BUG OUT

During the QA process the testing team will compile a list of bugs, from game-breaking issues to quirks in design that personally irk the tester. These subjective complaints can, according to VMC’s Wibberley, create conflict between the tester and the designer. “Generally, for any game company, there’s a set process in terms of who decides whether a ‘bug’ will be fixed or not, but usually it’s a joint decision based on responsibility,” he says. “If a bug genuinely breaks a game to [a point] where the player cannot progress any further or is kicked from the game for any reason, then the severity rating will determine that the bug needs to be addressed and fixed. For other issues, it comes down to severity, the likelihood of whether or not the player will find the issue, and whether it simply functions as designed.”