A Sneak Peek at Ross Erickson’s Job
For avid gamers, Ross Erickson must have one hell of a job. His work revolves around gaming, as he is the Worldwide Games Portfolio Manager for the Xbox Live Arcade.
Wait a sec. The what?
(Clears throat) We said, he is the Worldwide Games Portfolio Manager for the XBLA. Basically, what he does is decide which games will be put up for the Arcade. This is one man you need to look for if you are in search for some professional gaming opinion. He also ooks out for customer responses regarding the XBLA, and says that not only do they want to cater to the hardcore gamers, but to all members of the household as well. Of course, he also needs to keep his creative juices constantly flowing, regarding game selection.
So exactly what are his criteria for selecting game titles? One is game playability. Games should be fun, but not that hard. Another is eye candy. A game should have a visual bar that screams 720p or 1080i resolution. Erickson says that it’s not like they’re forcing game developers to be at par with the Xbox’s mind-blowing specs. It’s just that they want games that are quick and easy ports for other platforms. Another factor to be considered is how multiplayer may be engaged in a title, as the growing gaming community shouldn’t be overlooked. And lastly, he also looks into what kind of extensions to the game can be built in terms of downloadable content through Marketplace.
Whew. That was quite a mouthful. His work sounds quite a lot of fun, but entails quite a lot of responsibility too. Still hankering for his job? Well, we suggest that you brush your gaming connoisseur skills up…
Via Joystiq
For avid gamers, Ross Erickson must have one hell of a job. His work revolves around gaming, as he is the Worldwide Games Portfolio Manager for the Xbox Live Arcade.
Wait a sec. The what?
(Clears throat) We said, he is the Worldwide Games Portfolio Manager for the XBLA. Basically, what he does is decide which games will be put up for the Arcade. This is one man you need to look for if you are in search for some professional gaming opinion. He also ooks out for customer responses regarding the XBLA, and says that not only do they want to cater to the hardcore gamers, but to all members of the household as well. Of course, he also needs to keep his creative juices constantly flowing, regarding game selection.
So exactly what are his criteria for selecting game titles? One is game playability. Games should be fun, but not that hard. Another is eye candy. A game should have a visual bar that screams 720p or 1080i resolution. Erickson says that it’s not like they’re forcing game developers to be at par with the Xbox’s mind-blowing specs. It’s just that they want games that are quick and easy ports for other platforms. Another factor to be considered is how multiplayer may be engaged in a title, as the growing gaming community shouldn’t be overlooked. And lastly, he also looks into what kind of extensions to the game can be built in terms of downloadable content through Marketplace.
Whew. That was quite a mouthful. His work sounds quite a lot of fun, but entails quite a lot of responsibility too. Still hankering for his job? Well, we suggest that you brush your gaming connoisseur skills up…
Via Joystiq
