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Game Testing Tutorial: How To Perform Game Testing ?

Posted on February 12, 2024February 12, 2024 by tbsupadminnxtbackendacc

Video games hold a substantial share of the software market, creating a constant demand for innovation and complexity in the gaming industry.

Game development involves a collaborative effort among various professionals, including game designers, writers, visual artists, sound designers, and, crucially, game testers.

Therefore, it is important to be aware of the comprehensive process of game development and the pivotal role played by game testing in the entire process. Understanding the intricate phases of game development and the strategic implementation of testing strategies is essential for delivering a flawless gaming experience to users.

Game Development Process: Step-by-Step

Phase #1

Conceptualization The game development journey starts with conceptualizing the game, involving brainstorming to formulate the core idea, theme, and unique selling points.

Existing intellectual properties in various media or original concepts might serve as inspiration for this fundamental idea. This stage is critical for aligning the game’s vision across the development team and stakeholders.

Phase #2

Pre-Production In pre-production, detailed game design documents (GDDs) are prepared, outlining gameplay mechanics, narratives, character designs, and environment concepts.

This phase sees the creation of technical prototypes to validate gameplay ideas and mechanics.

Storyboards and concept art are developed to visually represent game narratives, environments, and characters, facilitating a shared understanding and vision among the creative team.

Phase #3

Production The production phase marks the bulk of game asset creation and coding. It involves the detailed development of game levels, character models, textures, animations, and game-specific logic.

Programming teams work on developing the game engine (if custom), integrating third-party libraries, and coding game mechanics, physics, AI behavior, and user interface elements.

This phase requires rigorous coordination between artists, designers, and programmers to ensure consistency and adherence to the game’s vision and design documents.

Phase #4

Post-Production Post-production focuses on refining the game through extensive QA testing. The game, now in its alpha state, is scrutinized for bugs, performance issues, and gameplay imbalances.

Feedback from alpha testing leads to adjustments and bug fixes, progressing the game to a beta state for wider testing, including compatibility testing and compliance checks with platform-specific standards.

This phase is iterative, with multiple testing cycles, feedback, and refinement until the game meets quality and compliance benchmarks for launch readiness.

Marketing

Marketing Simultaneously with late development stages or post-production, the marketing phase ramps up to generate anticipation and demand. This includes creating promotional materials, engaging with media and influencers, and showcasing the game at industry expos.

Marketing strategies are tailored based on target demographics and platforms, focusing on highlighting the game’s features and unique aspects.

For indie developers or smaller studios, this phase might also involve direct community engagement through social media and crowdfunding platforms to build a supportive player base pre-launch.

What do you think the Game Testing Stage is intended to reveal?

The testing stage is a critical component of the game development process.

In addition, revealing potential bugs in the program—for example, in-game objects not running legitimately—. It should likewise check for irregularities in the fictional structure of the game, consistency (and culmination) of artwork, and additionally be testing the gameplay—is the game connecting with, too simple, or too hard, for instance?

Who is a Game Tester?

Game testers play a pivotal role in ensuring the quality of a game before its final release. They thoroughly test games on various platforms, including consoles and desktops, to identify bugs and defects. Without game testers, games could suffer from numerous issues, potentially damaging the reputation of the development company.

What are the requirements to Become a Game Tester

Attentive behavior
Understanding of video game console controllers
Awareness of SDLC
Good communication skills
Great writing skills
Primary computer programming aptitudes

Central Skills

Principles and perception
Analytical thinking
Knowledge of computer hardware parts
Investigating and exploring aptitudes
Versatility to tedious and redundant obligations

Typically, gaming companies don’t have a specific degree requirement. The skills are quite often tested at the interview. Still, education plays a significant role in game testing. The titans of the gaming industry prefer to hire employees with degrees in:

software development
computer programming
Computer science or some other technical field.

What does a Games Tester do?

Some of the key responsibilities of a game tester include the following:

Be repetitive and unpredictable to identify and break down potential issues.
Test different versions of games on various platforms.
Explore specific areas of the game and test all available options.
Play through different modes and characters to reveal glitches.
Report errors, spelling mistakes, and language issues.
Document bug reports in a bug-tracking system.
Understand the difference between reporting bugs and reporting features.
Test the game repeatedly in various conditions to ensure stability.
Analyze new game versions to check if previous bugs have been addressed.

The process involved in Game Testing

By far, we know that testing has an imperative function in Game development. A game is tested at the distinctive level of its development procedure. Usually, in the software engineering method, the Software test design document contains all the data about testing the product. However, game testing is not quite the same as testing the software.

There are numerous steps included other than test cases for a game, generally in light of the fact that almost all game testing is black box testing. The developers generally don’t test their own games, nor do they have time to test them completely, nor is it a wise idea to test games by themselves.

