Good luck Melonie

quote:

Originally posted by mcmax3000:

quote:

Originally posted by Melonie:
You don't like the PS3?

I'm sure it's a fine system. I just don't currently see any reason to have both it & a 360. Pretty much everything I want to play on the PS3 is also available on the 360.

Yeah, I see what you mean.

They seem like two completely different consoles to me. The Xbox 360 has an arcade feel and provides the ultimate online experience, while the PS3 feels like a futuristic piece of hardware that just so happens to play games really well. I personally feel that the PS3 has a lot more advanced features in certain areas outside of gaming, but the Xbox 360 is just more fun because the online multiplayer is sooooo good, as well as the friend system and achievements.

I love them both, though. I tend to play mainly single player games on the PS3 (except I like to play online with Fat Princess, Killzone 2, and soon to play Uncharted 2 online), but on the Xbox 360, I play through the campaigns of games anyway, but spend the majority of my time playing online, because it's just more fun playing online against (or on a team with) other people than AI. AI will never be as clever as a real person, I say.

Thanks for all the support everyone. Like I said before, I really don't have plans to be a video game tester as a career, but since it's a temp job, I would enjoy it if I managed to win the show, but the main goal of being on the show for me is just being around the games and the gaming environment while being recognized for it. I'd love to get more involved in the industry somehow. Whether it's competing, promoting, or helping create games, I'm in love with the industry and want to get my name out there so I can have the opportunity to do something in the future.

Lots of luck be with you.

Thanks again, everyone.

Interview starts in 15 minutes. I've got my webcam all setup and I'm going to play some Killzone 2 for them to watch. I'm stoked!

Been playing Halo 3 so much, I had to practice on Killzone 2 to remember the controls.

Just remember, if they truly are looking for the person who can be a good tester, fulfill the same action over and over again in different fashions. See those boxes? Run against them. Jump against them. Strafe into them. Try to get to the corners where there could be a hole in the collision.

Of course, that's probably much less effective on a retail game (assuming the game was thoroughly tested... which is a HUGE assumption.) Anyway, have fun with the interview!

Ooh, awesome advice, I'll do that. Fight Helghast AND bump into boxes, perfect!

We started the interview and talked for a little bit, but my webcam and mic were not syncing, so we delayed the interview for another hour until I figured out the problem, which I did. Bad drivers.

Anyway, tested it again and it worked great, so shouldn't be long and the interview will start for real. I'm very excited! The little bit we did talk was a lot of fun, and he said he loved my personality, so that's a good start!

I'll give you an update when it's done. I can't wait! The most fun part will be playing Killzone 2 for the camera.

OK, interview done. It went really well for the most part. I was confident and did fine, but the problem I had is that they didn't watch me play games after all, which was a disappointment. :/ I was ready to show my skills lol.

The entire interview was basically based around my looks, and that was pretty upsetting for me. I love compliments, but this is supposed to be about gaming, not my looks, you know? They kept prodding with questions like, "How are you a gamer? Girl gamers are always ugly and fat!" I told him straight up that I hated that stereotype, and I would love to prove that there are girl gamers out there who are feminine and pretty, but just aren't known.

He also kept asking questions like, "Do you have a boyfriend?" and "You know if you make the show, you'll have a lot of fansites, right?" Along with, "What if you meet a really handsome gamer guy and you fall in gamer love?!" (He actually asked me that same question twice, just phrased differently).

I told him I was there to game and not look for a boyfriend. Which is the truth.

So we'll see what happens. I'll find out in about three weeks he said. I'm not sure what to expect, maybe they were looking for a different response from me (sounds like they'd like to kindle a romance on the show, but that is NOT happening with me), so it's hard to say whether I think I got it or not, but time will tell.

He told me that the 7th highest ranked guitar hero player in the world was going to be there, along with the 14th highest ranked PSN (trophies, mainly) player would be there as well. So that would be both exciting and scary to meet them. I'm confident that I do have skills, but I'm not going to be naive and think that I can beat the 7th and 14th highest ranked players in the whole world.

Still would be fun if I made it. As long as the attention I got would be from my gaming and not my looks.

