BioShock Developer Hiring Based on Metacritic Scores

[aemroth]

Because Bioshock 2 did the first justice. [/sarcasm]

Folks, keep in mind that Bioshock 2 was made by 2k Marin, not Irrational. The former spun of from the latter, yes, but Irrational retained almost all the veteran staff.

OT: My first reactin was a bit of a shock, specially considering the respect i have for Levine and Irrational, but considering the kind of job it's for, and referring back to this interview with Levine [http://www.gamasutra.com/view/feature/132471/ken_levine_on_studio_culture_from_.php], particularly page 5, where he mentions his process for interviewing candidates, i'm inclined to let this one slide, and maintain faith that they know what they're doing.

Guess you can say that i have an... irrational respect (i'm so sorry) for people and companies spun off from good old Looking Glass.

 

[RaikuFA]

First devs are Meta-hostaging.

Then they peform these Chartz-hostage acts.

Now jobs are on the line because of this shitfest site?

Just get rid of these CEOs that pull this crap or the games section, guess which ones easier?

 

[vxicepickxv]

I like how sometime around 1998 the video game industry just stopped hiring any new talent and has just been the same few thousand people who actually have industry experience. Once they retire no one will know how to make games anymore because they aren't willing to give any new talent training. If you aren't overqualified for a job, you won't be getting it.

Welcome to the Just In Time hiring practice of the 21st century. It's absolutely idiotic, and doesn't apply to just this one industry.

 

[GoddyofAus]

Irrational, I thought much, much better of you then this.

 

[Kuala BangoDango]

Small list of games whose creators/devs are unwanted by Irrational...

Beyond Good & Evil
Age of Empires
The Witcher
Borderlands
S.T.A.L.K.E.R. series
League of Legends & World of Tanks (two of the most popular and profitable online games)

Games whose creators/devs ARE wanted by Irrational...

Diablo 3
SW:TOR

 

[Not G. Ivingname]

Metacritics: the Lehman Brothers of Review-Sites.

they ar'n't that bad......are they?

Yes: http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/116343-Obsidian-Lost-Bonus-for-Fallout-New-Vegas-by-One-Metacritic-Point

Metacritic is now a major force in game production and contract terms even though review sites are often biased by who ever is running the biggest ad campaign on there servers.

 

[The Abhorrent]

This doesn't seem too unreasonable, to be perfectly honest. They're looking for a proven design manager; and while using a meta-critic score isn't exactly an "ideal" way of going about this, it does demonstrate that the person has worked on at least one critically well-received game. It doesn't specify which position the person held when working on the game (well, haven't looked at the actual position description), and presumably this the one requirement which probably has more leeway than others. I'd suggest dropping the minimum meta-critic average to the 75-80 range, it's a bit more reasonable while still setting the bar for a decent game made.

---

The other requirements are a bit more cut-and-dry, and nothing too bad.

Six years design experience in games? Fine. Four years management experience (presumably allowing for overlap with the design)? It is a management position in a renowned developper position, they don't want a newbie for it. Three credits on published games? Proof that the games you worked on got made and released, definitely an asset.

And one game with an 85+ meta-critic score? This is probably the best qualification one can have, as it shows you've worked on at least one good game and not three random pieces of whatever. When factored in with the other requirements, it shows that it wasn't a fluke either. Still, that bar is a tad too high; not to mention it's just bad for PR to advertise that sort of thing, the gaming community is not known for nice nor sane. This is the sort of requirement one keeps off the publications, because it will come back to haunt them; after all, Bioshock 2 only has a meta-critic score of 88 on the 360 (kinda too close to that threshold for comfort).

---

The other reason they could have put up that requirement is simply to filter out the number of potential applicants. After their first hit with Bioshock, they're probably getting applications out the wazoo; many of them wanting to work on a company which is likely to churn out the next big hit. As such, they're looking for a fast-and-simple way get rid of 90% of those resumes; the meta-critic requirement is both a deterrent to the inexperienced and a way to get rid of those who are clearly unqualified. If someone has worked on a game with a meta-critic score in the 75-85 range and meets (or exceeds) the other requirements, they can certainly apply and hope that the developper allows for some leeway on that requirement; however, those whose best game has only scored a 50 probably could benefit from some more (and better) experience.

 

[RaikuFA]

Metacritics: the Lehman Brothers of Review-Sites.

they ar'n't that bad......are they?

Yes: http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/116343-Obsidian-Lost-Bonus-for-Fallout-New-Vegas-by-One-Metacritic-Point

Metacritic is now a major force in game production and contract terms even though review sites are often biased by who ever is running the biggest ad campaign on there servers.