Before presenting their code for integration with the rest of the game or as third-party code for use by other game developers, game developers only test small portions of it.

6 Steps of the game testing are as follows:

Plan and Outline the Test – Although quite a bit of this plan was done before in the programming test plan document, still with each new prototype of the game, this document should be returned to upgrade any adjustments in the test cases, specifications, and new setup support. The game tester ought to guarantee that no new issues are presented.
Set up the Test – All the teams should upgrade their code, documents, tests, and test environment and regulate it with each other. The test development group should mark the bugs settled and the test time taken to confirm them.
Play out the Test – Run the test suit once more. In the event that any bug is discovered, test around the error to ensure that the bug is real.
Report the Outcomes – Complete insights about the bugs are reported.
Repair the Bug – The game testing team engages in this step by uncovering the bug to the development team and giving direct testing to track the bug.
Return to Stage 1 and Retest – A new build is delivered after one cycle.

The game test is performed in a structured way. Regardless of the size of the game and the time required for creating the game, all game testing should follow the fundamental structure.

Parts of Games That Undergo Testing

the menu and the menu functions
art (character model, terrain or world, texture, objects, crowd, etc.)
animation (the likeness and quality of the realism, movement, and frame rate)
music
audio and the sound effects (in connection with the facial animation, e.g., the animation series and lip sync)
any movie clips
camera (zoom in and out, cinematic view, replay)
title screens
game logic and flow
world/scene/level
the action properties
the player’s properties
the situation to advance to the subsequent level (what are the commands?)
the application of environmental objects
the object/event triggers
increasing levels of difficulty
the scoring
the AI logic (for both offensive play and defensive play; player positioning and movement)
statistics (pre-game and in-game, like high score and player statistics)
SFX – Special effect
NIS – Non-Interactive Sequence
the gamepad
the vibration/shock effect of the gamepad
the usability of the button functions
the application of multi-button actions (also known as button mashing)
the use of analog and digital mode
legal text
the game options (game start or menu selection, game pause, pause menu options, hints, and scrolling, such as driving by the accessible choices on the screen, so forth.)

Types of Game testing that need to be followed in the Testing Process

The game development cycle on all platforms has phases that are known as milestones. The milestones show that the game is at a specific level of development. The milestones, usually, are first playable, alpha phase, beta phase, gold phase, and post-release phase. The initial playable version is related to that of a demo version; here, the feel of the game is perceived and evaluated.

In a simplistic view, testing is recognizing bugs found in the game so the issue can be resolved. There are diverse types of tests that can be classified as black-box testing and clear-box testing. Their testing goal and general procedures are trivialities (e.g., test planning, test design, testing execution, regression testing, and bug reporting), yet their aim stresses various parts of the game. Let’s know what those techniques are:

Black Box Testing

It centers on the playability or functional parts of the game. For instance, testing the UI (e.g., the utilization of buttons and the selection menus), the “look and feel” (e.g., the designs and animation), and the real gameplay.

For Black Box testing, the game tester must know how to play the game, the utilization of the gamepad, and the game flow and the rules.

Clear Box Testing

It centers on the design and integration parts of the game software. For instance, the utilization of a database, pipelines, the integration and reconciliation of game segments like the AI engine, the rendering engine, sound, etc.

For Clear Box testing, the game tester must comprehend what coding is. The software tester employs a run-time troubleshooting environment, encourages the code or pieces of code with input, i.e., setting variables, data, and so forth, and interprets the test outcome.

Functional Testing

Its purpose is likely to be to recognize deviations from functional necessities. It comes down to driving through the game repeatedly to distinguish issues and the environments in which they can be rectified.

Stress/Load Testing

When testing the games, it is fitting to create conditions that require a huge computational load. So, the game tester can check system execution in an unpleasant condition. With load testing, it is less demanding to see and fix possibly perilous code segments in time. Test for odd circumstances, like loading a game with no memory card, running the game for 48 hours, and checking how the game reacts.

Combinatorial Testing

This type of testing is a process of experimental design that is applied for commercial software testing and to create test cases. Using combinatorial testing for game testing improves test performance efficiency, produces high-grade quality, decreases cost, and ensures reliable phase containment.

Every conceivable sequence of values of the parameters is incorporated into this test. Here the parameters are chosen from game elements, functions, events, character attributes, play options, settings, customization choices, and so forth.

Compatibility Testing

Much of the time, game programming is performed on laptops or PCs. Notwithstanding, numerous games can be intended for different devices: smartphones, game consoles, communicators, and so forth. Game development is performed on the test systems of these gadgets, yet they vary greatly from the original. In this way, later on, a few challenges may arise when beginning the game on the original gadget.

Plus, one should give careful consideration to the authorization of programming. In case of any aberrations, the game can be returned for correction, which takes additional time and a loss of funds. So, it is vital to check whether the game fulfills the necessities of the devices.

