We recently interviewed Sarah Parsons, a Producer at Big Blue Bubble, about what their role and job entail! Read on to see all the interesting answers in this exciting Q&A session:
Q: What is your role at Big Blue Bubble, and what projects do you currently work on?
Sarah: I am a Producer who is currently involved in My Singing Monsters, Dawn of Fire, My Singing Monsters on Steam, and the new My Singing Monsters Playground project!
Q: How did you get your start at Big Blue Bubble?
Sarah: I was hired in a role that does not exist and did not exist at the time: handling all events, scheduling, social media, AND customer service for one game, Finders’ Keep. That game was kind of my baby!! It was fun because you needed to have some art background, some customer service background, and even some programming background, so it was perfect!
You need to understand what every role needs to do their job the best they can.
Q: How has your career progressed at Big Blue Bubble? What projects have you worked on in the past?
Sarah: While I was working on Finders’ Keep, I started training as an Associate Producer, which allowed me to start working on My Singing Monsters. While on My Singing Monsters, Dawn of Fire was just starting production. This led to my very own first project, MSM Composer! After that, all the MSM products fell under my umbrella, most recently with PC and Playground!
Q: What does it mean to be a Producer? What unique challenges do you face in this role?
Sarah: A producer is someone who has to be able to look at a situation or game from both the team’s perspective and company perspective to understand and advocate for both. You need to understand what every role needs to do their job the best they can. It really is an intricate spider-web of tasks, and it is important to the team to understand how their work affects the product as a whole.
The most difficult part of the job is setting restrictions. It kind of falls on me to decide what stays or goes, which is not exactly a fun place to be in! You need to make sure your decisions are informed, and you are trying to do what is best for the project as a whole.
Every week we look at a new build, and it is really great to see all the excitement and progression made week-to-week.
Q: What are some of your proudest moments as a Producer at BBB?
Sarah: Some of the things I am most proud of are not necessarily the release of a product. But knowing the team, there are some things I worked on to make my team’s lives easier, which I’m most proud of. Everybody has a skill set, and not everyone can understand the project management side of things. If a team member tells me they have a bottleneck, I will do everything I can to fix that for them so they can spend their time doing what they do best!
Q: We recently announced My Singing Monsters Playground – how has producing this game been different for you?
Sarah: Playground is a different monster altogether. It has become a passion project for both me and the team. Instead of having a single game experience, vision, and mechanics, this is a single game with one vision but over 20 different mechanics! Since this is a collection of mini-games within a game, each mini-game presents its own mechanics, difficulties, problem-solving, solution, everything! Instead of trying to plan out one project, it is more like I am trying to plan out a ton of projects at the same time.
Q: What have you enjoyed most about working on My Singing Monsters Playground? What kind of challenges have you experienced/overcome?
Sarah: I love seeing it come together! Every week we see huge strides in-game progression, and everyone seems so proud of the work they are putting in. Every week we look at a new build, and it is really great to see all the excitement and progression made week-to-week. The biggest challenge has been the COVID-19 pandemic, which has made us think of new ways to communicate and stay on track.
Success comes with: problem-solving, people skills, and being organized.
Q: What makes working at Big Blue Bubble special?
Sarah: Big Blue Bubble really cares about their employees! We have a very strong work-life balance, which is just amazing. The company knows who you are on a personal level. Especially during more “normal” times (pre-pandemic,) the company helps us out with a barista, popcorn, snacks, etc.!
Q: What do you feel makes you successful in this role?
Sarah: Success comes with: problem-solving, people skills, and being organized.
Q: What career advice would you give to someone who wanted to follow a similar path?
Sarah: You need to be a good problem solver, and you need to ensure that your own bias does not influence your decision-making too much. As a producer, you need to do what is best for the project, and not yourself. If it is something you want to go into, you need to put your ego aside!
Q: Why do you like making games for a living?
Sarah: Originally, I thought it sounded cool! Like, “it sounds like fun, who doesn’t like games?” I did not know what the games industry “was” initially. I didn’t know what it took to make a game in the beginning. I found it fascinating, and I found it was an amazing culture and people. The people really are what makes this industry a great place to work!
Fun Fact: I actually provided Glowl’s voice.
Q: What is your personal favorite game?
Sarah: Hard to say… if you had asked me a year ago, it would have been Uncharted 4, which is absolutely gorgeous. Lately, I’ve been playing a LOT of Red Dead Redemption 2 Online; especially during the pandemic, it is a great way to socialize with the great people I work with.
Q: What game universe would you like to live in?
Sarah: Red Dead! I actually have a history in farriery (working with horses and their hooves.)
Q: Do you have a favorite Monster?
Sarah: Hard choice, but I have to go with Glowl! I love how “creepy” Glowl is. (Fun Fact: I actually provided Glowl’s voice.)
Q: Thank you for your time, Sarah! Is there anything else you would like to share?
Sarah: Well, I am not sure if production is the same across the board, but in this industry, everything is about the people. It is what makes this role, company, and industry awesome! Everyone really loves what they do, and everyone puts their best work in at all times.
We hope you enjoyed this Q&A session! There will be more to come in the future covering all sorts of roles!
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