to be the best games quality agency in the world
DAQA specializes in player-centric test programs, live quality operations and in-depth games research, providing custom built, technology-driven solutions for game studios.
Tailor Made Solutions
DAQA is the Concierge of Game Quality
Focus & Play Testing
Highly specialized and customized testing, designed to deeply assess the player experience and provide valuable, actionable data to tune and polish gameplay.
Scaled Beta Testing
Next generation scaled testing, delivered by a powerful, interactive data reporting system.
Development QA & Live Quality Ops
On-demand QA experts, comprised of elite staff members with extensive games QA experience. Specializing in live quality operations.
Player Research & Analysis
Deep analysis using cutting-edge tools and technologies to fully understand the player sentiment and experience.
Release Management
Leverage our in-house expertise in console, cloud platform, and mobile submissions to get your game to market hassle-free.
Accessibility Testing & Advisory Services
Game evaluations utilizing specialized talent, representing the true player base across core Accessibility categories.
Quality Program Development
Building world-class, high performing QA organizations to meet the ever-evolving needs of game quality.
DAQA has crafted services that feature unique capabilities, delivered by an industry-experienced team.
The DAQA Difference:
- High touch interactions with DAQA leadership, every step of the way.
- Innovative, flexible services with no retainer fees or minimum contracts.
- Custom-built solutions to meet the unique needs of each studio & project.
- One-of-a-kind technologies that add depth and meaning to project outcomes.
- Veteran test community, compensated above market.
- Extensive experience transitioning to and managing live quality operations.
- Interactive, configurable real-time data reporting.
Contact Us to learn more.
How We Work
DAQA supports clients in building the required foundation of industry leading global production operations, with the future-proofed ability to scale and flex as your studio requirements grow.
Executive Counsel
Providing analysis and strategy to studio quality leadership to apply right fit solutions.
Studio Enablement
Hands on evaluation, planning, and implementation of quality and test services.
Team Empowerment
Providing complimentary systems, processes and best practices to enhance game studio QA capabilities.
Case Studies
Case Study
Player Research for Global Marketing & Brand Management Company
Scope
Conducted 500-person player research studies, with participants across North America and Europe, with highly targeted player cohorts. Performed in-depth data-centric analysis, including surveys panel discussions to evaluate game concept appeal and viability. Assessment of visual concepts, in game assets, marketing copy, and stack ranking of core game features, as well as pricing analysis for F2P assets. Comprehensive written report, including interpretation of player data, product recommendations, and market positioning
Case Study
Focus Testing for Global Game Publisher
Scope
Performed series of focus tests on each published title during development phase. Delivered in-depth data analysis on usability, difficulty curves, game controls, story arcs, and general design/gameplay, augmented by player recordings. Worked directly with development teams to implement recommended design updates.
Case Study
Scaled Beta Tests for Multi-title Self-publishing Company
Scope
Large-scale, global beta testing of up to 2,000 simultaneous players for multiple AAA multiplayer titles on current and next generation consoles as well as PC. Identified, triaged, and determined root cause of multiple critical blocking issues before games were released.
Case Study
Accessibility Evaluation for Indie Adventure Game Studio
Scope
Evaluated Accessibility features within the game with a representative cohort covering all accessibility categories: Motor, Vision, Hearing, and Cognitive. Performed competitive analysis of similar games with Accessibility features. Delivered actionable, voice-of-the-player recommendations to improve accessibility throughout the game.
Title achieved 85 metacritic at launch with critical acclaim for accessibility features.
Case Study
Live-ops QA for Live Mobile Game Studio
Scope
Deployed dynamic and skilled development QA teams prior to each monthly live game release. Identified critical defects and quality issues, allowing for a smooth launch of live content.
Case Study
Quality Strategy for Indie Game Publisher
Scope
Ensured clean, successful launch of live game, provided tailor-made end to end solution relating to beta and live-ops testing. Proposed solution included set-up, remote team management, platform and data analysis, providing a holistic view of player-related live quality issues. Solution enabled robust, efficient live-ops QA once the game was live and fully operational.
