Those Who Play
Playing games all day, and getting paid for it! That's the life of a game tester--or is it? Go behind the doors of The 3DO Company for an exclusive interview with game tester Mike Herauf, as he tells us what it's really like to test games.

To the delight of gamers and game companies alike, the games industry is growing, growing, growing on a daily basis. And there's no shortage of rabid computer jocks looking to fill the emerging jobs. Many young gamers who go to school may want to get a jump start in the field to gain some experience and contacts before they receive their college degree. But what entry-level position could a high school or college student jump into?

Enter Mike Herauf, test lead extraordinare for The 3DO Company. I recently drove down to The 3DO Company and spoke with Mike about what it's like to test games all day, and how he managed to pull such a sweet job. --Joe MCcloud

PCG: Why did you choose to get involved in the game industry, and how did you get started?

Mike Herauf: Well, I started out at a local video-game retail store selling games while I was going to school. During that time I was trying to decide what I wanted to do and figure out what career I wanted to get into. Since I was selling games, I kind of got turned on to the idea of marketing them. And because people in the industry came in to buy games, I was able to meet many of them who worked at companies like EA, Sega, and 3DO. I got to know this guy at Sega and he got me a job in the Sega Test Department. I was there for about seven months before I moved here to 3DO.

PCG: I was told that you are a test lead. What are some of the major differences between being a lead like yourself and being a tester?

Mike Herauf: As a lead, I communicate with the producers and directors of the titles on a daily basis. My job also requires me to write test plans, create bug databases, and compile information to hand in a weekly status report on the title. Testers, on the other hand, test whatever assignment is given to them for the day.

PCG: How does a tester make the jump into a lead test position?

Mike Herauf: There are basically three stages in our test department. First, you have the tester, who's primary job is to test. I guess you can say he/she is sort of the grunt. Then there's an assistant lead, who more or less helps out the lead. He begins learning how to maintain a bug database and write test plans. So the assistant lead would begin developing the skills necessary in order to become a lead, and after he's assisted in about three titles that have shipped, he might take on a lead role on the next title that enters the test department. The third stage, of course, is the lead.

PCG: It seems as if there is a lot of paperwork involved in being a test lead. Do you get a chance to get your hands on the title at all, or does your job consist mainly of paperwork?

Mike Herauf: Oh yes, I do get to test the games, too, but I do all of the paperwork on the testing side. I make sure that all the test plans have been completed, I read over all the bugs that are written, and basically supervise the test group that I have and make sure they don't goof off. I guess you can think of a test lead as a low-end supervisor role.

PCG: With that said, about how many testers are you in charge of during the testing of a title?

Mike Herauf: During the time when 3DO had a large test department of about 20 people, I led about 10 of them.

PCG: When you first began in the industry at Sega, and first moved to 3DO, both companies focused mainly on the development of platform titles. Since then, they have begun creating PC games. Since you now have experience in the testing process of two very separate mediums, what do you think the differences are in testing a platform versus a PC title, and which do you prefer?

Mike Herauf: I think it's pretty much all compatibility. For instance, on a PC, you've got different color settings, screen sizes, and resolution settings. You've also got to deal with sound cards, video cards, and different speeds the computer operates. If you were to test a PlayStation or N64, on the other hand, you'd be able to just plug it in and go. So, once again, I think it's mainly a compatibility issue.

PCG: So you think it's easier to test a platform title?

Mike Herauf: No, not really. I think that there may be a bit more work involved in testing a PC title, but that doesn't mean that testing a platform game is easy. When you think about it, they're both just games, so you can test them basically the same way when it comes to gameplay. But there are other issues that you've got to check for in both formats.

PCG: From what you've been telling me about game testing, I'm getting the impression that testing is a really "cool" job to have. And although there may be some difficult things that need to be dealt with, when all is said and done, being a tester is a piece of cake. Seriously, what can be easier than playing games all day long?

Mike Herauf: To a certain degree I guess it could be perceived as being easy, but if you don't have any patience, you're probably not going to like it as much as you thought you would. For example, let's just say that I'm your lead for game X, and game X has this certain spell. Now, if I need you to kill 50 monsters with that spell, that could take maybe 6 hours. If you don't have patience, you're not going to like it. Many people come in thinking that testing is going to be a piece of cake. Don't get me wrong--sometimes it is. Sometimes you get to spend the whole day just doing what you want and searching for bugs to pop up. But the people who come in with that mindset usually don't last very long.

PCG: Have you been assigned to a game that you really didn't like?

Mike Herauf: Oh yeah. I've been put on a couple of games that I didn't like too much, but I've made it through.

PCG: I guess it's safe to say that testing and playing games are two separate entities. But still, do you find yourself going home after a long day at work and wanting nothing to do with games? In other words, since you test games day after day, do you ever get sick of them?

Mike Herauf: No. No. I could play more games. In fact, now I find bugs in the games I play.

PCG: You mentioned earlier that you were once interested in getting into the marketing aspect of games. Is this something you'd still like to do, or are you now looking to get into a different area?

Mike Herauf: Well, I liked marketing for a while, and I still think that's it's pretty interesting. But when I got to 3DO and started working with producers and programmers more than I did at Sega, I discovered that I wanted to get into the production process. At this point, I'd really like to get into either producing or directing sometime in the future.

PCG: Have you had the opportunity to work closely with any of the producers or directors to get an idea of what that job would entail?

Mike Herauf: None of them have really shown me the ropes, but I've been testing for over two and a half years, so I've picked up on what some of the skills would be. Obviously, I would need to be in that position to learn them because there's a lot to learn. But I do think that I'd be capable of getting into, say, an assistant producer position if the opportunity arose.

Old Website Recovery