What exactly do you do?
I read incoming player Reported bugs (emails and Message boards), try to
reproduce them in the test environment and then document them. I test
some live publish fixes and changes. I also have been known to suggest
some artifacts and challenging bosses. (Blaze or Death, The General's w/
teleport Slam attack, and area poison attack on Yamadon. Just to name a
few of the things I contributed in the last year.)
What is a typical day like for you in Q&A?
I read a lot of emails regarding in game issues. Through out the day I
check on specific issues in our test environments. Once in a while I get
to relax and hang out on the public test center and watch the players.
Most of my days are spent trying to solve complicated bug reports.
How long have you worked at EA and have you always been in Q&A?
I started in QA 4 years ago at EA. I tested a lot of Sims expansion
titles, Motor City Online, Sims Online, and Earth and beyond, before UO.
What did you do before you worked at EA then?
I played online games, full time for about 2 years before deciding I
should get a job in the real world again, before that I made Photo
Copies on a graveyard shift.
Do you think the process that is currently set up for collecting bug
information (example: the email and the Stratics forum) works good or do
you think there could be a better way to get this information?
I like getting email, I like when players post problems and another
players help them. So both avenues have their benefits
About how many emails do you get on a daily basis that are bug
reports?
10 to 20 e-mails a day Most are repeats but its nice to see whats
bothering people.
Is it difficult to recreate the bugs and then try fix them? For
example can it take days or weeks to recreate a bug or is it a simple
process that can be done in a day?
Some are easier than others. The most complicated bugs are Faction and
Guild related issues where systems take weeks to properly test.
Do you play UO yourself or other MMORPGs?
Yes I play UO. I also play(ed) City of Heroes, World of Ward Crafts, EQ
and EQ2, Shadow Bane, Anarchy online, DAoC, E&B and Before all these
graphical user interfaces were put in place I played several MUDs,
notably Gemstone 4 was my first online multiplayer.
What shard do you normally play and what is your favorite
character?
I have a Bushido Sword wielder with a little Paladin in the template
works out nicely. I also have a tamer mage, not GM Taming it's a tedious
skill to practice but worth the effort when I get there someday.
Tell us a little about yourself. What for example is your background, are you married, favorite
color, favorite movie, ect.
I love to play online. I like meeting new people most of all. I actually
met a New UO player just the other day wandering taming animals with his
ninja in Tokuno. At first I thought this is an old player trying to scam
me, but he was really new to UO. I gave him a tour, some money for item
insurance, geared him up (with a couple Tomarties even) and gave him a
rune book with some safe places and some dangerous places marked. I even
had my new player ticket still for him to click so I got a fireworks
wand for my good deeds. I'd like to hope the rest of the Veteran players
would be as nice to a new player.