We were evaluating several artists, and finally (thought) we had settled for this one artist who had done pretty solid stuff.

So I personally initiated discussion with him over Skype, and at some point he must have misunderstood my questions - aimed at getting payment & delivery details into the contract - as stringing him along. And from that point on he started to get very disrespectful and boorish. I explained the situation, which he at first did not understood, but continued to talk in a very impolite manner, then finally it became clear to him that he might have made a mistake.

But that sort of behaviour is not something I feel I can work with and trust. So I wrote him a letter, and this is what happened (my e-mail at the bottom and his last response at top):

http://i.imgur.com/AN9yXs4.png

Anyone else who ran into similar unpleasantness? How do you deal with it?

Based on the text, the other person is not a native English speaker, and is using machine translation to write their response. You probably had a breakdown in understanding due to this.

Forget unstable attitude; I wouldn't work with someone who can't clearly communicate.

Agree with the opinion, it looks like a translation issue.

More natural communications between individuals, along with the ability to meet in person to discuss critical details that are difficult to communicate online, are among the best reasons for choosing contractors who are local to you.

As for how to deal with it, if you have not already come to an agreement and are still negotiating, cut it off. The messages are too toxic.

If you have already come to an agreement, look up in your agreement how it gets terminated. If for some reason you didn't include termination clauses, you'll want to give reasonable compensation for your terminating the agreement.

I also agree with the top 2 posts. His grammar is straight out of a translator, meaning hes reading your words through translated text most likely meaning so much will be lost in translation. Maybe next time you are looking make sure to put "speaks fluent English" on the post or whatever language your team speaks mainly.

Luckily this was before signing any agreements.

I can understand the communication issues, since I deal with people that aren't always good at english, that is a risk. But what usually happens (what I expect) is that they voice their concerns, not trying to mock and openly provoke.

This is not the first time I've run into people who were "less than professional". They're not the majority, but enough that you start thinking that maybe there is a reason that they are freelancing rather than having a job at some game company.

Ideas how to deal with them (and perhaps how to notice them early)?

Ideas how to deal with them

Not sure what you're looking for beyond "cut it off." Filter out emails, don't answer phone calls. Maintain professional tone throughout. If anybody contacts you asking how that party was to work with, refuse comment. Just say "I'm sorry, but we have a policy not to give references." Bad comments can get back to the nasty party, who could then sue for slander.

(and perhaps how to notice them early)?

There may be early warning signs, or there may not. The same with dating. Early on, the parties put on their best faces, and the masks wear off only with time. Just have to look for subtle clues in wording, things not said, etc.

Thank you for all comments, it has been helpful and great food for thought.

http://i.imgur.com/AN9yXs4.png
you are just forcing artist to make free tests and steal their time

This is actually something that predatory studios do, and artists have to keep their guard up to protect themselves from it.

This guy has probably dealt with that situation before, and for whatever reason, apparently your correspondence triggered his pattern detector and got his guard up.

Yeah as above it could be lost-in-translation issues, but in future, I'd be very upfront about what the outcomes of an art-test will be, and what the time-frames are for those outcomes. If you ever move these goal posts, or fail to define them in the first place, you could easily scare people like this guy has been scared.

http://i.imgur.com/AN9yXs4.png
you are just forcing artist to make free tests and steal their time

This is actually something that predatory studios do, and artists have to keep their guard up to protect themselves from it.

This guy has probably dealt with that situation before, and for whatever reason, apparently your correspondence triggered his pattern detector and got his guard up.

Yeah as above it could be lost-in-translation issues, but in future, I'd be very upfront about what the outcomes of an art-test will be, and what the time-frames are for those outcomes. If you ever move these goal posts, or fail to define them in the first place, you could easily scare people like this guy has been scared.

I like to think that I was very upfront about that test, which I also deliberately tried to make minimal in scope / effort to avoid wasting his time unnecessarily. And ironically, he lashed out at me when I wanted to award the project to him on strength of that art test. :(

Another recommendation when dealing with contractors who don't speak English very well... Use very simple sentence structure and vocabulary. "It is quite possible you misunderstood my reasons for clarification" is pretty tough vocab for a non-native speaker..

Simpler is: "I think you did not understand me."

I learned this (the hard way) when I did a lot of work with Japanese game companies. It may sound very harsh and abrupt to our ears, but it is far less likely to be mis-understood.

And, yes, unless it is crystal clear that you're asking for a 'demo' (which has been pointed out is not without some controversy), it could easily cause some hard feelings.

That all said, the advice from frob, etc is spot-on. Best to just let this go and let it die down