I hope you get chosen

quote:

Originally posted by Melonie:
He also kept asking questions like, "Do you have a boyfriend?" and "You know if you make the show, you'll have a lot of fansites, right?" Along with, "What if you meet a really handsome gamer guy and you fall in gamer love?!" (He actually asked me that same question twice, just phrased differently).

I told him I was there to game and not look for a boyfriend. Which is the truth.

Hopefully they don't take that angle, because if they're trying to find the best person for a testing job and they throw that BS in there, it'll be so far and away from what would actually produce a good tester, it would not be worth watching for the actual subject matter. >.<

quote:

He told me that the 7th highest ranked guitar hero player in the world was going to be there, along with the 14th highest ranked PSN (trophies, mainly) player would be there as well. So that would be both exciting and scary to meet them. I'm confident that I do have skills, but I'm not going to be naive and think that I can beat the 7th and 14th highest ranked players in the whole world.

If the PSN guy just goes through and beats games as fast as he can to get trophies, he'll probably make a *worse* tester than the casual gamer who just plays through the game at a leisurely pace. I've said it once, I'll say it again, being a good gamer does not mean the person will be a good tester, and I sincerely hope they get a good spread of people from casual gamer to hardcore for this, because I'll be there will be some surprises.

Hell, the best testers I ever worked with were the people who didn't necessarily play a lot of games hours-wise, or were superb at any given game, but played a wide variety of games and applied that knowledge to genres that you wouldn't ordinarily think to play in that certain way.

Jeeze... it just occurred to me the past three days or so on this forum have been one long reminder of the fun aspects of game testing. I know there are some other testers (former or current) that visit this forum. We should throw a party for each other and talk about the fun times we had arguing with developers (or even superiors in QA) on what bugs have to be fixed before shipping.

Yea, it's disappointing. :/ Looks like they're going more for reality show drama than actual gaming.

I was just offended that they didn't take me serious. I felt like they were only interested in talking about my looks and if I'd spark some romance on the show. The answer is a big no on that. I love getting compliments on my looks, don't get me wrong. And it's odd, because I never thought I'd be offended by something of the sort, but I felt so insulted during that interview, because they had nothing to say about gaming, just my looks. The reason why it bothered me is that they really didn't give a rat's behind about what kind of person I was, or what gaming skills I had, it was all looks and nothing more.

I'm not a brainless bimbo, and I was quick to let them know that. Along with thoroughly explaining that I wanted to be on the show to compete in games and nothing more. They wouldn't take no for an answer, apparently.

As a girl, I was offended that they would even talk about girl gamers as being ugly and not bathing, while I was an "exception". I'm not an exception to the rule, there's many more out there, but they don't get recognized because people don't take them seriously! We have to prove ourselves twice as hard as anyone else, otherwise we're just objects.

Bleh. The whole thing just leaves a bad taste in my mouth. Not to mention, the guy really didn't have a clue about games anyway. He was giving me an example of how to answer questions and he hypothetically answered one himself and said, "My favorite Sony game is Gears of War." Wha? I almost corrected him, but didn't want to look like a jerk, so I didn't.

If I get a call in three weeks, I still might participate for the sole purpose of getting my name out there in the gaming industry and looking for other opportunities (promotional and/ or competitive would be nice ), but as far as the show itself goes, I'm really not pleased with its direction and intentions.

Oh well, I've become an Xbox 360 girl than a PS3 girl anyway.

quote:

"My favorite Sony game is Gears of War."

/facepalm

I just wish assholes like that would stop segregating gamers by sex and realize, hey, we're all just gamers! If they feel they must create more specific classifications, how about: FPS gamers, RTS, etc.

*sigh*

I used to blog about this sort of thing... but then I realized I'm not interesting. Zing!

quote:

Originally posted by Melonie:
They kept prodding with questions like, "How are you a gamer? Girl gamers are always ugly and fat!"

What an ignorant jerk! I HATE people like that! I really do hope you get it so you can go on there and represent female gamers AND intelligent ones as well!

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Originally posted by Jaspir:

quote:

Originally posted by Melonie:
They kept prodding with questions like, "How are you a gamer? Girl gamers are always ugly and fat!"

What an ignorant jerk! I HATE people like that! I really do hope you get it so you can go on there and represent female gamers AND intelligent ones as well!

Wait, wait. You two ladies aren't fat or ugly?