You also have Capcom and Nambai holding franchises and sequels hostage unless another game gets good enough score. Which is gold for someone who hates something like jrpgs and gives a Tales game a bad score hoping it'll prevent future games from making it here.

 

[MegaManOfNumbers]

And the Most Appropriately Named Games Studio award goes to...

You, my good sir, made my bloody day... and it's only noon!

 

[bravetoaster]

yes, lets hire people based on an easy to manipulate and inaccurate rating website.

what a bunch of idiots.

*Yes, *let's hire people based *upon an easy to manipulate and inaccurate *aggregating website.

The lesson here is: don't be so quick to call others names. You achieve nothing constructive and look silly.

Are you really trying to make the argument that informal communication is the equivalent to a company taking a mindbogglingly idiotic approach to finding "good" employees? Or that someone's criticism of the latter is seriously undercut by inconsequentially not having a capital letter at the start of a sentence or leaving out an apostrophe? If so, please just take a deep breath and relax. It's okay (and such an argument makes no sense and has no validity, anyway).

We don't have to be jerks to each other just because it's the internet. Typos happen and most people aren't skilled writers (and the vast majority of those who are still make mistakes), but if the ideas we're trying to communicate aren't lost or confused by minor imperfections in our writing, does it matter?


Back on topic, though--this kind of practice makes me a sad panda. I want game reviews to actually be meaningful and helpful in figuring out if I'll enjoy picking up a random title. Irrational doing this just further encourages reviewers to only give meaninglessly high ratings to games.

 

[Ickorus]

This is sillier than the entire 'must have prior experience' thing on entry level jobs that seems to be becoming more and more popular these days.

Oh yeah, go team Rhizhim.

 

[DustyDrB]

Hey look! Petty grammar arguments in the thread! Wonderful!

Anyway, I don't know what a Design Manager does. So let's see...

Job Description

Design Manager - Irrational Games



POSITION OVERVIEW

Award-winning studio Irrational Games, best known for its Bioshock franchise, is seeking a highly experienced Design Manager to serve as a team leader and design advocate for our world-class design team. The Design Manger?s primary responsibility is to schedule, lead and manage the design team on a day to day basis. This role oversees the staffing, organization and professional development of the game design department.


RESPONSIBILITIES

? The Design Manager?s primary responsibility is to schedule, lead and manage the design team on a day to day basis.
? Develop a consistent design process and communicate the established design vision across the studio.
? Work with the designers and creative director to manage and communicate the overall vision and design goals of the game to the studio at large Work closely with management to maintain a strong department with a high level of engagement and strong team satisfaction.
? Ensure design deliverables meet quality and consistency standards across the team.
? Support design leads to achieve quality and maintain good working conditions.
? Work with designers to facilitate the creation of game design documentation from inception through implementation.
? Work with producers on design scheduling and staff assignments based on project needs.
? Ensure that the design team delivers work on time and at a high level of quality.
? Work with other department managers and directors to ensure effective cross-department communication.
? Evaluate effectiveness of design work methodologies and make recommendations for improvement.
? Seek out, evaluate and implement feedback from all relevant sources to constantly improve the game.
? Mentor and shape design team to create one cohesive group dedicated to creating the best possible game experiences
? Guide training and career goals of all members of the design department.
? Write reviews and administer the employee reviews for all designers, writers and playtest specialists.
? Work closely with Human Resources to identify and attract top industry talent.


REQUIREMENTS

? 6+ years as a game designer in the video game industry.
? 4+ years of experience managing direct reports.
? Shipped a minimum of 3 game titles from pre-production through ship.
? Proven knowledge of game design, theory and execution.
? A strong passion for and experience with First Person Shooters.
? Ability to motivate a team with positive leadership.
? Excellent written and oral communication skills.
? The ability to quickly learn new engines and game technologies.
? Strong design documentation skills.


PLUSES

? 6+ years as a Senior or Lead Designer in the video game industry.
? Strong understanding of the Unreal engine in a multiplatform environment.
? Previous level design experience in a first person shooter.
? Development on a multiplayer focused game.
? Ability to visually represent abstract concepts.

Looks like they removed the 85 Metacritic requirement. My problem lies less in this listing and more with Metacritic itself. It's not being used as it was intended, but that's sort of irrelevant at this point when it's actually affecting careers.

The New Vegas issue was downright despicable and forced the opinion on me that Metacritic just needs to die. Seriously...
-Game undergoes development, publisher oversees QA testing.
-A contract says a bonus will be given to the developer if a Metascore of 85 is reached.
-Game ships, reviewers generally love it. But they mostly add a caveat that the game is buggy and dock points of varying degrees of severity.
-The game ends up with a Metascore of 84. Given all the points docked for the bugginess, it's easy to conclude that at least one point would have been made up had it not been so buggy.
-So the publisher drops the ball with QA testing and costs the development team their bonus in the process. That is, as we say, fucked up.

