy 7 graphics. Yeah... it can look that bad.
Anyone can be a Beta Tester, but ONLY QA Testers get the adventure of starting from Nothing and Working towards Something!
4) "What makes a good QA Tester?"
A QA Tester is a lot of things, none of which is lazy. You have to be very hard working, attentive to detail, focused, able to handle stress, the ability to work 12 hours every day (for 7 days a week, for 8 months straight), a team player, the ability to take direction, the ability to write an in-depth detailed report on every bug that you find, and most importantly, passionate about gaming.
5) "What does the typical day for a QA Tester look like?"
Well, you go in at 8AM, you check the database to see what bugs have been fixed and what bugs you can test to make sure they are fixed, have a meeting with the team to discuss where the game is at and what needs to be worked on, get your recent "build" (or most recent version of the game) and play through the game. Run through every door, run against every tree, bush, building, boulder, car, wall, etc., Try to jump over ever fence, mountain, rock, etc. Basically... try to break the game in as many ways as you can think of. Once you find a bug, you go onto the computer and type up a 2-3 page report on what the bug was, how you found the bug, what you did to make the bug happen, what the bug is supposed to do. Rinse and repeat for 12 hours a day, 7 days a week, for 8 months straight.
6) "Is being a QA Tester fun?"
At the beginning of your QA Career, HELL YEAH IT IS! Come on! Your playing video games for a living!!! Then once the sparkle leaves your eye and you realize that you are here to work, everything kind of slips. It is still the best job I have ever had, by far. But you have to realize... this job is not about having fun. You are there to make sure the game is as perfect as possible so that when the game hits store shelves, others can enjoy it. The real fun in the job comes from you noticing a problem and helping the developers fix it. It's because of your attention to detail, you can prevent gamers from getting pissed that the game crashes when you go to character creation! Things like that. So in short... YES! It can be very rewarding... especially once the game is done and your name is in the credits!!
7) "Do you get the choice of games you test?"
This is a very common misconception that I have found with most people who think about game testing. I ask them, "How would you like to play Barbie? How would you like to play My Little Pony for 12 hours a day??" Almost everyone says, "Oh hell no! I wouldn't play that. I would test something cool!" The thing is, you don't get the choice! You are given the game and you have to do as your told. And when you get frustrated with it... you have to keep playing! If you get so sick of hearing the same damn song over and over... you have to keep playing!
8) "What school/classes do I have to take to become a QA Tester?"
A lot of people think you have to go to school to be a tester. Please... If you are going to try and move up in the industry as an artist, programmer, etc... THEN GO TO SCHOOL FOR THOSE THINGS! If you are going into the industry wanting to be a tester... DON'T WASTE YOUR MONEY! There is no school or class you can take that will directly help you learn how to be a tester. It's just something you have to do and learn about when you are doing it. If you really want to learn how to... Load up your favorite game, look around for a bug (not a bug that others have found). Once you find it, restart the game and try to make it happen again. If you can make it happen 3 times back to back, you have what it takes! I can find atleast 5-10 bugs in EVERY game that I play. If you can too, then you are ready!
9) "Where do I go to apply for a QA Testing position?"
Start looking at the websites for the companies around you. If you live in Austin, TX, look up Sony, BioWare, Blizzard, and Trion. Look around! See what companies are near you and go to their websites. DO NOT CALL, DO NOT GO THERE! If you call, you wont be able to talk to anyone and no one will call you back. If you go there, you wont be able to get in! All of the doors are locked and you have to have a badge to get in. Just go online! Look under "Careers", and look for "Quality Assurance Tester". Follow the steps they list on how to apply and do it! This is THE BEST WAY TO APPLY! Simple as that!
10) "There are websites that claim you can test games from home!"
For anyone considering doing this... DON'T DO IT!!!! Its a SCAM!!!! YOU CAN NOT... again... you CAN NOT be a game tester and work at home!!! If every company let you take the game home to test, there would be soooooo much leaked information on the net and there would be no excitement about anything. There would be burned and ripped copies of the game before the damn thing was even done. Think about it people... You wanna be a tester and work at home, sign up for a closed beta or something.
If you have any questions I did not answer here, please ask them! I will answer any questions as best as I can.
Someone asked ... ~~ Whats the pay like? ~~
The industry standard pay is $10 an hour
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