So you want to be a Wargaming employee?

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Source: http://world-of-ru.livejournal.com/2946826.html

So you want to be a Wargaming employee? Better check out the tests you will be presented with when you apply!

Hello everyone,

you might remember the post about Community Manager tests (turns out it wasn’t a leak, these test questions were actually freely available). This was a part of another larger post by Maiorboltach from WG RU community (and I kinda forgot to credit him for it, sorry), who commented on the requirements to become Wargaming employee. Let’s have a look at what else do you need to know (apart from being able to spot Gaijin saboteurs and to create sock puppets) :)

An interesting fact: sometimes, the same position is offered to both the EU and RU office. While the Russians actually can see the set of test questions in advance (you can dowbload them under the job offer), the Europeans can’t. The questions are obviously in Russian. Anyway, while this post is based on Maiorboltach’s LJ post linked above, comments will be mine (I will specifically mark when it’s MB’s comment).

Copywriter

First position you can apply on is the Copywriter. His task is to:

• Craft the company’s marketing and promotional materials, interviews, and other media material.
• Manage Blog space on the corporate website.
• Collaborate with a global mass media, web resources, and representatives of specialized media.

Now, the blog part is a funny thing. Obviously, the Europeans don’t have it and we have to put up with the pile of shit from people, who actually don’t even bother to use google (and I am not even talking about the stronk translatink into other languages, like Czech).

Russians on the other hand actually had two developer blogs already, sort of. First, Vallter (one of the liaisons between various server) came up with his attempt to create a developer blog in English, it was really good actually, he did a nice job – and it was immediately shut down by Wargaming EU, who argued that they want the portal to be the only information outlet (good job with that, guys, did I mention FTR broke another visit record yesterday?). Then there was nothing for a while, until another Wargaming blog attempt appeared (this time by Bigangrycat), but there has been no update since December 23rd, so I think we can imagine what happened (again).

The task of the copywriter is to for example find errors in Golden Joystick 2012 (! – these test tasks are apparently pretty old) test release and such. Another interesting task pointed out by Maiorboltach was for the copywriter to actually “invent a name for newly developed Wargaming free to play MMO from space, based on the same principles as World of… series – and to invent a slogan for it”. Free-to-play MMO in space? Gaijin’s Star Conflict says hi! (I have a good slogan for space MMO: “…. because there are no bushes to camp behind in space!”)

SEM manager

As Maiorboltach notices, there is apparently not enough World of Warplanes spam, so Wargaming is hiring yet ANOTHER SEM manager. The test tasks for a “SEM manager” are simple:

- create a Google AdWords account
- set up advertising campaigns for various types of social networks for World of Tanks (one campaign means 1-3 advertising groups, keywords and banners)
- set the whole thing correctly
- now see what you’ve caused, more spam be prepared to discuss it with WG staff

How difficult. And you wonder why you get spammed by WG ads everywhere.

Sketch Artist

This is the guy, who creates gloomy maps like Murovanka and sets the tone of the art overall (I have a feeling that it’s a really depressive person, seeing the later maps). His test task: he is given a basic layout of a map and his task is to actually provide art background to the map (sketches, tone). The following map is used for testing:

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Yep, that’s Lakesville. There are other examples by Wargaming though to inspire the future sketch artist, for example Malinovka:

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There is also Ensk art:

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And Himmelsdorf:

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Level Designer

Another free position is the one of level designer. This guy is given the reference map prototype and is supposed to create a game map out of it. Here’s the best part: as a part of his test. he has to do it in Starcraft II Map Editor. Yes, that is specifically written in the requirements. Here are the test pictures he has to create the map from (general map idea and the map height schematics).

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Looks familiar? Try turning it upside down. Yep, that’s Mountain Pass. Now that’s a funny thing to see: Mountain Pass as a Starcraft map. Very useful in World of Tanks :).

