The most awful in-person interview I have experienced.
After an initial conversation with the recruiter, I had a phone interview. It was clear the person interviewing me was looking for very specific answers - he didn't display any thoughtfulness or creativity. He interrupted me multiple times and he clearly wasn't paying attention - in some cases "correcting" me by pointing out something I had mentioned already. Since I felt so negatively toward him (and assumed it was mutual), I was surprised when Pocket Gems requested a second round phone interview.
The next phone interview, with the analytics manager, was actually pleasant. The conversation was interesting, he seemed open to exploration, and asked intelligent follow-up questions. After that interview I decided I would be open to an on-site interview, if offered one.
Then there was a take-home 3-4 hour SQL case study. The questions were pretty interesting and I enjoyed working through it.
Then I was invited to do an on-site interview. Looking around the office it was clear that it was completely male-dominated. A shame, since this company has presented itself as more balanced.
First I met with the guy who gave me the first phone interview, and our follow up conversation confirmed my initial impressions of him. He started out with a SQL problem, which would have been fine except that I was asked to write out the SQL with pen & paper. Then he had another case study-type question. His tone was condescending throughout and he constantly interrupted. Again, it was clear he was looking for one specific answer.
The other interviews were mostly mediocre , and I know I wasn't at my best at that point. Then there was an interview dominated by brain puzzles. Normally I enjoy those kinds of puzzles, but the guy who conducted it spoke in a bored, dismissive way. It was really awkward, and that combined with the rest of the interview experience left me feeling uncomfortable & disrespected.
As some other people have mentioned, they didn't ask me about my previous experience, and they also didn't give me many opportunities to ask them questions.
Something that shocked me: when I asked what role analytics plays in the development of new IPs, I was told it was just used for benchmarking. The guy seemed puzzled when I asked whether analytical insights were used to inform game development. It appears that Pocket Gems is looking for a data monkey, not an analyst.