Case Study
QA Transformation for Licensed IP F2P Studio
Scope
Complete QA transformation on behalf of studio leadership, including long-term vision and road map. Provided full quality program implementation for test process & coverage, mapped workflows, defined team set-up and structure.
Recommendation then operationalization of best practice for all quality disciplines including console certification, device performance testing, live-ops QA, third party QA and computer assisted testing/test automation.
Case Study
Embedded Technical QA for AAA MMORPG Studio
Scope
Deployed “virtually embedded” QA team into live game studio. Testers worked directly with developers on new game content, creating a highly efficient early defect detection process.
Results demonstrated a 20% increase in testing velocity, 40% increase in bug closure rates, and a significant annual cost savings from previous vendor. After initial successes, studio adopted DAQA test teams across all internally published titles.
Who We Are
DAQA is a team of game industry veterans, who understand the unique challenges faced by game studios to launch and maintain hit games.
Faye has a long history of management, being a leader in the restaurant industry for 30+ years, in stores earning over 100 million in revenue, and even meeting Dave Thomas!
Faye has a long love of games, having actually met her husband online, and mostly plays puzzle and strategy games. She joined DAQA a year ago and in addition to managing DAQA's HR needs, she is also one of our Project Leads, with a specialization in mobile tests.
When not working, you will find Faye working on a puzzle, gardening, or spending time with her family; husband, two daughters and two sons...and way too many cats!
Holly has loved games and technology from a very young age. From programming a bouncing ball from the Commadore 64 owner’s manual to building her own PC from leftover parts, Holly has always been fascinated with how things work.
Joining DAQA as a tester in late 2022, Holly developed her skills and is currently leading important DAQA projects. As a long-time fan of everything computer and video game, being able to work in the industry and contribute to the medium she loves is a dream come true!
In her spare time, Holly likes to craft, play games, travel, and spoil her dogs.
Zoey has been obsessed with technology ever since she was old enough to sit at a keyboard or hold a joystick. Combined with her voracious reading habits, she quickly developed a passion for the limitless potential of storytelling in games, from expressive action to visual novels.
She sharpened her analytical skills in the US Air Force and at the University of Washington where she studied journalism with a focus on stories about diversity and politics. In her spare time she tested games for Microsoft, Harmonix, Bungie, and others.
Zoey joined DAQA as a tester in 2022, and in 2023 graduated a Lead role. In games, her passion is narrative design—how gameplay and story can work together to craft a rich, compelling experience.
James has been in the games industry for over 13 years, with extensive FQA experience in various companies such as CD Projekt RED and Dambuster Studios. He has a keen interest in games quallity and how it impacts the success of game launches.
James has been playing video games since the original Half Life on Windows 98. He has a desire to work towards building a successful Accessibility testing program and has a keen interest in enabling all players to enjoy the stories and experiences games can bring.
Customer service and account management professional, with 20 + years of experience across multiple Fortune 500 Companies, including management of multi-disciplinary teams of varying sizes.
Grant has enjoyed gaming from the Atari 2600 system to the current generation of consoles, testing games for the past 15 years. He graduated with a B.B.A from Northern State University.
Grant is a car enthusiast and regularly participates in the annual SEMA convention in Las Vegas.
Andre's 10+ years of Remote QA experience and years of Computer Science study have led him to find good company in DAQA's technical, talented, and experienced team.
As a lifelong gamer whose earliest memories go back to the NES and BBC Micro, his interest is in gaming as an industry and storytelling medium.
He looks forward to the technological and narrative innovations that are still to come in this rapidly-evolving industry and assisting game developers in navigating new challenges and exploring exciting possibilities.
Selena’s love for video games brought her into the world of quality assurance. She is a champion at QA, with over six years’ experience under her belt. She has tested many types of games across all platforms including phones, tablets, consoles, and PC.
Selena leads projects and manages our various test programs at DAQA. Selena holds a Foundation Level ISTQB certification which augments her experiences in the industry.
Selena attended community college and received an AAS in business, as well as a certificate in professional baking and cake decorating.
With a focus on performance measurement and analysis on both mobile and desktop systems, Jake has been at the forefront of games industry tooling and R&D since 2013 when he helped to found GameBench. He's spent more than a decade providing tooling and services for clients such as Samsung, Blizzard, Rovio, Google, and Zynga; Most recently he could be found developing cutting edge testing methodologies and tooling for the renowned Linus Tech Tips' Lab.