Feature Testing

This testing is performed to confirm the smooth functioning of the features in the game. For covering discrete features, detailed test cases are more appropriate. Task-based experiments require a predominant level of detail. At the point when there is an assortment of features for various player statuses, test frameworks get convenient and beneficial.

Critical Path Test

Critical path testing is a procedure to recognize the critical paths in the game. This type of testing technique uncovers the conditions that cause disappointment.

Play Testing

Playtesting is the technique of game testers playing the game to break down non-useful features like fun variables, balance, difficulty levels, and so forth. Here, a selected team of testers plays the incomplete variants of the game to check the work process.

Limitation testing:

The games are regularly converted into the languages of the nations where they are assumed to be made available on the market. It happens that translators can’t give a totally exact interpretation, which would be completely reliable with the game events. Indeed, even if interpreted appropriately, it may not indicate the circumstances and abrade on the ears of the local speakers. Thus, after localization, it is helpful to test the game by natives of those nations where the ultimate game would be available.

Smoke Testing

It is performed to test a new CD burn. The name Smoke Testing originates from the engineering lab testing new automobile engines. Before a new engine is taken for road testing, the engineers would just begin the engine and check whether it runs. In the event that smoke turns out from the motor, they would know promptly that a few sections don’t work appropriately.

Much like making another form, the game tester will essentially run the game; if it continues crashing, the tester will know a few sections are incorrect.

Regression Testing

This type of game testing is done to retest the unaltered parts of the product. Here, test cases are re-checked to investigate whether the operation of the past elements of the application works fine and that new changes have not presented any new mistakes or vulnerabilities.

Multiplayer Testing

Multiplayer testing is an entirely different beast in itself. Numerous players, all the while, associate with the game world, with game servers, with PC-controlled opponents, and with each other. Such huge numbers can turn out badly.

Furthermore, it regularly requires a complete team of game testers, various troublesome risk-based decisions to make, and the need to invest boundless amounts of time and energy in testing distinctive situations.

A comprehension of multiplayer game configuration and how to test proficiently as a group is required for this sort of game testing technique.

Sound Testing

Sound testing is common in all products that make some sort of sound or play media. But games have a one of a kind feature that other software does not need to consider on a similar level. Game music must include the user in the game and upgrade the gameplay. Not only should the sound play without missing or shuttering components, but it ought to likewise add to the gameplay. This demands broad sound aptitude and a particular comprehension of game audio. Quite a specific master of domain awareness.

Ad-hoc Testing

Ad-hoc testing is likewise, at times, alluded to as general testing. It is a less organized test. Ad hoc testing enables the game tester to investigate paths in view of their instinct. There are two types of ad hoc testing.

In the first place, there is free testing, which is a testing game with no arrangement or documentation. The other is direct testing, which is a solitary test performed spontaneously to answer a particular issue.

Test Flow Diagrams

Test flow diagrams are practiced to produce models depicting game behavior from the player’s point of view. Game testing involves examining the model along every potential path to examine unexpected game situations. A test Flow diagram is a formal way to test design. Since it is graphical in nature, it is simple to review, investigate, and give feedback on the test designs.

Complex test flow diagrams can interpret compact features, but typically, small test flow diagrams are preferable.

Test Trees

A test tree is a usability procedure for sorting out test cases that supports selecting an appropriate set of tests for a given arrangement of code changes. Test Tree enhances the general comprehension of complex game traits and deals with conceivably complicated functions, particularly when these functions connect with other game principles, elements, and functions.

The test tree is developed by disintegrating the element into a subset until the bottom nodes distinguish elements to utilize or spec to perform while game testing.

What is Bug Hunting?

Bug Hunting is a regular practice for some game testing companies worldwide, yet some test administrators wrongly feel they go Hunting when their game testers casually play with the application, keeping in mind the end goal of discovering “border case errors.”. Bug Hunts are Informal Testing activities; this should not be mixed up with playing with the system without a reason or goal.

Bug Hunts should be directed as team activities.
Bug Hunts are there so as to include non-testers and find less-ordinary bugs.
Bug Hunts require the system to be steady to be helpful.

Thus, to accomplish something (and not waste your time and efforts!!) on performing these Bug Hunts, you have to follow a particular procedure, execute planning and preparation activities, as well as observe and control the procedure all through its execution.

Types of Game Bugs in Game Testing

Crash

A crash bug is a severe issue that freezes or completely shuts down the game, often leading to a “Crash to Desktop” (CTD) scenario. Executing particular commands, loading into new areas, or coming across specific enemies are just a few examples of the in-game actions that can cause these bugs. Crashes are considered high-priority bugs, and game developers prioritize eliminating them to ensure a smooth gaming experience..

