Can you discuss your experience with cross-platform development and optimising games for different hardware and software configurations?

Optimising games for different platforms has always been a challenge, especially when we are talking about pc games and the broad range of hardware the player can be using. However, even on the newer generations of consoles this has become a concern. With games that need to use the most up to date consoles such as a series S while keeping high graphical fidelity on a series X, making sure a good level of quality can be assured across that range of devices is even more important now than ever.

How do you approach testing and quality assurance for game ports to PC?

When talking about ports to PC, we have two big concerns: Making sure the game run across a wide range of devices, while keeping an expected level of performance and visual fidelity. And understanding the method of input on mouse and keyboard is very different from a controller-only environment, ported games need to be accessible to different methods of input. Creating and making sure the game is a great experience for all kinds of users is essential when considering ports.

How do you handle compatibility and performance issues that arise during the porting process?

Compatibility and performance issues are treated as high severity, and finding them is a big focus of the QA process during development of a port. Depending on how serious the issue is, the QA can even call the entire development team to focus on that specific issue before moving on.

How do you work with the development team to ensure a successful and smooth porting process?

During active development, for each build being generated, the QA team performs performance testing across a range of devices, generating a report at the end of each run allowing developers and producers to always know how the game is performing

How do you stay up-to-date with emerging trends and technologies in the game porting industry?

Keeping up to date with porting is a lot like understanding game dev as a whole, only you have to keep in mind the focus while porting is translating the experience as best as possible to the target platform. You have to know the tools and engines you’re working with, how they work when building to other platforms, and how to create the best user experience in those platforms. Game dev, Unity and Unreal engine communities in general, are a good way to keep in touch, either via newsletters, podcasts, reddit, twitter or social media.

How do you prioritise and manage your time and tasks, especially when working on multiple projects simultaneously?

Working in multiple projects at the same time is pretty much the standard being a QA Lead. And managing all that is a challenge you learn to overcome by having a good schedule, splitting your day between each task and giving each project the attention required. Of course reprioritizations happen all the time, and having a good communication with your teams is essential to keep everything in order.

What is it like working at Starloop?

Working at Starloop as part of Magic Media comes with a lot of the challenges but it very rewarding. Between all our projects, we are always striving to apply the newest and most efficient QA strategies, especially when it comes to porting games. The opportunity to take on multiple projects as a lead is very exciting, it requires you to always be on top of things, and is a great chance to improve your knowledge of game development across multiple stacks.