GAME PRODUCTION OVERVIEW 13
Plan Validation
The QA department’s main responsibility is to write the test plan for the game
and validate the game against this plan. The test plan is based on the assets and
functionality outlined in the game plan. If the game plan is not updated, QA
cannot create the appropriate test plans. The producer and leads work closely
with the QA department to make all the necessary information available to write
accurate test plans. In addition, the QA department works with the development
team to educate them on the testing process and how to use the bug-tracking
software.
The game must be validated in all areas, and depending on the size of the
game, this can require a significant amount of testing time. For example, if work-
ing on a PC game that is localized into two languages, the QA testers need to
check several PC configurations, with different operating systems, sound cards,
and video cards. In addition, they must check each of the localized versions on
these configurations.
The QA department is not only responsible for finding bugs, they are also
responsible for regressing bugs that the development team has fixed. Usually a
bug is not considered closed until the QA department has rechecked the bug in
the game and verified that it is fixed.
Code Release
After a game has been thoroughly tested, the QA department will start the code
release process. The code release process is different from normal QA testing
in that they are looking at code release candidates (CRC)—builds that the de-
velopment team considers ready to ship. At this point in production, all of the
major bugs are fixed; the functionality is working as designed; and all the game
assets are finalized. The game just needs one last set of checks to confirm that it
is ready to be shipped to the manufacturer.
The producer must schedule time in the schedule for the code release pro-
cess so that QA has ample time to make the final checks on a game. The time for
this will differ, depending on the size of the game and the size of the QA depart-
ment. Ideally, there is enough time for QA to run through the entire test plan
on the CRC, which could take as little as a day or as long as a week. If they can
complete the entire test plan and are confident everything checks out against the
plan, the game is considered code released, and the disc can be shipped to the
manufacturer for replication. Please refer to Chapter 23, “Code Releasing,” for
more details on this process.
If you are working on a console title, you will also need to submit the game to
the console manufacturer for approval. They have their own checks and balances
for each game, and if they do not approve a game, it is not manufactured until
14 THE GAME PRODUCTION HANDBOOK, 2/E
the problems are corrected and the game is resubmitted for approval. There is
a chance that even if the developer’s QA department code releases a game, it
may not be approved by the console manufacturer. However, developers are
usually given an opportunity to resubmit builds for approval until they get the
final sign-off.
Testing Checklist
Figure 1.5 is a checklist to be used for the testing phase of a game.
TESTING CHECKLIST Y / N NOTES
VALIDATE PLAN
Is test plan written?
Is game plan updated for QA?
Has test plan been updated with any changes to the game plan?
Are testing milestones accounted for in the schedule?
Is bug-tracking software available for the testers and development team?
Are all areas of the game tested?
Are all bugs regressed and closed?
CODE RELEASE
Has development team submitted a final code release candidate?
Is there ample time in the schedule for QA to complete the test plan on the code
release candidate?
Has QA approved the product for code release?
CONSOLE ONLY: Has code released game been submitted to console
manufacturer for approval?
CONSOLE ONLY: Has console manufacturer approved game for final
replication?
FIGURE 1.5 Testing checklist.
O
N
T
H
E
C
D
1.6 POST-PRODUCTION
After the game is code released and approved for manufacturing, the game
development process needs to be wrapped up before it is officially completed.
Many times, this step is forgotten or ignored, which is unfortunate. This is
when the team can relax, prepare a closing kit for future projects, and review
the pros and cons of their recent game development experience. The post-
production phase consists of two things: learning from experience and ar-
chiving the plan.
Learning from Experience
Learning from experience is the best way to improve the game development
process for future projects. One way to do this is by conducting a postmortem at
the end of a project. A postmortem is a chance for everyone to review the good
GAME PRODUCTION OVERVIEW 15
and bad on a project and to propose solutions based on these experiences for
future projects.
As a producer, you plan to conduct “mini” postmortems at key points dur-
ing development, such as alpha and beta. It is never too late to learn something
about improving the process, even mid-project. Chapter 24, “Postmortems,”
provides details on how to conduct and publish a postmortem.
Archive Plan
After the game is code released, it is archived for use on future projects. This
is done by creating a closing kit. This kit contains all the design documentation,
source code, source art, final game assets, final music files, and everything else
that was used to create the game.
Closing kits are necessary because the publisher may want to create a special
version of the game to be bundled with a piece of hardware, or the development
team might want to re-use the code or assets for another project. Closing kits
are especially useful if your team works on a franchise and wants to base the
next iteration of the franchise on the previous game’s source code. Chapter 25,
“Closing Kits,” has more details on how to create and archive these kits.
Post-Production Checklist
Figure 1.6 is a post-production checklist for tracking your progress.
WRAP UP CHECKLIST Y / N NOTES
ARCHIVE PLAN
Is closing kit completed?
LEARN FROM EXPERIENCE
Is post mortem completed?
Is post mortem published to the entire development studio?
O
N
T
H
E
C
D
FIGURE 1.6 Post-production checklist.
1.7 CHAPTER SUMMARY
The game production process can be challenging for a producer to manage,
but if it is approached methodically, these challenges can be minimized. This
chapter presented an overview of the general game production process from the
producer’s point of view. General information was given about pre-production,
production, testing, and post-production on a project. These areas are presented
in more detail in subsequent chapters in this book. The next chapter provides
a general overview of the roles on a production team. It is helpful to view this
information in the context of the general game production process.
..................Content has been hidden....................
You can't read the all page of ebook, please click here login for view all page.