General

General bugs are issues that do not halt game progression but still disrupt the gameplay experience. For example, a character disappearing unexpectedly, though not affecting the main storyline, can be classified as a general bug.

While these bugs may not be game-breaking, they can lead to player frustration and impact the game’s overall quality.

Minor

Minor bugs are small issues that have a minimal impact on gameplay but still need attention.

Examples include a character’s mouth not moving during dialogue or other subtle graphical glitches. Although minor bugs may not be prioritized, they contribute to the overall polish and professionalism of the game.

Severe

Severe bugs hinder the player’s progress without causing a game crash. These bugs can range from a disappearing character crucial for advancing a quest to a malfunctioning door preventing access to the next game area.

While not as critical as crash bugs, severe bugs are significant and must be addressed to maintain a coherent gaming experience.

Graphics

Graphics bugs primarily involve issues with the visual elements of the game, including texture errors and map imperfections. An example of a graphics bug is an incorrect ground texture applied to a door.

Addressing graphics bugs is essential for maintaining the aesthetic appeal and immersion of the game.

Sound

Sound bugs relate to issues with in-game audio, such as incorrect timing or missing music cues. These bugs can occur anywhere in the game, from the main menu to the closing credits.

Sound bugs can disrupt the game’s overall atmosphere and must be corrected for a complete gaming experience.

Algorithm Bugs

Algorithm bugs occur at collision detection points within the game. Incorrectly placed walls or floors can cause players to leave the intended map boundaries, indicating a failure in collision detection.

Fixing algorithm bugs is crucial to prevent players from getting stuck or experiencing unintended interactions within the game environment.

Fatal

Fatal bugs are game-breaking issues that prevent players from advancing further due to critical functionality failures.

An example is a jumping bug where a player needs to jump to progress, but the jumping mechanism fails, hindering progression. Fatal bugs demand immediate attention to ensure the game works correctly at all levels.

Configuration Trigger

Configuration trigger bugs occur when game settings have not been adequately tested, leading to failures.

These bugs can affect graphics and sound settings, potentially causing textures to disappear or altering audio configurations.

Configuration trigger bugs are uncommon in well-known games made by skilled programmers, but they can appear in online games that are downloadable.

How to Write a Bug Report Effectively?

A career as a computer games tester isn’t all fun and buffoonery. When you find a bug, you have to report it. Composing a game error report may look like a basic assignment. However, it is accompanied by a lot of duties. This is a correspondence from which other individuals will construct a plan of action with respect to game improvement. Those activities frequently incorporate submitting costly assets to settle the issue.

Here are a few tips for creating a bug report as a game tester. An adequate game bug report contains:

Title or Subject –

Compile the critical elements of the issue.
A basic overview of what, where, why, when, and how it is generated, featuring the most vital contemplations.
Shows how extreme it is.
Others utilize it to design a course of action; thus, it should be comprehended at once.

Classification

A concise depiction of what, where, why, when, and how is generated with each and every detail.
Here you ought to portray precisely “everything” about the issues.
Classify it in such a manner that the reader can follow it entirely from the classification and comprehend totally what is going on.
You may utilize industry-standard language to help precisely depict the issue.

Generation Steps –

Well-ordered guide on the best way to replicate the issue.
You ought to consider the individual heeding this guide has never observed the product and may even be new to the platform. Show them correctly what to do to reproduce the issue.
Abstain from industry-standard language to guarantee the guide can be trailed by anybody.

Extra Information –

Give additional helpful data.
Assessment and theory, you can discuss how this bug may influence the player and conceivable inevitabilities created by the issue (such as bad customer reviews)
Conclusions about different ways this may influence the game.

(Note: This segment is unnecessary in creating a report, though.)

What are the Opportunities as a Game Tester

Game-producing organizations, to achieve more profits, are always contracting computer game testers. So, finding the right source for the organization, whoever is hiring, is absolutely necessary. There are essentially three sorts of game testers. These are:

Freelance Game Tester: The game testers who are freelancing are all around experienced and search out organizations that outsource forthcoming games to test the games. These testers are regularly the backbone of the game testing method. These game testers are usually contracted on a project-to-project basis. These testers are mostly used for black-box testing. Promptness, clarity, and communication in writing are critical attributes you should have.
Full-Time Corporate Video Game Tester: There are potential people for being hired by big game-producing companies for full-time. For individuals who have a passion for playing games, no other activity can be as fascinating as this. Furthermore, the main capability required for this sort of employment is experience. No degrees or certificates are mandatory.
Second-Party Testers: These game testers work on the testing team of a secondary or subsidiary organization under a bigger company. The second-party game testers can be either fully employed or contracted. Because of their close association with game developers, they frequently obtain access to more advanced tools. This usually results in a powerful focus on test cases and white-box testing. Most second-party testers are at least somewhat experienced in the game testing process.