Technical Game Designer

This open spot is Veider’s old position, now that he replaced Zlobny. I am surprised they even bothered to put this out in English when it’s clear that noone not fluent in Russian (as in, a Russian/Ukrainian/Belarussian person) has no chance whatsoever. Some of the test tasks the “new Veider” will be facing:

- describe problems, that exist (in your opinion) in World of Tanks game balance (funny, I thought balance was fine and all the complaints were done by crazy conspiracy theorists :) )
- describe measures and ways you would use to bring World of Tanks game balance to its ideal state (wait, what do you mean by that, it is suddenly not ideal? o.O)
- write a one page story about how do you see this game in five years (Maiorboltach: “It seems that this is why Zlobny was kicked out to read newspaper job columns”)
- you need to describe the camo mechanics (or you can make up your own system) and explain it to a person with general education, who never played WoT before (Maiorboltach: “Wargaming can’t even explain their own camo mechanism completely and here you have to describe it, let alone make your own”)

How terrible. You know, I liked the balance under Zlobny more. He was badass and an insanely good player. Really nice guy to talk to also by the way.

…………aaaaand, the World of Warplanes Community Manager

We talked about this already, it’s the position where you create sockpuppets and root out Gaijin saboteurs.

Just a thought here. I sort of admire some Community Managers (or organizers, whatever) for their stomach skill to defend something that simply is not possible to defend. A few days back, I posted a sarcastic post in the Czech forum section, where I mocked the Orlik medal portal post as inaccurate and pointed out the inaccuracies (keep in mind that someone was actually PAID for writing that shit).

Obviously, nothing happened (no WG reply), so I just did let it be, but one Czech community organizer dropped by two days later or so (probably hoping I wouldn’t notice or care anymore) explaining how the poor little Wargaming employees only use available sources and bla bla bla (apparently it’s very difficult to recognize a big ass 20mm cannon from an 8mm MG, that’s why the wrong picture was posted). I mean, really, it took me about 5 seconds to find the correct picture and it took me about five minutes to ask in the Polish community (who, obviously, would know the best about Polish war heroes) whether the story is correct and whether the picture I wanted to use is correct. After all, if WG didn’t want to look stupid, they could use sock-puppet account (since they have it in their job description anyway).

But no, that would be too much effort. Instead we have either a shitty article with errors, or we have a good one (like the one about British flamethrowers), that was however not written by a WG employee, it was written by David “Listy” Lister, a community contributor.

*sigh* I don’t know. Either way, this is what awaits you, if you decide to apply for those spots. Good luck!

(you’re going to need it)

39 thoughts on “So you want to be a Wargaming employee?”

  1. Seriously?
    That’s the sort of things WG technical game designers do?

    That’s….ridiculous.
    That’s not game design, that’s being a forumite.

    • From corporate website:”
      Technical Game Designer

      Wargaming is looking to hire a Technical Game Designer to join the world-famous project World of Tanks.
      Jobs content:
      • Analyze project’s game mechanics/tactics.
      • Editing game settings.
      • Setting game balance.
      • Participation in game design discussions.
      Requirements:
      • Rich gaming experience.
      • Experience in World of Tanks with a high percentage of victories.
      • Knowledge of XML.
      • Excellent communication (verbal and written) skills.
      • Advanced PC user, knowledge of Word, Excel.
      • Attention to details.
      • Basic knowledge of written English.
      Desirable:
      • Experience in writing scripts or programming in any language.
      • Experience in game-design.
      • Experience in setting game balance.
      Please, include your nickname for World of Tanks.”

      I like part with high win ratio;)

    • these are the test a person who wants to apply has to take (if I understand correctly)

      so what does a technical game designer do anyway? (PS. thanks for the commenter above ^)

  2. so a question please? what exactly are SerB’s and Storm’s positions in WG?

    thank you :)

  3. I don’t think wg eu has tests like that. They use casting couch instead. Because – come on, someone that can do a good bj or has a nice tight ass doesn’t necessarily know how to manage a gaming community or write articles. And to top all that – the Paris office has some serious ego issues: sabotaging ftr Q&A, and the blogs you mentioned. “Hey, it’s our job, we can handle it with ease, u gtfo!” And then – they do nothing. Overgrown ego + sky high incompetence level, great formula for disaster.

    WHY AREN’T THOSE IDIOTS IN GULAGS YET? WHY MINSK DOESN’T CARE?

    *sigh*

    • Exactly what I don’t understand :|

      It seems like employees are chosen based on attributes we are unaware of and would not expect. I can’t help but think it is highly probable that cocksucking is involved, but I’m biased because I despise fools with hyperinflated senses of pride.