Jake has worked with DAQA as both a client and contractor over the years, andis currently leading the development of DAQA's game testing platform.
Jake built his first PC at age 10, and wrote his first line of C code less than two years later. Outside of work, he can be spotted walking and hiking with his wife, daughters, and Samoyed Lorek across the lower mainland of British Columbia.
Garry Barter is a DAQA Partner with 15 years of experience in Game Operations and Development, Garry blends strategic vision with hands-on expertise spanning multiple disciplines across the game lifecycle.
Beginning his career as a game developer Garry went on to found Hertzian, an AI insights company, in 2015. As CEO, he transformed it from an idea on a whiteboard into an industry-leading SaaS, providing cutting-edge insights to many of the world’s top game studios.
More recently as a senior leader in Jagex’s Games Operations team, he spearheaded initiatives to elevate the role of game quality data in decision-making, foster stronger collaboration between development and operations teams and ensure the business was prepared for scale amid new M&A activity.
Previous clients worked with include BBC, Disney, Fox, Warner Brothers, Ubisoft, Paradox Interactive, Mediatonic/Epic, Rockstar Games, Sumo Digital, Star Stable, Avalanche, Dovetail Games, Offworld Interactive, Telltale Games, Hutch Games, Multiplayer Group and Pinewood Film Studios.
Tim Hudson is a data analyst and program manager with experience working in Fortune 500 companies.
Professional highlights include leading the DSL rollout for Earthlink in Washington State and Oregon. Managed Tier 1 and 2 support for AOL, Lexmark, and Stream Global Services for corporate clients.
10-year beta QA tester for numerous game studios. A+/N+ certified, with extensive knowledge of data automation, analysis, and real-time reporting tools.
Game development professional with a career spanning over 20 years of shipping critically acclaimed titles across multiple platforms. Career highlights include Head of Studio for a groundbreaking blockchain game company, VP of Product for a patented mobile health technology platform, and Executive Producer at Zynga for FarmVille and Texas Hold’em Poker. He was also Head of Operations for LucasArts, working primarily on Star Wars branded titles.
Devin managed quality assurance for multi-platinum console sports games at Electronic Arts Canada. Whilst there, he also set-up the QA computer assisted and automated test program, which was widely adopted across all studios globally.
He taught the QA course for the Vancouver Film School’s prestigious game design program. In addition Devin is an Agile and business Coach for various software startups, a Certified Scrum Master and Product Owner.
Founded DAQA and has over 20 years’ experience in the video games industry primarily in global production support BPO. As a co-founder of Babel Media, he took the company from concept to being one of the largest game multi-service providers.
At DDM, he set-up up a virtual services network for self-publishing AAA game studios. Then at VMC he took responsibility for business development and account management for games and entertainment.
Having signed, grown and managed $100m’s of production support deals for QA, localization, player support and external development, Ben has an intimate knowledge of industry best practices through his work with some of the most prominent names in the industry.
Jason “Unarmed” Williamson is an A+ and Network+ certified professional with a degree in network engineering who began his career at 3M’s IT department before transitioning to Game QA in 2017.
As a father and husband with multiple physical disabilities, including being born without arms, Jason has learned to approach life and problem-solving from a unique perspective—often tackling issues feet first, a skill that serves him well in QA. Video games have always provided him with an opportunity to explore lands that might otherwise be out of reach.
Outside of gaming, Jason’s interests include video editing and watching movies. He believes embracing technology and creativity allows him to break new ground and proves that true passion can overcome any obstacle.
A qualified remediation biologist who transferred out of the field and into the games industry.
With a broad depth of experience in QA testing over many years, Mark participated in or led the testing of over 35 game titles.
An avid gamer himself, Mark joined DAQA in Spring 2020 and has since developed a range of core skills relating to project coordination, documentation and community management.
He has a passion for cultural heritage and cooking, which lends itself to a strong focus on quality, experimentation and exploration.