Further, if you are looking forward to embracing video game testing as your profession, you must become more acquainted with the levels of game testing that are in charge of testing distinctive parts of the game. Quality assurance, Alpha testing, and Beta testing are the three primary kinds of game testing processes you will dependably need to begin with when you select this field as a profession. Alongside, there are other testing processes too.

Levels of Game Testing

Alpha Testing
- The initial testing phase is where the game is evaluated for major bugs.
- Involves internal testing by the development team.
Beta Testing
- A select group of outside users test the game during pre-release testing.
- Aims to identify potential issues and gather user feedback.
Quality Assurance (QA) Testing
- Comprehensive testing phase to ensure the game meets quality standards.
- Conducted by experienced game testers.

What is Gold Testing or Post-Release Testing?

This is the testing stage, where the game is completely tested, has been launched to the general population has a totally finished product, and players have total access to the game.

Despite the fact that the game is completely completed, there is plenty of chances where a player can discover glitches or even game-crashing bugs. Under these circumstances, the developers need to discharge patches with a specific goal to fix them.

In the Gold testing level, every single crucial bug (hangs, crashes, and function disappointments) is resolved. 90% of every single significant bug (performance and functionality) is solved.

85% of every minor bug (system execution problems that hit a few users) is settled. Furthermore, release-level performance (i.e., 60-fps frame rate) is accomplished.

During its life cycle, if the game was delivered with even a couple of terrible bugs, it’s the ideal opportunity for an update or patch.

For each patch, the dev team must return to the whole list of bugs and consolidate some new, clean features. Every individual bug patch or polish element implies more testing (yet should be prepared).

Each new fix must be tested to detect whether it works with the base game and prior patch versions.

Mobile Game Testing

While many testing techniques overlap between different platforms, mobile game testing presents its own set of challenges and considerations. Ensuring a mobile game functions seamlessly, adheres to specific requirements, and provides an exceptional user experience is no small feat, especially given the diverse array of mobile configurations.

The Significance of Mobile Game Performance

Mobile games captivate players with striking graphics, animations, and rich media. However, if the performance of a mobile game is lacking, these captivating elements become futile. Gamers expect a smooth, uninterrupted experience with consistent progress in gameplay. The importance of performance assessment cannot be overstated, as it directly impacts the player’s satisfaction and engagement.

Testing Navigation Flow, Usability, and User Experience

Emphasizing the genuine user experience, mobile game testing necessitates using actual devices rather than relying on emulators. Intricacies such as battery consumption, the impact of battery chargers, and potential intrusions significantly influence the overall user experience and entertainment value. Testing on real devices allows for a more accurate assessment of these factors.

Graphics Execution and Early-Stage Performance Tests

The graphics execution of a mobile game is intricately linked to user experience. While striking graphics and animations enhance the visual appeal, their effectiveness diminishes if the game’s performance lags. To address potential performance blockages, it is essential to conduct performance tests during the early stages of game development. Identifying and resolving performance issues early in the development process ensures a streamlined gaming experience.

Three Basic Phases of Mobile Game Testing

Device Performance Testing

Start-Up of Game: The initial screen should appear within 1-2 seconds of pressing the game icon. b. Memory Consumption: Adding functionalities increases memory usage, requiring careful management. c. Software/Hardware Variation: Test the game on various devices with different RAM and processor specifications. d. Battery Time: Continuous gameplay should not excessively drain the battery or cause the device to overheat. e. App in Background: Resuming the game from the background should retain its previous state. f. Usage with Other Apps: The game should run seamlessly when used simultaneously with other applications.

Network Performance Testing

Jitters: Networks using packet switches cause address delays in data transmission. b. Network Speed: Test the game on 2G, 3G, and 4G or 5G networks, including mobile networks and Wi-Fi.

Testing API/Server Performance

API Calls: Limit the number of calls from the game to ensure optimal performance. b. Information To and From Server: Efficiently handle data transmission between the game and server. c. Server Down Time: Implement failover database servers to ensure continuous availability in case of server issues.

Conclusion

Effective game testing is a structured and comprehensive process that involves various types of testing techniques. From functional testing to stress testing and bug hunting, each step is crucial in ensuring a flawless gaming experience for users. Understanding the components of games that undergo testing, the types of testing involved, and the techniques used are essential for game testers and developers to deliver high-quality games to the market. The iterative nature of the testing process ensures continuous improvement and refinement, ultimately contributing to the success of the gaming industry.

How to Find Bugs in Game Testing?

Posted on December 7, 2023December 7, 2023 by tbsupadminnxtbackendacc

In the dynamic world of game development, where creativity meets technology, one crucial aspect often goes unnoticed: game testing. While the spotlight shines on captivating visuals, immersive storylines, and thrilling gameplay, the game testers work tirelessly behind the scenes to ensure a smooth and enjoyable experience for players.

