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Working as a Game Tester

Posted by michael on from the carpal-tunnel dept.

DaytonCIM writes "SFGate.com has a great story on the real life of game testers. 'Life is not all fun and games, though. It's all games -- with little time left for sleeping or eating, at least during the busy months before Christmas. The longest week he has logged was 106 hours, and 60-hour-plus weeks are typical in deadline crunches, he said.'"

15 of 359 comments (clear)

  1. Oh please by unicron · · Score: 5, Funny

    Lemme get this straight. You get PAID to spend the majority of your time playing videogames. OH WHAT A HELLISH NIGHTMARE EXISTANCE!! WO IS YOU!!

    I just spent the afternoon degaussing 130 DLT tapes. You'll forgive me if I don't share in your plight of the hellishness that is Galaxies or Planetside. I'll pray for you tonight.

    --
    Finally, math books without any of that base 6 crap in them.
    1. Re:Oh please by Tackhead · · Score: 4, Funny
      > Imagin the fun of testing out EVERYWALL on some level to make sure that you don't walk through it.

      ...WTF d00d? Like how else am I supposed to I be sure I found all the secret doors and easter eggs?

      > Remember that they don't just get paid to play video games, they get paid to FIND BUGS!

      As opposed to customers, who pay to find bugs :)

  2. I was a game tester... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Funny

    ...for vivid games. I quit when my palms were so covered in blisters that it was painful to drive.

  3. 106 hours? by corsec67 · · Score: 3, Funny

    That guy must have been slacking off. I mean, with the 62 hours left during the 7 day week, he had about 62/7=8.8 hours left each day, which would be plenty of time to sleep. That slacker!

    --
    If I have nothing to hide, don't search me
  4. I wonder... by Genrou · · Score: 5, Funny

    What do they do as a hobby? Accounting, maybe?

  5. Who needs a pension... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    ...when you are assured lifetime employment as a Duke Nukem Forever tester?

  6. Oh poor baby by Jordy · · Score: 5, Funny

    You think you have it bad.

    I'm the Chief Deneedler at a haystack company. You don't know what hell is until you spend 40 hours a week searching haystacks for needles.

    --
    The world is neither black nor white nor good nor evil, only many shades of CowboyNeal.
  7. Easy solution... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Funny

    1.Burn down the haystack.
    2.Run around with metal detector.
    3.Profit!!!

  8. Test this! by rcastro0 · · Score: 3, Funny

    Welcome to Equilibrium, the Game of Life (c).
    You are at the north end of the Shrine of Delphi. There is a plaque in front of you. Exits: S
    >read plaque
    The plaque reads "Know thyself".
    >S
    You are at the south end of the Shrine of Delphi. There is a plaque in front of you. Exits: N
    >read plaque
    The plaque reads "Nothing in excess".
    >N
    You are at the north end of the Shrine of Delphi. There is a plaque in front of you. Exits: S
    (...)

    --
    Quem a paca cara compra, paca cara pagará.
  9. Re:funny story by Bastian · · Score: 4, Funny

    Obviously someone who likes to play Madden a little too much got some mod points.

  10. Stop shooting me! I'm checking walls! by phamlen · · Score: 4, Funny

    Imagine the fun of testing out EVERYWALL on some level to make sure that you don't walk through it.

    Yeah, and imagine that all your co-workers shooting you at the same time! "Boy, Jim is an easy target today. It's like he's always running into walls!"

    (On the other hand, if you do find a buggy wall, it would be "Hey! Where did he go?")

  11. Its true by intermodal · · Score: 5, Funny

    I am a games tester. When I finish a project, usually the first thing i do with my free cop(y/ies) is send them to friends who live far away.

    --
    In SOVIET RUSSIA... erm...NSA AMERICA, the Internet logs onto YOU!
  12. Re:Poor babies... by grammar+fascist · · Score: 4, Funny

    I dunno. I think Mary-Kate and Ashley might give that a run for its money.

    --
    I got my Linux laptop at System76.
  13. How Do Game Testers Relax? by IHateEverybody · · Score: 3, Funny


    The longest week he has logged was 106 hours, and 60-hour-plus weeks are typical in deadline crunches, he said.
    After a 106 hour marathon game testing session, he went home to unwind by going over budget figures in Microsoft Excel.

    --
    Does this .sig make my butt look big?
  14. Playing games that are 95% done.... by jordanda · · Score: 3, Funny

    Playing games that are 95% done is like drinking water that is 95% not urine. Sure, its mostly good, but that other %5 ruins the entire experience.