The Underground QA Podcast

In this episode, Chelsea Curran Adams (Baby Centaur Inc), David Benefield (QA Lead at Obsidian Entertainment), Marcin, and Diarmaid "Water" Malone (Senior QA Specialist at Playerunknown Productions) reflect on and celebrate 5 years of the Underground QA Podcast and what makes what we do so special - our community! All individuals appearing on the podcast are not doing so as official representatives of their respective companies, employers, clients, customers or any other third parties and the opinions expressed here are their own. Nothing in the podcast is intended to be tax, legal, financial, or employment advice. This production is presented for information and entertainment purposes only. For professional advice, seek out a professional.

In this episode, Ariel Smith (Test Manager at Bungie), David Benefield (QA Lead at Obsidian Entertainment), and Marcin are joined by special guest Adam Rush (QA Solutions Manager at Keywords Studios) to give tips on how outsource/ex-dev QA folks can level up and grow their careers. All individuals appearing on the podcast are not doing so as official representatives of their respective companies, employers, clients, customers or any other third parties and the opinions expressed here are their own. Nothing in the podcast is intended to be tax, legal, financial, or employment advice. This production is presented for information and entertainment purposes only. For professional advice, seek out a professional.

Ariel Smith (Test Discipline Manager at Bungie) and David Benefield (QA Lead at Obsidian Entertainment) are joined by special guests Tommy Dieterich (Sr QA Manager at Experis Games Solutions) and Jakub Dudkowski (Lead QA Project Manager at QLOC) to talk about how to get the best out of a partnership with outsource/external QA teams. All individuals appearing on the podcast are not doing so as official representatives of their respective companies, employers, clients, customers or any other third parties and the opinions expressed here are their own. Nothing in the podcast is intended to be tax, legal, financial, or employment advice. This production is presented for information and entertainment purposes only. For professional advice, seek out a professional.

Marcin Pieprzowski hosts special guests Autumn Mitchell (ZeniMax Workers United), Heather Cameron (Game Workers Alliance - CWA Albany), and Paula Mackiewicz-Armstrong (Polish Gamedev Workers Union) to discuss the pros and cons of unionization and what impact they may have on the industry. All individuals appearing on the podcast are not doing so as official representatives of their respective companies, employers, clients, customers or any other third parties and the opinions expressed here are their own. Nothing in the podcast is intended to be tax, legal, financial, or employment advice. This production is presented for information and entertainment purposes only. For professional advice, seek out a professional.

Ariel Smith (Test Discipline Manager at Bungie), Marcin Pieprzowski (Test Software Project Manager at Ubisoft), and David Benefield (QA Lead at Obsidian Entertainment) are joined by special guest Dani Paul (Quality Engineer at Mabl) to talk about how you can get started in automation in QA to improve testing, processes, and workflows! All individuals appearing on the podcast are not doing so as official representatives of their respective companies and the opinions expressed here are their own. Follow us on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/underground-game-qa/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/UndergroundQA Twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/undergroundgameqa Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/3H0OE0ZJXgsxCUjvHOb5qg Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/the-underground-qa-podcast/id1507423489

Season 5 kicks off with a wrap on 2023 and the predictions for 2024! We talk unions, golden paths, agile, pesticide paradox, Marcin talks about selling his organs and we even have some bloopers! All individuals appearing on the podcast are not doing so as official representatives of their respective companies and the opinions expressed here are their own.

Marcin Pieprzowski (QA Project Manager at Ubisoft), Chelsea Curran Adams (QA Director at Hypixel Studios), and Diarmaid "Water" Malone (QA Analyst at Hypixel Studios) are joined by special guest, Ashley Levers (Therapist, MFT, PMH-C) to discuss safeguarding your mental health from workplace stressors and practical tips to deal with layoffs. All individuals appearing on the podcast are not doing so as official representatives of their respective companies and the opinions expressed here are their own. This a special podcast on health topics but this is not medical advice. The content is not intended to be a substitute for professional advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your mental health professional or another qualified health provider with any questions you may have regarding your condition.

Ariel Smith (Test Discipline Manager at Bungie), Marcin Pieprzowski (Test Software Project Manager at Ubisoft), and David Benefield (QA Lead at Obsidian Entertainment) are joined by special guest Evgeny Kim, mock interviewer and community builder. In this episode, we conduct and break down a mock interview for a QA role at a fake company with red flags galore. Check out Evgeny's work and community at  @EvgenyKim1  or on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/evgenykim1?trk=public_post_feed-actor-name All individuals appearing on the podcast are not doing so as official representatives of their respective companies and the opinions expressed here are their own.

Ariel Smith (Test Discipline Manager at Bungie), Marcin Pieprzowski (Test Software Project Manager at Ubisoft), and David Benefield (QA Lead at Obsidian Entertainment) break down the ISTQB Game Testing syllabus, covering what it does well, what it doesn't, and ways to improve it. All individuals appearing on the podcast are not doing so as official representatives of their respective companies and the opinions expressed here are their own.