Game testing is vital in the development process, serving as the quality control checkpoint that guarantees a polished and bug-free game. Game testers meticulously play through every aspect of the game, identifying and reporting any glitches, errors, or inconsistencies that might hinder the player’s experience.

But the significance of game testing extends far beyond simply fixing bugs. It’s a vital tool for:

Ensuring game stability and performance: Testers identify and report issues that could disrupt gameplay, such as crashes, freezes, and lag. This ensures players a smooth and immersive experience, preventing frustration and negative reviews.
Balancing gameplay: Game testing helps maintain a balance in gameplay mechanics, ensuring that no element is too powerful or weak. This creates fair and engaging gameplay for players of all skill levels.
Identifying usability issues: Testers provide feedback on the game’s user interface and controls, ensuring they are intuitive and easy for a wider audience. This makes the game more accessible and enjoyable for everyone.
Enhancing game quality: By proactively addressing issues and collecting player feedback through testing, developers can continuously improve the game’s quality and polish, keeping players engaged and coming back for more.

In essence, game testing bridges the developer’s vision and the player’s experience. The meticulous attention to detail and relentless pursuit of quality ensure players immerse themselves in a world free from distractions and frustration, allowing them to enjoy the game’s true potential.

Game testing is crucial for ensuring a smooth and enjoyable user experience. Here are some unconventional methods, alongside examples, to uncover hidden bugs and defects:

Break the Rules:

Example: Instead of saving the game at designated checkpoints, try saving mid-action or in unusual locations. This might reveal issues with save functionality.
Example: Repeatedly press buttons rapidly or try to perform actions in illogical sequences. This can expose flaws in game logic or responsiveness.

Use Unconventional Methods:

Example: Play the game in reverse order or skip crucial steps. This can highlight missing prompts or inconsistencies in the game flow.
Example: Try walking through walls or interacting with objects in unintended ways. This can uncover collision detection problems or unintended consequences.

Test All Functions Everywhere:

Example: Try using all available items and abilities, even in seemingly irrelevant situations. This might reveal hidden interactions or unintended effects.
Example: Explore every corner of the game world, including seemingly inaccessible areas. This can expose missing textures, visual glitches, or hidden secrets.

Test Beyond the Scope:

Example: Play the game with minimal inputs or user actions. This can highlight issues with AI behavior or game balance.
Example: Play the game with maximum inputs, such as engaging in intense combat or triggering multiple events simultaneously. This can expose performance bottlenecks or stability problems.

Appoint New Testers for Each Build:

Example: Rotating testers with fresh perspectives can help identify bugs experienced testers may overlook.
Example: Different testers have different playstyles that can reveal diverse bugs and defects.

Examine Effects:

Example: Play the game with modified settings, such as changing graphics quality or audio options. This can reveal compatibility issues or performance problems.
Example: Run the game for extended periods or under extreme conditions, such as low battery or high temperatures. This can expose stability issues or memory leaks.

Test with Different Peripherals:

Example: Test the game with controllers, keyboards, and other input devices. This can unearth compatibility issues or control problems.
Example: Test the game on different audio systems and headsets to ensure optimal sound quality and compatibility.

Importance of Exploratory Testing in Game Testing

Unlike its scripted counterpart, exploratory testing embraces the unknown, inviting testers to venture beyond the confines of written test cases and delve into the depths of the game world with a curious spirit.

In game development, where captivating experiences and flawless gameplay reign supreme, exploratory testing emerges as a vital force. Unlike its scripted counterpart, exploratory testing embraces the unknown, inviting testers to venture beyond the confines of written test cases and delve into the depths of the game world with a curious spirit. This freedom fosters an environment of discovery, uncovering hidden bugs and defects that might otherwise remain undetected.

Here’s why exploratory testing is an integral part of ensuring a smooth and bug-free gaming experience:

Uncovers the Unexpected: By exploring the game world in diverse ways, testers can uncover hidden bugs that might not be triggered by following predetermined test cases. This includes triggering unexpected events, trying illogical combinations of actions, and pushing the boundaries of the game’s mechanics.
Enhances Creativity and Problem-Solving: Exploratory testing encourages testers to think creatively and approach the game from different perspectives. This leads to a deeper understanding of the game mechanics and a more comprehensive identification of potential issues.
Improves Game Quality: By proactively discovering and resolving bugs early in the development process, exploratory testing significantly improves the game’s overall quality. This reduces the risk of encountering critical bugs later in development, saving time and resources.
Adapts to Changes: Unlike scripted test cases that become obsolete with game updates and changes, exploratory testing is inherently adaptable. Testers can adjust their approach based on new features and modifications, ensuring the testing process remains relevant and practical.
Focuses on User Experience: Exploratory testing emphasizes the user’s perspective. By playing the game in a way that simulates a real player’s experience, testers can identify issues that might hinder immersion or disrupt the gameplay flow.

