iterative design and playtesting

SYS 270 - Games Studies

iterative design

Iterative Design

a design methodology based on a cyclic process of prototyping, testing, analyzing, and refining a product or process. Based on the results of testing the most recent iteration of a design, changes and refinements are made

iterative design

Iterative design is similar to scientific method:

1. Make an observation ("My experience in playing/making games has shown me that certain types of mechanics are fun.")
2. Make a hypothesis ("I think that this particular set of rules I am writing will make a fun game.")
3. Create an experiment to prove or disprove the hypothesis ("Let's organize a playtest of this game and see if it is fun or not.")
4. Perform the experiment ("Let's play!")
5. Interpret the results of the experiment, forming a new set of observations. Go back to the first step.

iterative design

Iterative design is a necessary design strategy when designing a complex system that humans will interact with.

When applied properly, iterative design will ensure a product or process is the best solution possible.

When applied early, significant cost savings are possible (time, materials, people)

iterative design: benefits

• Serious misunderstandings are made evident early in lifecycle, when it's possible to react to them.
• It enables and encourages user feedback, so as to elicit the system's real requirements.
• Where the work is contracted, iterative design provides an incremental method for more effectively involving the client in the complexities that often surround the design process.
• The development team is forced to focus on those issues that are most critical to the project, and team members are shielded from those issues that distract them from the project's real risks.
• Continuous, iterative testing enables an objective assessment of the project's status.

iterative design: benefits

• Inconsistencies among requirements, designs, and implementations are detected early.
• The workload of the team, especially the testing team, is spread out more evenly throughout the lifecycle.
• This approach enables the team to leverage lessons learned, and therefore to continuously improve the process.
• Stakeholders in the project can be given concrete evidence of the project's status throughout the lifecycle.

prototype

Prototype

An original type, form, or instance that serves as a model on which later stages are based or judged.

• makes an idea tangible
• communicate behavior and intention
  • to development teams
  • to players to get feedback

prototype

• try out ideas quickly
  • visualize
  • act it out
• feedback with minimal investment (time, materials, people)
• flexible and movable
  • choose materials that allow for changes in the design
• FAIL quickly
• allow ideas to be experienced

prototype

Prototyping has a dual focus

• Explore and Design Interaction (conceptual)
• Get Feedback (concrete)

Know the why! Be able to support your design decisions with

• Data
• Principles

prototype

For video games, implementing (programming) a prototype can be expensive and difficult to modify especially later in development. So, early prototyping is essential.

A few ways to prototype a video game (also applies to board game):

• Paper! Create a board game version of your game.
• Make a simple version. Focus on the core of the game, its mechanics, theme, etc., what makes it interesting, fun, and unique from others games.
• Build game iteratively. After the core idea is ready, start adding complexity into the game (more weapons, powerups, levels, bosses, etc.).

playtesting

Playtest

the process by which a game designer tests a new game for bugs and design flaws before bringing it to market.

Usability testing

a technique used in user-centered interaction design to evaluate a product by testing it on users

playtesting

Playtesting is very important to game development. You are not able to see the flaws in your own game. And yes, there are flaws in your game, no matter how much work you've done, or how much you tested it yourself, or how much you love the concept.

Note:

• Bugtesting
• Alpha/Beta Testing
• Playtesting

playtesting

Playtest your game as soon as possible!

playtesting: how-to

• Gather a small group of players
  • Who? Anyone!
  • all new: fresh perspective on game to find interaction, usability, accessibility flaws
  • previous: in-depth testing, where players have context of previous issues and can scrutinize deeper issues (but be careful!)

playtesting: how-to

• Before they start playing
  • Give them the game with all pieces including instructions
  • Tell them what you're interested in finding out with the game (what are you testing?)
  • Give them special instructions or tutorials on how to play
  • Tell them what might still be broken or missing, so they are aware of it

playtesting: how-to

• Before they start playing
  • Tell them that you are testing the gameplay, not the players
    • It's not up to them to be good at or enjoy the game!
  • Ask them to think out loud (so that you know what they're thinking)
    • If they are confused, or realized something, or forgot something important
  • But inform them that you will not be answering every one of their questions.

playtesting: how-to

• While they play, WATCH them play
  • Unless the game is broke, do not
    • give them a tutorial
    • answer their questions
    • correct their incorrect moves
    • let them know about a bug
    • guide them (let them get unstuck!)
  • Do write down their comments and everything you notice
    • If you notice something, you probably need to fix it
    • Did they do something you didn't anticipate?
    • Record time and context

playtesting: how-to

• While they play, WATCH them play
  • Time their gameplay
    • How long did they take to get to critical points in game?
  • If possible, record the gameplay (video, audio, screen capture)
  • Ask probing questions
    • What are you trying to do right now?
    • What are you trying to achieve?
    • What is your goal right now?

playtesting: how-to

• After the game, ASAP,
  • Ask them what didn't work, was confusing, was totally broken, was not fun, was frustrating
  • Encourage them to be critical
  • You can ask them what they enjoyed, but...
  • Do not look for validation in the game; look for what is broken and why
  • Ask for feedback or suggested improvements
• Be honest to yourself with the feedback

important notes

• The more you iterate on a game, the better it becomes. Great designers do not design great games. They usually design really bad games, and then they iterate on them until the games becomes great.

• You want to have a playable prototype of your game as early in development as possible. The faster you can playtest your ideas, the more time you have to make changes.

• Given equal amounts of time, a shorter, simpler game will gave a better experience than a longer, complicated game. A game that takes ten hours to play to completion will give you fewer iterations than a game that can be played in five minutes.

VALVe Playtester Survey