Hi! I am Riddhi Padte and I currently work as a User Researcher for Harmonix. I have been working here for a little over a year. At the company, I am the person the teams go to when they want something playtested. I work on all the projects that are being developed in the studio and help the team in terms of User Research. My major responsibilities include playtesting games/prototypes/game features etc. with external and internal participants and getting appropriate feedback. I relay the feedback to the team which lets them take player centric design decisions. So, in a nutshell, my job is making others play the game and asking what works and what doesn't. (I know it's kinda cool!)

I recently worked on the Diamond Stage Update in Fuser which was very exciting and that is something which I will always cherish. Right now, most of my time goes working on a secret project!

I started my career after graduating from Northeastern University in Game Science and Design. During school, I worked at the Game Lab at NEU where I helped students with different User Research equipment, methodologies and software. I have also worked as a QA Analyst over summer for a small Indie game called Mutazione(check it out! Its lovely!)

I got hired at Harmonix in middle of a pandemic and I have been remotely for all my time at Harmonix. So, I haven't really met anyone in person except a couple of people. It's been a lot of fun working remotely as everyone has been very patient and understanding.

My favorite Harmonix game will always be Dance Central! It blew my mind how I can dance in a game and have so much fun with it. As a dancer, I cannot imagine the efforts and literal sweat the QA team must have put into it and everyone else who was a part of the project. I wish I was here to witness that!
 

If you could have a superpower, what would it be?

If I had a superpower, it would be reading minds. I like to believe I have a little bit of that power as it's a part of my job to get honest feedback and ask all the right questions.

 

What’s your wfh set up like?

My WFH setup looks like this

I have Naruto and Kakashi to keep me entertained while working. I have a lot of color pens on my desk as I make a lot of colorful notes!

 

Here is my Instagram ID: @puchku.thecat