how we play tested with players and got results over the weekend | bart van den berg

“Weekend playtesting”

How we play tested with players and got results over the weekend

Who am I?

• Bart van den Berg, 10+ years in gaming and online software development, based in Eindhoven (NLD)

• BLUE Giraffe Games: Casual Game Studio

• UX/Human & Computer Interaction background

Who is Blue Giraffe?

• Team of 15

• Story driven casual games

• Close partnership with publishers

• Mixed IP

Steggelen*bickering

“That ambulance has to be in there no matter what. It’s an essential part

of the gameplay”

“The ambulance can’t just stand up if there is water flowing in”

“Players won’t understand why it’s there in the first place!”

Which always end in WhatsApp discussion

We agreed on:

• We get max 70 players on board (current audience)

• Test on iOS (iPad & iPhone) is required

• Send build on Friday

• Analyse on Monday

• Minimal pain for developers

• Don’t blow your launch!

1. Facebook post

2. Collect user signup (pre selection)

3. Send private invite (playte.st)

4. Distribute & chat

5. Collecting in-game screenshots & comments!

Players are insane!

6. Analyse player sessions

7. Survey

Monday morning

• 1285 people signed up

• 65 where handpicked and invited

• 57 played during the weekend

• 365 sessions with a total of 50h 36 minutes

• 199 comments with screenshots

• 45 response on 30 questions survey

Nothing was shared on social media…

Key take outs

• Getting feedback from players is not as difficult as you might think

• Turnaround in over a weekend

• Your players will love you for it

• Pinky swear and no-one shares!

• Playtesting = ROI on organic UA (pre-launch)!

http://www.playte.st

Check it out!

Thank you for your time

bart@bluegiraffegames.com