Brismal is an avid fan of video games and has been since he could hold a controller. That love for gaming translates well into the field of quality assurance, where he always strives to make games the best they could be. Since joining DAQA in 2020, Brismal has testing and leading projects of various sizes and developing best practices to guide the DAQA tester community.
With nearly 5 years of QA experience on phones, tablets, PC and multiple consoles, Brismal continues lend his expertise as a member of the DAQA core team.
In his spare time aside from gaming, he enjoys watching animated shows, reading mysteries and generally being interested in the world of technology as a whole.
Allison has a passion for gaming that began with the NES and has only grown as games and the industry itelf has expanded since. Beginning her work in QA back in 2014, it wasn't until joining DAQA that she found her greatest passion for QA and game testing.
She joined DAQA as a tester, but with the encouragement from leadership, Allison moved to being a Senior and Lead tester, to a Community Moderator, and then became part of the Core Team.
When not working on a project. Allison can be found indulging one of her many hobbies including reading, writing, music, cooking/baking, and multiplayer gaming.
Video games have always been a central and integral part of Ashley's life, from childhood onward. As an individual on the autism spectrum, video games not only provided an escape from a world that can sometimes be quite overwhelming and confusing, but it also helped her to relate to and understand the world and people around her more. Fond, vivid memories of arcade, PC and console games are permanently entwined with each stage of her life.
Joining DAQA in 2020, Ashley discovered an inherent passion for testing and eventually leading others in testing. She advocates strongly for accessibility in video games and hopes to set an example that autistic adults can be unique assets in QA testing.
Other than video games and video game history, her hobbies include cooking, writing, watching horror movies, playing board games, and voice acting. Her greatest love above all else is her family, which includes her husband, two daughters & many cats.
Kyle is an experienced QA tester with a keen eye for detail and a strong understanding of game design. Currently working as a Technical Test Lead for DAQA, he works alongside his team in performing technical testing tasks whilst also supporting them to foster a positive work environment.
Focusing his passion for gaming, he lends his experience to his work to discover and report issues, or provide feedback on gameplay improvements. Nothing brings greater joy than to see his input improving clients' games and seeing the reactions from players when those changes are implemented.
Aside from games, Kyle’s hobbies are watching TV shows, reading, and taking care of his pet turtle.
Chris is a seasoned gamer with a talent for breaking things that combined those expertises into a skilled QA Tester. With over a decade of experience in the gaming industry, Chris has worn multiple hats, including game developer and game reviewer-journalist.
With his combined passion for gaming and his aptitude for finding bugs and glitches, he joined DAQA in 2022 as a Technical QA Tester. He is also a musician, skilled in both vocals and guitar. He is always eager to connect with fellow gamers and share his wealth of knowledge about the industry.
He can also be found indulging in his love for reading fantasy novels or hosting DND sessions as a DM.
Since 2013, after moving out of standard education, a college IT course led Dan to an Intro to Games Design university program.
Afterward, he started work in the games industry performing in-house QA testing for PlayStation and Housemarque, providing QA services for partners such as Ubisoft, Microsoft, Capcom and has been working with DAQA on multiple test projects since 2021.
Outside of work he tries to keep busy with a multitude of hobbies, including singing and with an amateur band, writing about games and researching/archiving video games industry history, and trying to fit in playing as many games as humanly possible.
Artemis is an avid MMORPG and MOBA player with many years of experience testing and breaking games and hardware.
She loves to put her time and effort into ensuring that the functional QA she provides is as high tier as possible. She joined DAQA in 2022 and is excited to continue with a future in functional QA.
Outside work, Artemis is an avid VR enthusiast, huge JDM fangirl, and simply loves gaming for what it is. You can often find her playing survival games, MOBAs, or MMORPGs, grinding endlessly.
Garry has over a decade of experience as a Business Executive and Operations Manager in the Fortune 500.
Prior to DAQA, Garry cultivated some of the top business relationships at Apple, generating multiple Ovation Awards. He also oversaw globally recognized events including the iTunes Music Festival’s, “Celtic Connections”.
Within gaming, Garry has contributed to over 50+ AAA game titles, across multiple roles such as Tester, Lead, Community Moderator, and Quality Assurance Engineer.
His academic achievements include an Executive MBA from Quantic School of Business & Technology, and a BA (Hons) in Commercial Music, from The University of the West of Scotland.