Pretty much any female gamer I've seen represented on this site breaks that stereotype (ie. fat and ugly, and most have skillz I could only hope for) - sounds like a typical shallow reality show to me - more about the drama and less about getting an actual appropriate candidate. Good luck regardless Melonie ...

quote:

Originally posted by Jaspir:

quote:

Originally posted by Melonie:
They kept prodding with questions like, "How are you a gamer? Girl gamers are always ugly and fat!"

What an ignorant jerk! I HATE people like that! I really do hope you get it so you can go on there and represent female gamers AND intelligent ones as well!

I might go on it to prove that.

I still have a difficult decision to make. I have three weeks to think about it though, and I don't even know for sure if they will pick me (I just have a feeling they will for some reason).

If it's going to really be about gaming then I would like to, but if it's just another drama filled reality show, then I'll pass. The only problem is that I won't be able to tell unless I got on the show.

I can guarantee one thing, though. If I do decide to go on the show, it will be to represent girl gamers like us. That we do love being girls and are feminine, yet still kick butt at games and are intelligent as well. That's a good point I'd love to get across.

Melonie, I really hope you get the spot on the show. I want you to go on there and basically spit in their faces, and show them how ladies can game. Amy and the other ladies did great during the WCG show, and it would be great if more ladies showed the world that the stereotypes of female gamers is wrong. Go on that show, avoid the drama/romance stuff, and game like there's no tomorrow. You've definitely got support from this community.

quote:

Originally posted by Melonie:


He told me that the 7th highest ranked guitar hero player in the world was going to be there, along with the 14th highest ranked PSN (trophies, mainly) player would be there as well. So that would be both exciting and scary to meet them. I'm confident that I do have skills, but I'm not going to be naive and think that I can beat the 7th and 14th highest ranked players in the whole world.

The dude sounds like a sleaze. If it's anything like any other 'reality' show, they're going to cast people who will conflict with each other and make for good tv. I have a feeling that actual game testing will have very little to do with the show.

...7th ranked GH player? 14th ranked in achievement whoring? They're having a hard time getting people.

quote:

Originally posted by tibbsy07:
Melonie, I really hope you get the spot on the show. I want you to go on there and basically spit in their faces, and show them how ladies can game. Amy and the other ladies did great during the WCG show, and it would be great if more ladies showed the world that the stereotypes of female gamers is wrong. Go on that show, avoid the drama/romance stuff, and game like there's no tomorrow. You've definitely got support from this community.

That's very encouraging, thank you. I was so hesitant and against it at fist bu after all this support, I think I might just go for it after all. Someone needs to represent the girl gamers out there anyway, and I would be honored to do that!

@Anim8rJB. Thank you for the input. You really do make some great points there.

quote:

...I love compliments, but this is supposed to be about gaming, not my looks, you know?...

Wrong. It's about "Reality" TV, and finding people that fit into the roles of the generic reality formula. There has to be a be a conniving diva b*tch, a girl-next-door, an unpopular ubernerd, a jock, a gay guy or possibly a bull dike, a couple of middle aged people or retirees, beautiful people, ugly people. What Arche/Stereotype have I left out? They're interested in the clashing personalities that will give them the *gag* juiciest television.

quote:

Hopefully they don't take that angle, because if they're trying to find the best person for a testing job and they throw that BS in there, it'll be so far and away from what would actually produce a good tester, it would not be worth watching for the actual subject matter. >.<

You can be guarangoddamnteed that's the angle they're taking. That's what Reality TV is. If they were actually interested in finding a good tester, they'd go through the resumés they have on file and interview people with experience. That wouldn't exactly draw a television audience.

No, 'Chops, tell us how you REALLY feel about reality TV! lol.

quote:

"My favorite Sony game is Gears of War."

That could've been bait that you were supposed to take, to show you're actually a PS3 gamer and not just some chick looking for facetime in the spotlight. You may have written yourself off as a hopeful right then and there. On the other hand, I may be giving that interviewer way too much credit.

I've changed my mind on everything. I'm not sending the paperwork they asked, and if they do ask that I come on the show, I will decline.

I refuse to be on a show that's all about drama and hooking people up. It's either all about gaming or nothing at all, and in this case, nothing at all.