Testing Join the testing team!

[Nodlied]

So you think you're cut out for testing and want to apply? Well you've come to the right place!

General information about testing

Here at W3DHub, we have a dedicated testing team of hobbyists who spend parts of their free time testing new features and upcoming releases for the games developed at W3D Hub - both for released and unreleased games. Whenever the developers need something tested and bugswept, we step in and deliver on that request.

There are many different kinds of tests that we run, each with their own goals. We have playtests that are held to gather feedback on balance and new features, as well as any potential bugs that we may find whilst playing the game. These are held as big testing sessions where everybody is expected to show up. We also have bugsweeping tests are tests that are held either online or offline, alone. They consist of the more boring work of sweeping maps and features for bugs and reporting them on the forums and the bugtracker. 

Testing is a privilege, and comes with quite a few expectations. In return for early access to unreleased content, we expect you to spend time testing our games, not just in playtests but also in the boring repetitive work of bugsweeping and other things that aren't just playing the game. However, testing does open up more opportunities to rise through the ranks and learn the skills the developers use to make the games. So if you're interested in learning and wish to someday become staff, then joining the testing team is a good first step.

Disclaimer:
Testing is in no way a paid position. W3D Hub is a non-profit organization of hobbyists. Anything that gets donated to W3D Hub is used for the maintenance of infrastructure and the purchasing of assets for our games. Nobody gets paid; we develop and test these games as a hobby.
 

How do I become a tester?

Applying for testerhood comes with requirements and an application that, if accepted, will result in a personal interview. Only after the interview will the lead testers make a decision whether or not to hire you.
 

What are the requirements?

• You must have a W3DHub forum account. - How else would you join us in the tester forums? Checking those subforums is a daily task and without an account you can't see those, nor apply for testerhood.
• You must have a Discord account. - We use Discord daily to chat about the projects, as well as to quickly call upon testers when we need them.
• You must be able to communicate effectively using the English language. - The primary language of W3D Hub is English. Thus in order for things to flow nicely and for good communication to happen, we all need to speak a common language. This is not discrimination, but a necessity to keep the flow of information simple and clear.
• You must be good at communicating your thoughts and feedback. - The most important aspect of testing is communication. Logging bugs and giving balance feedback is very important to the developers. Without this critical feedback, they may not be able to release a quality game. Even if things have already been reported or said by somebody else, confirmation is still very important, as it helps staff pick priorities. Without communicating your thoughts or reporting bugs you may as well not apply.  
• You must be at least 16 years old. - Whilst it is not common for us to be younger than that, we will not hire anyone who is younger than 16.
• You have to be able to enjoy our games. - In return for your services, we offer you early access to our games and if you don't like them, why even bother showing up?
   

I fulfill all requirements, what comes next?
Send us your application! To do this, start a group message here on the forums with @Nodlied and @Einstein. These three are the Lead Testers of W3DHub and they will run the application process. Please do not apply via discord, or any other method than this.

Note: You can NOT apply for the testing team on behalf of somebody else and nobody can apply on your behalf. Like a real job, you apply for yourself and we will not accept applications written for somebody else.

 

So, what do you put in your group message (forum PM)? We have some questions that we need you to answer. Please use the template found in the quote below. You may copy it into the group message for ease of use.

Quote

W3D Hub/Forum nickname:

In which country and time zone do you live?:

How did you find out about the existence of our games?:

How long have you been playing/following our games?:

What do you expect that you will do as a tester?:

Why do you want to be a tester?:

Why should we hire you?:

What do you think you'll get out of testing for W3D Hub?:

How often do you expect to be available during our standard testing time? (21:00 BST/ 13:00 PST/ 16:00 EST on Saturdays):

Extra information we should know about you:

Note: We expect you to fill out the form as professionally as possible. Whilst we are a group of hobbyists, we try to keep our standards high. A not-so-serious attitude as well as things like lacking punctuation or grammar errors will make it less likely for us to consider you for the testing team.
 

What happens next?
Once we have received your application, we will review and discuss it with all other staff. This can take up to 14 days. If we agree that you would be a good fit, then the next step is an interview. We will work out a time with you to get into Discord and have a little chat to ask you some questions and to get to know you better. Additionally, you can ask us any questions you have. We will typically end the interview when we know enough and will retreat into a private channel to make up our final verdict. If you're accepted you will first have to report bugs and provide feedback on a recent test build we will get you access to. Succeeding in that trial will make you part of our team.

What if my application gets rejected?
Sometimes we will have to reject an application. However, you will be free to reapply after a year, as long as your behavior in our public chat programs and in our games is satisfactory of course.  

 

Do you see yourself as part of the testing crew?

Then go and apply! Testing is a world of ups and downs, fun and boredom. There will be periods where there will be nothing to test, and periods where we will require you to be present multiple days a week. You will have fun in the playtests for unreleased builds, but will also suffer from boredom sweeping new releases for bugs. You will test online and offline, as part of a testing session or alone. If that seems like something you want to be part of, take the plunge and apply! Who knows? Maybe you will rise through the ranks and learn valuable skills to one day develop something of your own.

If you have any questions, feel free to ask them on Discord or via forum PM. We typically keep this thread closed, as in the past, we had a problem with people not reading this thread and posting their application here, instead of via the prescribed method. We just don't want the clutter and the mess in our fine thread...