      I think I can guess a couple of the sockpuppets too…

  4. Be fair, the Orlik post I did I made errors like the WG employee.

    By the way, the pencil drawing of Orlik is almost certainly copyrighted (to another company I work with, I might add). That left two pictures, the photograph with the TKS, and you can’t really tell who that is. And the picture of what google is saying is Roman Orlik.

    Well that’s my explanation as to why I used that picture.

  5. “- describe problems, that exist (in your opinion) in World of Tanks game balance (funny, I thought balance was fine and all the complaints were done by crazy conspiracy theorists :) )
    - describe measures and ways you would use to bring World of Tanks game balance to its ideal state (wait, what do you mean by that, it is suddenly not ideal? o.O)
    - write a one page story about how do you see this game in five years (Maiorboltach: “It seems that this is why Zlobny was kicked out to read newspaper job columns”)
    - you need to describe the camo mechanics (or you can make up your own system) and explain it to a person with general education, who never played WoT before (Maiorboltach: “Wargaming can’t even explain their own camo mechanism completely and here you have to describe it, let alone make your own”)”

    Oh, come on, that’s just stupid bashing now. These are just a simple questions any accepted Tech Game Designer (or in this case Balance Fixer) has to go through. Like you didn’t know how HR works – I was asked more stupid questions when looking for a web coding work (like some stupidly easy and some stupidly irrelevant). These are at least relevant and let you actually know what the person that applies thinks about the mechanics and game design.

    Also it lets you seed through idiots that send in answers like: “WT E100 is OP, nerf it to ground” right away at the first questions.

    • Interesting that the WG “303 MM patent” includes claims on it’s potential application in space-based games. I wonder if it will use a match-maker similar to that in WoT, if it needs a match-maker at all, or if it’s just co-incidence and them covering all potential game applications?

      • When making a patent you blanket cover EVERYTHING.

        Which is why there are patents for the use of uranium (very small amounts 1-5%) in alloys for shells from 1910-1918. It is sometimes used to prevent others from getting into the market for a period of time. In the case of the alloys, it is in case the material (uranium) becomes the next big thing since the electric car(Which actually out sold all other car types in 1899-1901).

  7. “a name for newly developed Wargaming free to play MMO from space”

    In space…no-one can hear you siema

    EDIT: Noooo! Beaten to it!!

  8. “good job with that, guys, did I mention FTR broke another visit record yesterday?”

    So, how many people come here for news now?

    I wonder if they’ll ever even try to hire someone who can do what you do SS. Or maybe they just decided not to, since you do it without them having to pay for it XD

      • This is why i also liked more Zlobny. And because he actually made quite good job with balance. Now we are stuck with a fuckwit Veider who is retarded as hell. But i guess he is better at licking ass to SerB on the for example KV-1S issue where SerB wants it to stay as it is for as long as possible and Zlobny wanted to get rid of it.

        • He is responsible for introducing madness in form of unbalanced concept of (not all of course) X tier TDs in August 2012. I wouldn’t call it a “quite good job”.

  10. ““invent a name for newly developed Wargaming free to play MMO from space, based on the same principles as World of… series – and to invent a slogan for it”

    World of Warp-Lanes *badum tsihh*
    “Get airlocked!”

  12. >> (I have a good slogan for space MMO: “…. because there are no bushes to camp behind in space!”)

    I have to disappoint you – stealth generators are in the theme and lore supports them ;) . So, you don’t need bushes, just push a button and disappear in the middle of open space (exactly like in WoT :P – they already tested this mechanics).

  14. Damn… just based on the description of the Technical Game Designer’s requirements, I could have had his job before he had it on the forums in WoT, or just about every other game I’ve ever beta-tested for the past 15 years. O_O

    I guess it’s a shame I don’t speak Russian and have a constant Vodka IV drip in my left arm.

  16. Have to have SC2 map making experience to be a map maker? Explains all the 3-lane MOBA maps we get.

    • I’ve been thinking these past few months, “Ya know if they had a tool like SC2′s mapmaker, they could work out better map designs faster.”

      Nope

  17. “invent a name for newly developed Wargaming free to play MMO from space, based on the same principles as World of… series – and to invent a slogan for it”.

    World of Spaceships?

    And to quote TV Tropes: “Recycled IN SPACE!!!”