Marcin Pieprzowski (QA Project Manager at Ubisoft), Ariel Smith (Test Discipline Manager at Bungie), and Chelsea Curran Adams (Director of QA - Fortnite at Epic Games) begin a series on Certifications in our industry. We're going to be focusing on the newly created ISTQB Game certification. We've been discussing this around the community - what are the benefits, what are the drawbacks, and is this something you would ask of your teams. Are we achieving the goals, as an industry and discipline, that we need to be better? All individuals appearing on the podcast are not doing so as official representatives of their respective companies and the opinions expressed here are their own.

Chelsea Curran Adams (Director of QA - Fortnite at Epic Games), Chris Rando (QA Lead at Epic Games), Marcin Pieprzowski (QA Project Manager at Ubisoft), and Ariel Smith (Test Discipline Manager at Bungie) are joined by Myron Parks (Founder of Human Sense Coaching) to wrap up 2022 with a review of this year's episodes, Underground QA community highlights, and the video game industry as a whole and share insights from our community. All individuals appearing on the podcast are not doing so as official representatives of their respective companies and the opinions expressed here are their own.

Chris Rando (QA Lead at Epic Games), Marcin Pieprzowski (QA Project Manager at Ubisoft), and Ariel Smith (Test Discipline Manager at Bungie) discuss Test Case Management tools, what the benefits of using one are, and what to think about when choosing one for your team. All individuals appearing on the podcast are not doing so as official representatives of their respective companies and the opinions expressed here are their own.

Marcin Pieprzowski (QA Project Manager at Ubisoft) and Ariel Smith (Test Discipline Manager at Bungie) are joined by special guest Trevor Page (Senior Test Manager at Bungie) to discuss escaped defects and best practices for parsing and using the data about them. All individuals appearing on the podcast are not doing so as official representatives of their respective companies and the opinions expressed here are their own.

Ariel Smith (Senior Test Lead at Bungie), Marcin Pieprzowski (QA Project Manager at Ubisoft), Chris Rando (QA Lead at Epic Games), and Chelsea Curran Adams (Senior QA Manager at Epic Games) chat about bug prevention including tools, processes, and the unique role QA plays in preventing bugs. All individuals appearing on the podcast are not doing so as official representatives of their respective companies and the opinions expressed here are their own.

Chris Rando (QA Lead at Epic Games), Ariel Smith (Senior Test Lead at Bungie) and Marcin Pieprzowski (QA Project Manager at Ubisoft) are joined by Leland Dantzler (Senior Test Discipline Manager at Bungie) to offer insights into what to expect in an interview for an FTE Junior-level QA role. All individuals appearing on the podcast are not doing so as official representatives of their respective companies and the opinions expressed here are their own.

In this episode, Ariel Smith (Senior Test Lead at Bungie), Chelsea Curran Adams (Senior QA Manager at Epic Games), and Sarah Gallardo (Senior DevQA Analyst at Bethesda Game Studios) continue their live creation of a test plan. Using Slither.io as a fictitious example, they discuss timeline, headcount, and testing activities. All individuals appearing on the podcast are not doing so as official representatives of their respective companies and the opinions expressed here are their own.

Ariel Smith (Senior Test Lead at Bungie), Chris Rando (QA Lead at Epic Games), and Sarah Gallardo (Senior DevQA Analyst at Bethesda Game Studios) create the beginnings of a test plan live on stream! Using Slither.io as their example product, our hosts use the FLURPS framework to analyze the game, what testing needs it may have, what questions they will need to ask of the broader development team, and what risks may be faced during/after development. All individuals appearing on the podcast are not doing so as official representatives of their respective companies and the opinions expressed here are their own.

Chelsea Curran Adams (Senior QA Manager at Epic Games), Myron Parks (Principal Agile Coach at PartnerStack), and Chris Rando (QA Lead at Epic Games) wrap up season 2 with a review of the year, including insights from our community members on what they love about QA. All individuals appearing on the podcast are not doing so as official representatives of their respective companies and the opinions expressed here are their own.

In this episode, Myron Parks (Principal Agile Coach at PartnerStack) and Ariel Smith (Senior Test Lead at Bungie) are joined by Joe Leiter (Senior Tester at Bethesda Softworks) discuss how orgs can incorporate speedrunning techniques to improve their testing and test processes. All individuals appearing on the podcast are not doing so as official representatives of their respective companies and the opinions expressed here are their own.

Chelsea Curran Adams (Senior QA Manager at Epic Games), Ariel Smith (Senior Test Lead at Bungie), and Chris Rando (QA Lead at Epic Games) are joined by Grant Ervin (QA Analyst at PUBG Corp), discuss what career growth is and practical ways to achieve it. All individuals appearing on the podcast are not doing so as official representatives of their respective companies and the opinions expressed here are their own.