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2024 Schedule

PDT 08:00 – 13:00 | EDT 11:00 – 16:00

BST 16:00 – 21:00 | CEST 17:00 – 22:00

EEST 18:00 – 23:00 | IST 20:30 – 01:30

const timezones = new Map([ ["PDT", -7], ["EDT", -4], ["BST", 1], ["CEST", 2], ["EEST", 3] //["IST", 5.5] IST is hardcoded because of :30 difference ]); var currentTime = "BST"; function updateTimezones(newTime) { if(currentTime === newTime) return; let elms = document.querySelectorAll(".custom_timedisplay"); elms.forEach((element) => { let time = element.innerHTML; let offset = 0; if(currentTime === "IST") { let correction = parseInt(time.substring(3)); correction = correction - 30; if(correction < 0) { correction = correction + 60; offset = 6; } else offset = 5; let correctString = String(correction); if(correction = 60) { correction = correction - 60; newOffset = 6; } else newOffset = 5; let correctString = String(correction); if(correction < 10) correctString = "0" + correctString; if(correction == 0) correctString = "00"; time = time.substring(0,2) + ":" + correctString; } else newOffset = timezones.get(newTime); let hour = parseInt(time.substring(0,2)); hour = hour - offset + newOffset; if(hour = 24) hour = hour - 24 let hourString = String(hour); if(hourString { element.innerHTML = newTime; }); } PDT (UTC - 7) EDT (UTC - 4) BST (UTC + 1) CEST (UTC + 2) EEST (UTC + 3) IST (UTC + 5:30)

BST

Wednesday 15 May 2024

15:00

Platform open

16:00

Welcome

Qualicon Host, Presenter and Broadcaster: Elle Osili-Wood

16:05

State of the Nation

Ben Wibberley, VP of Games Operations, Jagex

16:20

Presentation

Describe the critical value trust plays in organizations and game development Propose a model for QA that includes championing trust as part of the quality bar of a studio/team Present a set of unhealthy behaviors that prevent developing trust & authenticity in organizations Present an iteration loop that can help produce or reinforce a culture, or relationship, of effective trust Supporting Material: “Dare to Lead”, “Rising Strong”, “Daring Greatly”, “Braving the Wilderness”– Brene Brown “The Speed of Trust”, “Trust & Inspire”, “Smart Trust”– Steven M.R. Covey

16:50

Comfort Break

17:00

Presentation

Change takes time, it will not happen overnight but with patience, commitment and a proactive approach anything is possible. Being open and communicative from top to bottom can have wonderful results when it comes to QA effectiveness and by extension product quality. Collaboration and communication are the foundational pillars when it comes to taking on any challenges. Creating a team with accountability and ownership will lead to increased dedication which in turn will lead to constant improvements to the output quality. Doing such a transition mid development is not impossible with the right planning and risk management.

17:30

Deep Dive Presentation & Discussion

Our transition from a fully manual process to near full automation of routine maintenance tasks has played a pivotal role in enhancing the scale and reliability of Battlefield’s automated testing as well as our proactiveness. Initially faced with outdated documentation, a lack of prioritization data, and divergent hardware setups, we encountered constant challenges, necessitating firefighting and causing stress. However, through a systematic approach of transferring collective tribal knowledge and documentation into code, we have been able to reduce the knowledge required and distribute test farm maintenance among our team members. In this session, we will discuss how Battlefield was able to scale up the number of test hardware targets by 5x in order to support running 10x more monthly E2E tests, and doing so with a consistent infrastructure reliability. We accomplished this by replacing manual processes and instead iterating towards fully automating our routine maintenance workflows. We would like to give you insight on what this journey has been like.

17:30

Deep Dive Presentation & Discussion

With the advent of generative AI, QA are facing a tsunami of content which needs to be reviewed to ensure that it’s at quality. This will require leaps forward in tech, process, and engagements in the game QA practice. This talk will be looking at proven patterns from both inside and outside the games industry on how to build a QA team which can scale exponentially to the needs of the coming years, and which pitfalls to avoid.

17:30

Deep Dive Presentation & Discussion

In this session, we’ll investigate the dynamics of our testing teams putting people at the center. Specifically addressing the impacts of challenges surrounding delays in timelines, long term projects with iterations in design and team attrition on them. The acknowledgment of these realities is crucial in understanding the difficulties faced by our teams, leading to possible disengagement and a potential decline in productivity. We further look at the factors contributing to these challenges, such as the diverse backgrounds and generational differences within the team, varied managerial styles, and the hybrid nature of work. Presentation will also emphasize the importance of adapting to the evolving landscape of the game industry encouraging self-learning & strengthening mentorship to our teams.

18:15

Networking break

18:30

Lightning Talk

UX-ing Automation and Tools for QA
Angel Pelelunga, Technical QA, Funcom Bucharest

18:35

Live Quality Operations Panel

Slow is smooth, smooth is fast: Evolving with continuous improvement in live quality operations.

