On Bug Checking
October 28th, 2009 by PlatinumGames
Filed: Bayonetta, Community, Games, PlatinumGames
Hi everyone. Programmer Kenji Saito here again.
For my second post, I thought I would give some insight into bug checking.
The minute a programmer hears the words bug checking, or debugging, they will launch into a thousand-yard stare. For programmers, it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that this is where their work truly begins.
Just for those who don’t understand what bug checking is, let me explain:
Bug checking is the process of fixing the errors caused by miscalculation or faulty design (bugs). Also, depending on the game, bug checking may also include making sure that the game is performing up to specification.
As I mentioned in my previous post, Bayonetta was an incredibly large program to create, which means that it required an incredibly long time and an incredible amount of effort to debug. Once Bayonetta had all of its features in-place and was finished as a game, it took two months to check for bugs. To give you an idea of the people involved, checking included all the members of the development team plus numerous Q&A testers outside of the company, all working approximately 10 hours a day. And the number of bugs… Well, let’s just say there were many.
Then there is another type of bug to rack your brain upon. Kamiya-san likes to change the game design by calling these issues bugs. This type of bug easily falls into the top three things a programmer never wants to hear. By adding things at the very end, it may make the game more fun, but it may also be adding on the number of bugs as well. Decisions have to be made as to whether it can be done, and those tough calls continued on for days and days. Bug checking is soul-crushing work. Really. It is.
But if you don’t work hard at bug checking, you will see issues result in the level of quality of the game, so we regard it as highly important. Bayonetta’s development team worked very hard to pay close attention to the details, whether it was bug checking or otherwise, in order to raise the quality of our game and make something truly special.
Tagged: Bayonetta, Bug Checking, Debugging, Feature Creep, Game Design, Hideki Kamiya, Kenji Saito, Programming
7 Comments Add Your Own
Lloyd Posted on October 29, 2009 at 2:48 am
Debugging! What a wild process that is. Especially in a large project like Bayonetta. It makes me quite curious though as to the testing methods employed by Platinum. Do you test things modularly? I.E do you test all objects in the game by themselves before seeing how they fare when they interact?
Saito-san, I was wondering do you have much knowledge of software engineering principles, there is much literature on this in the West to help tame the complexity of large coding projects for even larger projects than games like operating systems etc.
Also do you use a scripting language to help prototype ideas quickly or is everything in C++?
Soulhouf Posted on October 29, 2009 at 5:49 am
Thank you guys for your efforts to deliver an excellent product. Being a developer, I understand how annoying bugs are.
By the way I tested the game's demo and I love it. I already purchased the Japanese version on PS3 and I am waiting for it to be shipped.
I hope that the game will be a huge success.
Good luck!
Marink Posted on October 29, 2009 at 8:36 am
Yeah…. Programming can be a pain.
But at the same time, it's awesome.
By using codes, numbers and etc. you can see you image come into play.
I wish I can script.
60Hertz Posted on October 29, 2009 at 2:34 pm
Hmm it seems even the great ones succumb to feature creep!
I also watched the making of MGS4 (awesome doc for anyone who wants to see a surprisingly candid look at what goes on behind the scenes) where Kojima kept changing things right up to the end… the programmers were pulling their hair out!
I guess it's the old tug-of-war of wanting to make the game PERFECT or getting it out the door as perfectly as possible…
FAUNA Posted on October 29, 2009 at 3:15 pm
I bow to you all for your hard work and dedication. Thank you for a true masterpiece and the revival of japanese gaming!
Manuel Herrera Posted on October 30, 2009 at 9:36 pm
Where's the PC love?
This game uses very 3d stereo friendly perspectives, it would look amazing in 3d stereo… but need the PC version for this, is there any hope for PC gamers that want to play Bayonetta?
Baberific Posted on November 3, 2009 at 8:37 pm
man, I'm taking basic programming and I think the debugging on that is confusing….a title like Bayonetta must be insane!
Thanx for all the hard work you guys have done! the title came out fabulous!