I applied online. The process took 2 months. I interviewed at Backflip Studios (Boulder, CO)
Interview
I initially recieved a phone call from the HR rep and scheduled an interview with the manager of the QA department. In my excitement, I overlooked that the "invitation" sent to me via email was for a phone interview. I looked up the address and because I do not drive, I took an Uber to the office. I did not realize while I was there that my interview had been scheduled as a phone interview, and no one mentioned it. I interviewed with the manager and I left feeling confident after being told the manager would submit his feedback to HR and I would hear from them the following week. The following week I received a phone call from the HR rep, I was incredibly excited as I thought I was going to be offered the job. Instead, the HR rep freaked out on me over having gone in person to the interview, and told me they were still interviewing other candidates and they would let me know if they decided to move forward. I was completely taken aback, and anxious. I poured over how I could remedy the situation and decided to call back and apologize to the HR rep. She accepted my apology and I never heard from her or the company again. I attempted to contact the manager via email as it was never made clear to me where I stood in the hiring process or if I were still being considered. I would assume since this was at least a couple months ago by now, that I did not in fact get the job. I feel that the situation was handled in a very unprofessional manner, particularly as it was an honest mistake. I truly hope none of the other applicants have to endure such an anxiety inducing application process.
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
Can you name any of the bugs you've found in games?
I applied online. I interviewed at Backflip Studios in Feb 2018
Interview
Preliminary review with parent company followed by a phone interview with the lead engineer. The interview was short and very trivia focused. There was time for questions at the end, but the interview felt very machine-like. Know your programming trivia.
I applied through a recruiter. I interviewed at Backflip Studios (Boulder, CO) in Aug 2017
Interview
Contacted by a recruiter. Set up a phone screen with CFO and a VP. Asked a few easy questions, and set up a flight to Boulder to meet the team. They gave me coach, middle seats which were uncomfortable, but otherwise well taken care of. Met about 8 people throughout the course of the day. The team I would have taken over were somewhat unfriendly, and expressed very little curiosity about myself or the way I would manage. We went to lunch together, and I felt like I wouldn't have been asked anything if I hadn't essentially run the conversation. I knew I would have a lot of work to do if I were to turn this team into real professionals. It was clear that the business had undergone a ton of changes, and there were some issues to deal with, but a will to improve, which I liked. The office was underwhelming. Old-school offices, very closed off. They had a nice collection of video and board games though.
Ultimately, I don't think I got the job, because I didn't receive a call or email, or even a form letter. This is not a lot of effort to do, and saves the candidate a lot of stress and wonder. Very bad form.
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
What do you do when your game is getting bad performance, and we've already tried almost everything.
I'm so sorry that this was your experience and that you did not receive the hiring decision through your recruiter. We will take steps to ensure better communication. Good luck on your next career move.