Week 1 Update (Beta Testing)

Hey there! This post is part of a game testing project I am working on. There’s a lot more to it than what is covered in this post so check out the full project here.

For the first week of this project, I used a game testing platform called G.Round. It allows indie developers to post their games for testing and reviews. It also allows people like me to do that testing in return for points that can be exchanged for prizes.

The games I tested

1. Darkswords Firelink

• A metroidvania style platformer with a beautiful soundtrack and pixel art style. For those unfamiliar with the term “metroidvania” it’s a type of platformer that focuses on exploration and action in addition to moving past obstacles.

2. Batboy

• An action adventure platformer in the style of games like Ducktales and Shovel Knight.

3. Path of Kami: Journey Begins

• A puzzle / exploration game where you play as a wolf spirit named Kazeyo.

How it went

I’ve worked on several projects using Medium already, and all of them had at least some hiccups each week. For the first time ever though, everything went off without a hitch.

Playing games (even unfinished ones) is always fun. But in order to get the most out of this project, some professional elements were necessary. Since Jira is one of the most popular bug tracking programs out there, I decided to create mock reports of each of the bugs I encountered.

All of the games on G.Round are working demos, so I was never testing for any specific feature. In short, my playtesting functioned as general run throughs to catch any bugs the developers missed.

Based on research I have done in the past, a professional bug report requires:

1. A Summary / Title
2. The Actual Result: A description of the bug encountered
3. The Expected Result: What should have happened were it not for the bug
4. The Step to Replicate: Detailed instructions for how to encounter the bug
5. The Severity: How badly does the bug affect the game
6. The Priority: How soon does the bug need to be dealt with / how likely are players to encounter it
7. Video clips and/or screenshots

• Darkswords Firelink

• BatBoy

• Path of Kami: Journey Begins

In order to accomplish this work load within my schedule, I divided each tested game into two separate days:

Day 1: Playtest the game and make note of any bugs I encounter

Day 2: Create mock bug reports using Jira including video / screenshots (if necessary)

Overall, the process went smoothly. Nothing stalled my work process and I was able to complete all tasks within a timely manner. Notetaking proved to be a valuable practice on the first day. Recalling bugs purely from memory wasn’t as easy as I thought, so taking notes prevented any time from being wasted.

While typing up a review for Path of Kami: Journey Begins I read another review where the user included a bug spreadsheet for the developers. It was very impressive. It got me thinking about how I might make it easier for the developers to see the bugs I found.

G.Round only allows feedback in the way of reviews. And while you can talk about the bugs you encountered in them, a detailed spreadsheet is far more effective. In light of this, I’d like to report bugs using a spreadsheet of my own next week.

What I learned

1. How to create bug reports using Jira
2. Notetaking when doing a general playtest saves valuable time

The game plan for next week

1. Try to find a game testing platform outside of G.Round
2. Create a bug report spreadsheet and include it in my reviews

This week went very well! But I’d like to find additional ways to up my game and challenge myself going forward.

Main Page — Week 2>