Beta Testing! It’s Important!

Beta testers are typically given access to an unfinished version of the game and are encouraged to play it as much as possible and report any bugs they find. This allows developers to identify and fix bugs before the game is released, which can help to improve the overall quality of the game.

In addition to finding bugs, beta testing can also help to:

Get feedback from players: Beta testers can provide valuable feedback on the game’s gameplay, graphics, and overall feel. This feedback can help developers make changes to the game before it is released.
Build hype: Beta testing can help to build hype for a game by giving players a sneak peek at what to expect. This can help to generate excitement and anticipation for the game’s release.
Identify potential problems: Beta testing can help identify potential problems with the game that may not have been apparent during development. This can help developers fix these problems before the game is released.

There are a few different ways to offer beta versions of games. Some developers release open betas, which are available to anyone who wants to play them. Others release closed betas, which are only available to a small group of people, such as friends, family, and members of the press.

Beta testing can be a great way for gamers to get their hands on a new game early and help to make it better. However, it is important to remember that beta versions of games are not always finished and may contain bugs. If you are considering participating in a beta test, it is important to be aware of the risks involved.

Conclusion

While the thrill of the game captivates players, the meticulous efforts of game testers often remain unseen. Their dedication goes beyond simply identifying bugs; it encompasses ensuring stability, balancing gameplay, and crafting a seamless experience that engages and enchants.

From unconventional testing techniques to collaborative beta initiatives, game testers bridge the gap between developer vision and player expectations. They transform raw potential into captivating journeys, ensuring that every player can truly immerse themselves in the world of the game.

If you would like to test your game, talk to us. Our solution offering is not a rigid one. We have resources and plans that can cater to any needs.

9 Different Types of Game Testing Techniques

Posted on November 6, 2023November 22, 2023 by tbsupadminnxtbackendacc

In the dynamic and ever-evolving realm of game development, game testing stands as a cornerstone of success. The recent tribulations faced by industry giants due to bug-ridden releases have brought the necessity of rigorous testing into stark focus.

As the global gaming industry is poised to reach a staggering US$363.20bn by 2027, the significance of testing cannot be overstated.

#1) Combinatorial Testing:

Combinatorial testing is a software testing technique that focuses on testing all possible combinations of input values for a given feature or function. This approach is particularly useful for game testing, as it can help to identify bugs or issues that may only occur under specific combinations of circumstances.

Benefits of Combinatorial Testing in Game Testing:

Efficient Test Case Generation: Reduces the number of manual test cases required by systematically identifying and testing all relevant combinations of input values.
Thorough Coverage: Ensures that all possible interactions between different game elements are tested, maximizing the likelihood of uncovering hidden bugs or issues.
Reduced Test Effort: Streamlines the testing process by eliminating the need to create and execute a large number of test cases manually.
Improved Bug Detection: It finds bugs that conventional testing techniques might not catch, resulting in a higher-quality game.

Application of Combinatorial Testing in Games:

Gameplay Mechanics: Testing various combinations of character attributes, item interactions, and environmental factors to ensure consistent and balanced gameplay.
Configuration Settings: Verifying the behavior of the game under different graphics settings, difficulty levels, and language options.
Player Choice and Progression: Testing the impact of player choices and actions on game progression, ensuring that all paths lead to a satisfying and bug-free experience.

Challenges of Combinatorial Testing in Games:

Complexity of Game Systems: As game systems become more complex, the number of possible input combinations increases exponentially, making it challenging to test all combinations exhaustively.
Identification of Relevant Input Parameters: Determining which input values are most likely to affect the game’s behavior and focusing testing efforts on those parameters.
Prioritization of Test Cases: Prioritizing test cases based on their risk and potential impact ensures that critical combinations are tested first.
Utilization of Testing Tools: Employing specialized combinatorial testing tools to automate the test case generation process and manage the large number of test cases.

#2) Clean Room Testing:

Clean Room Testing in Game Development

Cleanroom testing is a software development methodology that emphasizes defect prevention rather than defect detection. In the context of game testing, cleanroom testing involves a structured process of creating test cases based on formal specifications, ensuring that the game is thoroughly tested before it reaches the player.

Key Principles of Cleanroom Testing in Game Testing:

Incremental Development: The game is developed and tested in small increments, allowing for early identification and correction of defects.
Formal Specifications: Clear and detailed specifications are created to define the game’s expected behavior and provide a basis for test case generation.
Static Analysis: Thorough review of the game’s code and design to identify potential defects before they manifest during testing.
Functional Testing: Systematic testing of the game’s features and functionality to ensure they meet the specified requirements.
Dynamic Testing: Testing of the game in a running state to uncover runtime defects and ensure overall stability and performance.

