blizzard!?

never in my wildest dreams

i recently saw an old online friend was hired at blizzard to be a senior narrative designer for the overwatch team at blizzard (team 4, for all you nerds). while i'm aware of the issues plaguing both blizz and activision, i've also been playing their games for what seems like eternity... so i checked their careers site just to see what kind of openings existed.

now, i'm not a game designer and don't want to change careers and get into videogame UI work... but there was one spot that interested me: "lead ux/ui designer for battle.net."

unlike most of my peers, i keep the ole portfolio site up-to-date and have a current resume ready to shoot off on a whim; because of that, i apply to a lot of "dream jobs" that i never hear back from... like apple, microsoft, figma, lucasfilm, dc comics, and plenty more. those i do hear back from, i do one or two interviews, make a few contacts on linkedin, and hope that expanded network pays off in the future. if nothing else, i know what things the big players are looking for in my next role and can adjust what i learn to be a better fit.

but this battle.net job got my hopes up.

first of all, it was in the account and payment space, which i've done my fair share of work on while at kohl's, brady, and amfam. second, the core team sounded fairly small, which usually means my wide skillset can really grow and flourish. and lastly, the skills and even nice-to-have's matched my profile to a TEE. so, my hopes were up. i applied. crossed my fingers. and waited.

a recruiter reached out, saying the team was interested, and asked for a pre-screen call and then had me fill out a pre-screen form after i passed the initial check. some time passed. then i got an interview with my would-be boss. quickly thereafter, i heard i'd be moving forward and got three more invites to small group interviews... each run a bit differently, and focusing on different parts of the job.

even through all of that, my hopes were still up. it felt like a fit! i knew this was right up my alley, and it was a chance to work in an industry that's close to my heart (and that's eaten up a lot of my life, lol).

last week they made me an offer and i accepted.

my background check should be cleared tomorrow, my last day at the current job is july 1st, and i start at blizzard (fully-remote) after the fourth of july holiday.

i've had a week to process it, and still feel the shock every few hours. i've downloaded and played some games i haven't touched in years. i've dug into every corner of battle.net that a customer can get to. i even watched the 2016 "warcraft" movie (which was pretty good, tbh). i haven't been more excited for a job in my life.

i know at some point in the future, i will be frustrated with work as has happened in the past. but right now, i'm excited and proud and still a bit shocked. and i'm holding onto that for as long as i possibly can.

06.20.2022 / wortham, sanctuary