quality assurance tester

programmer analyst

senior software engineer

quality assurance manager

staff software engineer

Activision

Everyday there would be a meeting discussing where things are at and what we can be expected to be working on that day.
What i learned is that it wasnt my dream job after all however it was still alot of fun and would deffinately do it all again if i could that and i had also learned many other things there too such as writing detailed reports but not too detailed and how to edit screenshots and videos but also how to use a searching tool called Jira.
The Management there was pretty good most of them were friendly and if i had concerns they would hear them out all in all they were very helpful and kind and understanding plus patient too.
The atmosphere working there was not at all what i expected but was much more then i could have hoped for too.
The hardest part of the job were the hours especially during crunch time but also learning how to use Jira as well too, there were some instances that i fell behind but was only due to the fact that as a gamer i wasnt great nor ever was great when it came to parcore games or shooter games but still tried my best to accomplish as much as i could.
The most Enjoyable parts of the job were that i was getting to help create something very special for the entire world to see as a pasionate gamer myself i wanted whatever they had us working on to be nothing less then perfect in every sense of the word, also it was awesome that they had let us eat and drink at our desks which helped me out hugely due to the fact that i have a hyper active thyroid which makes it so that im constently hungry so i need to eat more often then others, also another great fun thing about the job is that working there you get discounts on some of the games that they have but also just all in all getting to experience what its like behind the scenes and getting to be one of the lucky few that get to help make a game is just beyound amazing atleast for me it was and would honestly reccomend working at Activision if you have a great love for video games but also someone who wants to see Video games succeed.

Sure, we all know there's no job security when you work QA, but looking around the office, I saw maybe 3 people who were in their late 30 and early 40s. The odds of you making in this company is basically nil.

They wave the possibility of getting hired in your face, but it never happens. One QA Tester was finding 30 bugs a day, they *still* never hired him. Essentially he was a perma-temp, constantly being re-hired for the next project. I heard about another tester who also had phenomenal numbers, but after FOUR YEARS of being a perma-temp he just burned out on the job, let his numbers slip, and was let go.

Even worse, I heard about a guy who worked management, but still wasn't an actual employee, he was a contract employee, he worked there as management for two years. He was finally hired on a full-time employee, then was let go two months later.

Make no mistake, Activision does not give a darn about you, you have no chance of making it here, and if you're one of the lucky few hired back in the 80s, you have no chance.

Still a QA tester position makes $10 and hour, and as long as you're realistic about what the job offers, it's fine.

You are constantly reminded that you are a contract employee with an expiration date. Meanwhile you recieve a W2. During training and orientation you sit in on all of these calls where Activision tells you about these amazing benefits. When the call ends you are told "Those benefits are for permanent employees in California". As a QA tester you are constantly told how important you are to the development of games like Call of Duty. When you first sign on to the position you are informed and forced to sign a contract that states you are not eligible for a bonus regardless of the games sales or performance. All of this leads to the most important thing people need to be aware of. There is zero work-life balance. We have been working six days a week, eight to twelve hours a day since August of 2020. While it easy to ask for time off, you are not eligible for PTO because you are not considered a permanent employee. If you want to be treated with some kind of dignity and respect, Activision is NOT the place to work.

While working at Activision, I survived several layoffs. Your luck can only last so long. It is a fun environment and you have management who cares.

The problem is that during those layoffs, the position names were changed and filled. It was really tough to move up in the organization since they did a lot of outside hiring and very little in house promoting. Many of the people who were in house and already doing the job, but not having the title were turned down for the positions due to "lack of experience" causing morale to dip and some employees to look for better positions elsewhere.

Don't get me wrong, some people do move up, but it is few and far between for those that do.

You do establish a loyalty to the company, but not because of Activision itself, but because of your co-workers. You build a brotherhood/sisterhood with them.

In my experience, it is an average company. No better and no worse than any other in this day and age.

