Engineering for Life
You may have noticed that we introduced a host of new Rare software vacancies to the Careers section this week. We’re itching to fill these roles with some perilously talented people, so we’ve invited Bjorn, our Studio Software Manager, to provide some background to the new positions, our engineering environment and Rare in general. Take it away, fella.
Fresh from shipping Awesome Pack #1, the technical wizards of Rare are looking to expand their ranks in readiness for the future. Obviously we can’t tell you what they’ll be working on, but it would be fair to say that the words ‘exciting’, ‘challenging’, ‘far-reaching’ and ‘visionary’ describe their future adequately.
The five jobs announced this week cover most of the engineering palette: servers, tools, workflow, rendering and user interfaces. I know we have some of the best engineers in the industry, but I also know there are deep technical experts in other companies who are looking to execute on a grand scale. This week’s announcement is the first step in opening a conversation with some of the fantastic talent elsewhere.
Working at Rare is not like working at most studios. We have a tight connection with the wider organisation of Microsoft and we influence and shape the direction of ecosystems, hardware and platforms. Engineering at Rare is the tip of the spear; working with our first-party partners and the teams of the Xbox organisation, we often create the beach head for others to land on. What we’re really looking for are deep technical experts. Engineers who have shipped great titles, with lots of wisdom about what works and what doesn’t.
Nov 2011
Mailshot to the heart
So did you enter your details on the pre-E3 countdown teaser page, or click the Register link on the new site? If you did (and entered your real details, unlike my manager who is apparently a top England goalkeeper now living on the volcanic island of Tristan da Cunha), yesterday will have seen your inbox electrified by the arrival of the first ever Rare website newsletter. We did vaguely promise to use your details to keep you informed, so we thought we’d better deliver at some point.
The newsletter acts as a round-up of the key updates to the site since the relaunch, hand-picked from both news and blog, bookended with an introduction and a random giveaway of saucy new Rare T-shirts – a handful of lucky winners will have their names extracted from the coughing, steam-powered database each month. See what you’re missing? Sign up for the next issue and you could be in on the winnage next time.
One more way in which the newsletter ties in with this blog right here is in the first mention of Mini-Scribes. As it takes so long to put together a full-fat Scribes, our sly plan is to plug the gaps with blog-based mini-editions. One or two questions at a time, posted at irregular intervals, offering little to no concrete information – you know the drill. There’s already a backlog of letters which will be considered fair game, but let’s mix it up with some fresh material. If you’ve got a good question in mind (ideally Sports-related), send it over. Not too long and rambling, s’il vous plaît. Also not a threat to burn down our building if we don’t do a new FPS/Killer Instinct/Conker game. We don’t need any more of those ones, thanks.
In the meantime, if you’re curious to check out the first email newsletter, click the image above to jump to the copy archived online.
Jun 2010
The site has changed…
Okay, we know how much you liked the old site – unreadable text and all – but we needed a change and this is what we’ve come up with. So it’s early days (another site update is due during the summer), but you can get a pretty good idea of what we’re trying to do here.
Let’s start with the News and Blog sections – basically the News section is for announcements and press releases, with the Blog giving a sneaky peek into the inner workings of the company. As official announcements are less frequent, the Blog will be updated regularly with scheduled and unscheduled content, which will vary massively – everything from insider videos and guest rants to recruitment tips and community-led interviews.
The Video page is the best location to check out videos from all our titles, past and present. If our player doesn’t fulfil all your video needs, we’ve also signed up on that major video site, umm, YouTube or something – that’ll work on your ‘mobile’ or ‘cell’ as well if you happen to have the future in your pocket.
The Careers and Company sections will acquire makeovers in the update, with recruitment advice and staff profiles receiving a special focus.
Ah, the Community page – direct all your anger about the pink towards the Rare Editor. Not a lot going on at the moment, but feel free to rant to your heart’s desire which we promise to read, or at least glance at when we’re bored. Forums, Scribes, Tepid Seat, and perhaps Mr. Pants will return in due course, along with some new features that could potential increase your enjoyment of the site by 17%.
And finally, the Games section. Obviously Sports has its very own all-singing-and-dancing site which will be continually updated until launch. Selected older titles will also be receiving their own pages, with classic titles being included in an interactive timeline that doesn’t require a phone booth to travel to the past.
Meanwhile the RareLtd Twitter feed will roll ever onwards, and you can even Register your email address with us for key updates direct to your inbox.
Conclusion: we hope you like the new site, but there are still plenty of updates to come. Feedback gratefully received.
Jun 2010