An advocate for the community, Garry received The Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service (equivalent to an MBE) for his former service as a Firefighter, and more recently served as the Executive Competitive Team Manager at the University of British Columbia’s Esports Association.
Originally from Scotland, Garry now resides in North America, where he continues to leave his mark on the industry he loves
Oscar has been an avid gamer for as long as he can remember. He started playing Mortal Kombat with his dad on the Sega Genesis at probably too young of an age. Since then, he has always wanted to play the latest and greatest games as soon as can get his hands on them.
He has long enjoyed taking part in every open and closed beta/alpha he can get into - which was how he got his first introduction to games testing. His first professional testing experience was in 2014 and he became a full time FQA Tester for DAQA in early 2023.
His favorite games of all time are Metal Gear Solid and Halo. When he is not working or gaming, he love to watch movies and noodle on his guitar.
In addition to working for DAQA, Hasan is a computer science teacher at an inner London secondary school. He has been teaching computer science for over a decade, and loves sharing his passion for coding, problem-solving, and technology with his students. He believes that computer science is not only a valuable skill but also a creative and fun way of expressing oneself.
When he's not working, Hasan enjoys playing and exploring video games of various genres and platforms. He is fascinated by the art, design, and storytelling of video games, and how they can create immersive and engaging experiences for players. He also likes to keep up with the latest news and trends in the video game industry, and learn about the development and innovation behind the games.
Iain has a love of games which started back in the day of tapes (ZX Spectrum) and cartridges (Atari 2600). Getting older he realised, as the years went on, games had become less polished and he started taking notice of bugs and player issues which could take months to fix in some cases.
Iain has always worked in IT but has dreamed of working in the games industry most of his life. Iain joined the DAQA community in March 2021, and is highly motivated to find bugs and new and interesting ways to break games.
Iain is studying got a BA in Games Design, which is helping him acquire knowledge in finding and fixing bugs and making games more enjoyable.
In his spare time, he enjoys gaming, 3D modelling, comedy television, animated shows, and taking his 3 doggos for walks.
Craig has had a love of games and technology from a very young age. Growing up around the Amiga and NES, Craig owned most of the systems out there. However PC gaming has always been his true passion.
It was his love of games that helped push him into the world of IT, picking up various CompTIA and Cisco certifications before pivoting into the world of VR. Craig spent 3 years building out Turnkey Solutions for VR systems in Arcades across the UK before becoming an Service Engineer full-time in that growing industry.
Craig joined DAQA in March 2021 to explore QA from software rather than hardware as he did in his previous career. Bringing years of gaming, engineering and analyzing skills to the job, Craig loves exploring game worlds and systems.
In his spare time, he enjoys Airsoft, gaming, cinema, TTRPGs and board games.
Rometro has been a long time gamer with a real passion for fighting games, getting his start playing Mortal Kombat 3 for the PS1. Not long after he found himself deep in the gaming world, always renting the newest title and trying every genre he could get his hands on.
During his teen years Rometro ventured into the competitive fighting games scene, competing in titles such as UFC Undisputed, Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3 and Call of Duty.
Rometro first got his start in QA with EA, testing Apex Legends, and fell in love with the profession ever since. He has tested games such as League of Legends, Valorant, and many more.
Rometro is Sr. Tester for our newly-opened New Orleans office, focusing on console testing services provided from our onsite location.
Joseph has been a fan of video games for as long as he can remember, one of his earliest memories being playing Rad Racer on the NES. It only makes sense he would want to work in the industry, and DAQA has given him the opportunity to do just that.
Starting out as a tester with DAQA in mid 2021, Joseph has been learning the craft since then, joining the core team at the end of 2024. He is looking forward to leading more projects, continuing to improve in his skills, and giving back to the industry he loves.
Joseph enjoys distractions like learning random tidbits on YouTube, begrudgingly exercising for health benefits, and loves introducing his nephews to games and watching them fight while they play.
Adam Testerman is a software engineer with over 10 years of experience developing websites, apps, and games of all kinds. His love of video games has proven beneficial throughout his time with DAQA tests, while his skills in programming continue to produce tools for DAQA's clients.
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