Expect frequent and consistent overtime. At the very least you’ll be working 6 days a week, this gets even worse during crunch. The schedule you are given is a facade expect frequent changes at a moments notice. The company will make excuses and say they are looking into structural changes but these are merely empty promises. The one positive thing about the company is the bond you create with your fellow workers. The people are truly amazing without them the job is worth nothing. Sadly you should expect frequent turnover. Know what you are getting into before working here while it’s fun to play new games this only lasts for so long. Don’t expect much of a social life you are married to the company, oh and as far as advancing in the company goes it’s very unlikely regardless of how hard you work. You’ll likely be strung along and think you are given a chance to showcase your skills but they are simply using you. 

I tested the Call of Duty Modern Warfare 3 and Black Ops 2. I was given the game to simply play and see what is wrong with the game if anything. We would also do scenarios where we would act out certain situations for upcoming trailers for the game. I learned how to be observant and enjoy playing first person shooters. I actually became really good at playing the game and they made me lead in scenarios and kill opposing players. Management was fine they were very relaxed and did their best to teach us what to do and answer any questions that we might have. Coworkers were also a blast we would play ping pong on every break and we truly enjoyed playing the game. Hardest part of the job was not able to play more even thought 90% of the time we were playing. Playing the game was fun but being the first to find a bug or defect is the best feeling. Because thats what we are paid to do is trying to catch as many errors as we can.

I consider Activision to be my first REAL job. I held several positions over my seven-year stint there, and loved each one of them.

It was a demanding job, but trained me in corporate procedure, professionalism, taking responsibility for your actions...almost everything but how to walk.

The whole company was, and still is amazing to me. I have stayed in touch with many of my fellow employees.

The hardest part of the job was keeping all of my 'hats' straight. I filled many different needs while employed there, as I handled all employee entrance/exits; security; supply and facility management; as well as holding the position of Recreation Committee Chairperson.

The most enjoyable part of my job was being on the Rec Committee, setting up events such as Ice Cream Day, buying swag for the Company Store, Birthdays, etc.

Being there for just a short amount of time, I already sensed that being a game tester amongst other testers in a basement-lke atmosphere, that halfway into my time there was a prison setting. There were tens of games being tested at the same time. Which seems normal for a big company like Activision. But with schedules as the same was just horrifying. We all had the same 10-minute breaks twice a day at the same time. And lunch hours all at the same time. We were trated as if we were robots programmed to take breaks all at once.
There were close to 200 testers on the floor trying to buy lunch, heat their lunch in just ONE microwave. Huge lines at the vending machines. Huge lines at the restrooms. You were only able to go to the bathroom on the breaks and if you had to go, you needed permission from your QA lead who looked like he was still going to high school.

Activision Publishing was my foot in the door into the gaming industry. The management and my fellow employees were such a joy to be around and although we had a lot of fun we also got a lot done in terms of testing. A typical day consisted of analyzing games prior to release and ensuring each bug was being tracked in a database for the game developer to review. I learned how to use new software, how to manage small teams during multiplayer testing, and how to identify bugs and database issues based on their severity.

Although the company did not have the stability I would have hoped for, I realize this is common in the gaming industry. My time at Activision was enjoyable and they provided a fun environment as well as a comfortable break area; it's hard to frown in a room with a ping pong table.

Activision aspires to be an innovative, leading company and while many people there are working extremely hard to make that happen, leadership isn't fully aligned and the day-to-day is taxing. The meeting-overloaded culture means little time to do work, so you are expected to be always-on. Most people are given the freedom to work remotely as needed, and be off-site to look-after kids, but it's really case-to-case and overall the culture doesn't seem to have kept up with the fact that the longer-tenured employees are now married with kids and need a more realistic balance. Career pathing is non-existent and when organization shifts occur there is little to no thought put into rolling them out to employees. Many people work hard after the fact to manage through those organization changes, but the transitions in recent months/years have been very bumpy.

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Quality assurance tester 4 salaries reported	$20.25 per hour
Programmer analyst 4 salaries reported	$23.64 per hour
Senior software engineer 1 salary reported	$143,877 per year
Quality assurance manager 6 salaries reported	$26.37 per hour
Staff software engineer 2 salaries reported	$159,331 per year

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