Moderator:
Devin Seto, Managing Partner, DAQA

Panelists:
Chris Etuk, Epic Games
Rick Kocurek, DD SWGOH, EA
Razvan Safta, Funcom
Bruno Senecal, Ubisoft
Nathan Tiras, Singularity 6

19:15

Networking break

19:35

Game Quality Awards: DE&I Champion

19:40

Presentation

Building a team focused on playtesting including fostering a feedback positive collaboration with design and production including building a dev analytics focus for more agile development.

20:10

Comfort Break

20:20

Game Quality Awards: Future Leader

20:25

Presentation

Listen, you work too hard. You do too much. You know it, and I know it. In this session, we’ll talk about how to…erm…empower your teammates to more fully own the quality of their work so that you can focus your time and attention elsewhere. We’ll discuss how to identify and lower the amount of time spent on predictable, repeated tasks to the benefit of your team and players.

20:55

Closing remarks

21:00

Platform remains open for connecting in the lounges

22:00

End of Day 1

BST

Thursday 16 May 2024

15:00

Platform open

16:00

Welcome

Qualicon Host, Presenter and Broadcaster: Elle Osili-Wood

16:05

Presentation

To some folks, testing is testing regardless of what the application is. And in some respects, they would be correct! But having worked in a variety of industries now, there are definitely some big differences I’ve experienced, especially between working in fintech and now in games. In this session, I will share my experiences between fintech and games, highlight differences and similarities, and areas where maybe each industry can learn from each other to improve testing and Quality as a whole.

16:35

Comfort Break

16:45

Innovation Panel 

Hear from other Games QA professionals across different roles on how to innovate, advocate and add value.

17:25

Comfort break

17:30

Roundtable

This roundtable aims to talk through how folks have learned that QA isn’t just about testing. This will be how folks KNEW when they ascended beyond pass fail and to asking questions about what good really is. The goal of this is to talk through the value of QA. We will talk to folks who are not just in Management, but in more technical and IC roles as well. The goal is to show innovation and passion.

17:30

Roundtable

This session aims to discuss the value QA teams have outside of finding and reporting bugs. With QA being one of the few teams, which see the game as a nearly completed product, we have the opportunity to provide valuable feedback on hard to measure aspects of the game, such as fun, immersion, potential appeal to old and new players, etc.

The session will cover the following points:

• Discussing the value QA can provide to the developers via specific and in-depth feedback about the game

• Sharing experience on providing such feedback to Production and how it was received/actioned upon

• Debating best practices and processes in establishing a proper feedback loop 

• Discussing the most successful examples of proper feedback given to production by different QA teams

17:30

Roundtable

Join us in this roundtable on QA’s evolution, from a Compliance perspective from industry experts with more than 20 years of experience combined. We’ll be sharing experiences and lessons from past projects to illustrate the importance of early engagement and teamwork in the processes of game development. We’ll be exploring the balance between collaboration and the practical challenges it can face, including managing conflicting feedback and decision-making. We’ll also touch on how aligning teams early can prevent significant issues down the line with grounded examples.

As we delve deeper into the topic we’ll also talk about industry challenges, including but not limited to how they can affect our day-to-day, emerging technologies, strategic planning, inter-team cooperation & the importance of self-governance. By the end of this session, we hope to leave you with actionable insights and a deeper understanding of the “human” element from game development, which is becoming more and more essential in today’s world.

18:15

Networking break

18:35

Presentation

How do we make sure that games are really accessible to the player? Accessibility verification tools allow QV teams to check for accessibility issues and are key for the delivery of great experiences to players. During this talk, we want to walk you through the creation of two EA open-source tools, Fonttik and IRIS, and get a first-hand look at how you can use them now within your own QV teams while we also explore the significance of making accessible games and the importance of accessibility verification during the development of a game.

19:05

Networking break

19:25

Game Quality Awards: Rising Star

19:30

Presentation

A brief history of setting up 3rd Party QA from scratch. We will talk about how we track process KPIs, how to work productively with 3rd party studios and how to advise internal partners on product quality.

20:00

Comfort break

20:10

Presentation

The Quality ROI session is designed to delve into crucial metrics and performance indicators, shedding light on the efficacy of our quality initiatives. During the session, we will highlight our strategic approach, combining input data such as automated execution hour processes with manual execution hours and comparing it to the output data such as bugs found to validate our confidence in talent investments. Key messages will center on the critical role of quality assessment, aiming to optimize processes, enhance efficiency, and ensure alignment with our strategic business objectives. Ultimately, the session will underscore the importance of investing in the right types of talent for sustained success.

20:40

Game Quality Awards: Team Award

20:45

Qualicon 2024 highlights and beyond!

Ben Wibberley, VP of Games Operations, Jagex
Jimmy Bischoff, Head of Quality, Xbox Game Studios

21:00

Platform remains open for connecting in the lounges 

22:00

End of Day 2

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