And then there are the other issues, some mentioned in this article. This Design Manager thing is just a symptom of the culture that has arisen from the abuse and overuse of Metacritic. It's not as bad as some things I've seen.

If this sort of thing bothers you, do what I do: Ignore Metacritic. If gamers stop caring about it, then it should at least fade some.

 

[rob_simple]

And thus the second video game crash began.

That was a close one, for a second there you almost over-reacted.

 

[Whytewulf]

Ya'll do realize, it coul dbe a method for screening in/out applicants. It doesn't say, hey you got a good score you are hired. But they may get 1000 applications, now maybe they will get 500. When I hire people, I also ask for people that have a degree, and in some cases been published in this or that journal. I then go read the article after they apply. It narrows down the applicants, but I don't just hire them because they were published. It may avoud the pople say, ya I wrote this awesome best game, and it's Pong 2.0.

 

[Furism]

The other reason they could have put up that requirement is simply to filter out the number of potential applicants. After their first hit with Bioshock, they're probably getting applications out the wazoo; many of them wanting to work on a company which is likely to churn out the next big hit. As such, they're looking for a fast-and-simple way get rid of 90% of those resumes; the meta-critic requirement is both a deterrent to the inexperienced and a way to get rid of those who are clearly unqualified.

They might as well require 50 LinkedIn recommendations (for coworkers appreciation), 500+ followers on Twitter (to prove that people have an interest in you), and a XeeMe score of 1,000 (to prove you radiate captivating content on social networks). Maybe also 10,000 achievements points on the Xbox Live (to prove you also play games). It's not very hard to come up with an explanation why a specific metric somebody randomly came up with is relevant.

I hate to quote Shakespeare but I guess what I'm trying to say is that all that glisters is not gold.

 

[ResonanceGames]

Read between the lines, people.

The point is that they want someone who has shipped extremely large, critically-acclaimed games.

I bet my left nut that if a high-up from New Vegas applied, they wouldn't look at their resume and go "ah, looks good but you're technically one point off on the Metacritic score. Sorry!"

Companies list specific, measurable criteria like this to pare down the number of applicants they get, and to make sure there's little confusion about what they're looking for. There's still a working professional who's going to look at these resumes and make an informed decision about who to interview, even if some of them don't technically hit every single tick on the list.

That said, the chances that the high-caliber person they're looking for hasn't shipped an 85+ Metacritic game is pretty damn low. The list of people with that level of experience and talent who've never made a well-reviewed game is going to be pretty short.

 

[Furism]

It may avoud the pople say, ya I wrote this awesome best game, and it's Pong 2.0.

Do you ever think that you might also have missed the guy who created the new Minecraft, Sim City or Civilization ?

 

[Whytewulf]

It may avoud the pople say, ya I wrote this awesome best game, and it's Pong 2.0.

Do you ever think that you might also have missed the guy who created the new Minecraft, Sim City or Civilization ?

Absolutley... I know I missed out on Awesome canidates, because of our requirements. I've had people submit resumes, who weren't published still. I have had people put awesome cover letters together, who say, I know you are looking for xyz, but let me position myself this way. I would say if you created a top 10 ame, but it had a metacritic score of less than 8, it doesn't preclude you from applying. When we hire, there are some things I can't overlook, and my company doesn't let me hire people who don't meet certain criteria, i.e. I can't hire an accountant who doesn't have their CPA, or security guard who has a criminal background, but the rest is slightly flexible. I want 10 years experience, but I can hire with 6, I want an MBA, but they have a BA and certs, etc. It's a weeding out process. But then again, this could still be a sucky criteria, I don't know enough about game publishing..

 

[The.Bard]

And what's with all the hate for Bioshock 2. It was a solid game, it just wasn't as good as the first. Few sequels are.

It's funny, my original thought before playing Bioshock 2 was "This is STUPID. There's no way to justify this sort of PoS sequel BS yada yada."

I picked it up for $9 from Amazon, and I gotta say, I thought the gameplay in 2 was FAR superior to that of the first. Storywise, sure, it's a bit of a dip, but a lot of the elements in it I thought were more successful.

And forget about Deus Ex Revolution, Bioshock 1 is the original when it comes to dumbass idiotic boss fights. knowwhatImean?? *wink wink nudge nudge* Eh? Eh???

 

[Cobalt Lion]

Geez, I've heard of playing to a tough audience, but that is just ridiculous. I guess I won't bother applying to them....

Mostly 'cause I have nothing to do with game development at all, but still.