Tips for Game Developers |

Play Testing Tip #2: Come with a protocol.

Posted on January 17, 2014 by first8studios

Play Testing Tip #2: Come with a protocol.

Arriving at your testing session with a plan for what you want your testers to take for a spin and what questions you want to ask will help you make sure you get the most of each session. Start with what’s most important to you (is the child able to navigate the game? Does he or she learn what I want them to learn?) and then follow it up with some nice-to-knows (can the child beat the highest level? Does he or she like the background music?). That way, if your session is cut short, you’ll still walk away with the information you and your team need to move forward with your game.

And be sure to watch and listen for those unexpected moments of insight! If you notice something interesting happening, going off-script is A-OK!

Play Testing Tip #1: Watch and listen.

Posted on January 10, 2014 by first8studios

Play Testing Tip #1: Watch and listen.

When you hand over your game to a child, your first instinct may be to explain to him or her how to play. But simply watching and listening allows you to see if your game is intuitive enough for the child to pick up on their own and, even more importantly, to learn the expectations of these young technology users and capture the thought process and solutions of each child. In this way, you’ll learn more from the child, and that’s true kid testing.