Behind the Scenes of 1.10

[nobbie]

Behind the Scenes of 1.10
Blizzard is currently hard at work testing the Diablo II 1.10 patch. After we create a new patch or "build" of the game, we pass it over to our quality assurance department. QA then thoroughly tests the patch, running it through a series of detailed checks. If they find any problems, a new patch (addressing the problems) is created. This process continues until we have a build that meets Blizzard’s quality standards (patches often go through many versions before release). We took some pictures of QA at work on the Diablo II 1.10 patch so you could see the exciting process as it unfolds. Take a look!

Why are they all grinning???

PS: Is the guy on the last picture Peter Hu?

[Faragon]

Are they all grinning? All I can see is the backs of their heads. <_<

Anyway, gotta love a job like that :)

[nobbie]

They buy their meals at Mc Donald's, by the way ;)

[MongoJerry]

Nobbie, I'm surprised you didn't notice this. Doesn't the character that the guy in the third image is playing look suspiciously like the rune mule in the package of 1.10 characters and items that you prepared for diabloii.net?

[NiteFox]

They're lovin' it.

And what are the odds of two southpaws sharing adjecant cubicles, hmm?

[nobbie]

Yep, a guy from the AB forums pointed me to it already. That Necro on picture 3 IS my 1.10 rune test mule from Diabloii.net. Same naked char class and rune placement .. LOL! :lol:

The guy on the first pic obviously makes a left-hand test for patch 1.10, that's why testing takes so long. Imagine that all 1.10 QA must be made with the right hand and again with the left hand! :P

[Bolty]

PS: Is the guy on the last picture Peter Hu?

Not bloody likely.

-Bolty

[Nechtán]

Did anyone notice that all those computers are running the game in 640x480 resolution?

Guess the testing team has been relocated to the P266'es in the barn.

[kandrathe]

Well, to me it makes sense to test at a lower common denominator type PC. If you can make it run fast on a POS PII or PIII machine, and anything bigger than 600 mhz with a 4x AGP card will be smokin.

[Walkiry]

They buy their meals at Mc Donald's, by the way ;)

I noticed, suddenly the quality of the job dropped a whole 90% in my view :D

And, is that a mac in the second picture? *Shudder* :P

[NiteFox]

Yes, there's a Mac in the first two pictures. The same Mac, actually.

Someone's gotta test the Mac version. Probably more than actually plays it but well, y'know...

*Is mugged by an irate Diablo II-playing Maccite*

Another thing of note: The guy in the third picture shops at Amazon.com. And is pretty lousy at disposing of his old boxes :) Check out the soft drinks cooler in the same picture too.

[kier]

The poor sods aren't allowed beer by the looks of things. look in the drinks cabinet, and that can on the shelf. All soft drinks :rolleyes:

Heres a quote from the b.net faq:

What is Blizzard's policy on transferring items between characters or "muling"?
The transferring of items between Diablo II characters is not supported by Blizzard. Users should be warned that attempts to transfer items between characters online are risky and Blizzard is not responsible for lost items. Storage space is limited in Diablo II both for performance and storage space issues and because the designers wanted players to make decisions as to which items to keep and which items must be thrown away or sold.

Cough, cough. No comment here B) B) B)

In the second picture, why do the 2 closest people seem left handed? Bit scary :D

O, and in the first picture I've got 2 coments. The first is someone should tell him not to put a burger on top of puter, as the grease could play havock with the motherboard. Secondly, the amazon he is using is in act1 with no equip, so I reckon the lil scoundrle did something cheeky.

Kier

[wicked_tribe]

Someone's gotta test the Mac version.&nbsp; Probably more than actually plays it but well, y'know...

*Is mugged by an irate Diablo II-playing Maccite*

<performs a Terry Tate Office Linebacker on NiteFox>
There's a healthy Mac contingent, thank you very much. :ph34r: ;)

That's a cubicle job I wouldn't mind at all.. Look at the supplies in the third photo. :D

WT

[Kartoffelsalat]

The poor sods aren't allowed beer by the looks of things. look in the drinks cabinet, and that can on the shelf. All soft drinks&nbsp; :D&nbsp;

Ray the Soda Guy would be proud!

[Bob]

on the bottom picture, on the left of the monitor is a double CD case, with a D2C label on the left side, but what's on the right side or the case, eh? and what does he need a D2C case to test D2X for (ok, he needs to install it first, but why does he still have the CD there?) On the right, there's another 2 sets of D2C CD's and a spare hard disk,

on another note, how do I get to work for Blizz QA? get to play all the latest stuff first, and what looks like large quantities of free beverages, yay!

oh, yeah, and I have the same mouse as the right hand PC, so yah-boo sucks, I've got Blizz endorsed hardware.

yipe!

*throws mouse out of window*

-Bob

[Pren]

Because the D2C double-cd case has room for 4 CDs - movie, play, install, and expansion.

[NiteFox]

Plus he might be playing the minimum install version, and thus needs to disc-swap.

When testing, you have to test pretty much all the install permutations.