Benefits of Cleanroom Testing in Game Testing:

Reduced Defect Rates: A proactive defect prevention approach leads to fewer bugs and errors in the final game.
Improved Game Quality: An emphasis on quality throughout the development process results in a higher-quality and more polished game.
Lower Development Costs: Early detection and correction of defects reduce the need for costly rework and delays.
Enhanced Customer Satisfaction: Delivery of a high-quality game with minimal bugs leads to satisfied customers and positive reviews.
Stronger Brand Reputation: Consistent production of high-quality games strengthens brand reputation and customer trust.

Challenges of Cleanroom Testing in Game Testing:

Initial Investment: Implementing cleanroom testing requires an initial investment in training, tools, and processes.
Formal Specification Overhead: Creating detailed formal specifications can be time-consuming and may require specialized expertise.
Maintenance of Specifications: As the game evolves,

#3) Functionality Testing:

Functional testing in game development is a crucial process that ensures the game functions as intended and meets the player’s expectations. It involves testing the game’s core features, mechanics, and gameplay to identify and fix any bugs or issues that could hinder the player’s experience.

Objectives of Functional Testing in Games:

Verify Game Functionality: Ensure that game features, mechanics, and gameplay elements work as intended and meet design specifications.
Identify and Resolve Bugs: Detect and fix bugs that cause crashes, freezes, progression blockers, or other disruptions to gameplay.
Validate User Experience: Evaluate the overall user experience, ensuring that the game is intuitive, engaging, and enjoyable to play.
Ensure Compliance with Requirements: Verify that the game adheres to all technical and functional requirements outlined in design documents and specifications.

Techniques for Functional Testing in Games:

Black-box Testing: Testing the game without prior knowledge of its internal structure or code, focusing on user interactions and observable behavior.
White-box Testing: Testing the game with an understanding of its internal code and structure, enabling more in-depth testing of specific functions and modules.
Exploratory Testing: Testing the game in an unstructured and open-ended manner, allowing testers to uncover unexpected bugs and usability issues.
Regression Testing: Re-testing previously tested features and functionalities after changes to ensure that new bugs haven’t been introduced.
Play Testing: Involving actual players to test the game in a real-world setting, providing valuable feedback on gameplay, balance, and overall experience.

Benefits of Functional Testing in Games:

Improved Game Quality: Identifies and fixes bugs early in the development process, preventing them from reaching players and causing frustration.
Enhanced User Experience: Ensures that the game is intuitive, engaging, and enjoyable to play, leading to satisfied customers and positive reviews.
Reduced Development Costs: Prevents costly rework and delays caused by late-stage bug discovery, saving time and resources.
Increased Customer Satisfaction: Delivers a high-quality game that meets player expectations, leading to positive word-of-mouth and customer loyalty.
Stronger Business Reputation: Establishes a reputation for delivering reliable and bug-free games, enhancing brand reputation and customer trust.

Also Read : Game Testing Tutorial: All you need to know to be a game tester

#4) Compatibility Testing:

In game development, compatibility testing plays a crucial role in ensuring that the game runs smoothly and seamlessly across a wide range of hardware configurations, software environments, and input devices. It aims to identify and resolve any compatibility issues that could hinder the player’s experience.

Objectives of Compatibility Testing in Games:

Hardware Compatibility: Verify that the game runs effectively on various hardware configurations, including different processors, graphics cards, and memory capacities.
Software Compatibility: Ensure that the game functions correctly under different operating systems, browsers, and third-party software applications.
Input Device Compatibility: Validate the game’s compatibility with various input devices, such as keyboards, mice, gamepads, and touchscreens.
Cross-Platform Compatibility: Test the game’s performance and functionality across multiple platforms, such as PCs, consoles, and mobile devices.
Localization Compatibility: Verify the game’s compatibility with different languages, ensuring proper text translation, audio localization, and cultural adaptations.

Techniques for Compatibility Testing in Games:

Manual Testing: Hand-testing the game on a variety of hardware and software configurations to identify compatibility issues.
Automated Testing: Utilizing automated testing tools to perform repetitive compatibility tests across different environments.
Emulation Testing: Using emulation software to simulate specific hardware and software environments for testing.
Cloud-Based Testing: Leveraging cloud-based testing platforms to access a wide range of hardware and software configurations for testing.
User Feedback: Gathering feedback from users playing the game on various devices and systems to identify compatibility issues

Benefits of Compatibility Testing in Games:

Enhanced User Experience: Ensure a consistent and enjoyable gaming experience for players using different hardware and software setups.
Reduced Customer Support Burden: Minimize the number of compatibility-related support requests from players.
Improved Brand Reputation: Build a reputation for delivering games that work seamlessly across a wide range of devices.
Expanded Market Reach: Enable the game to reach a broader audience, including those with diverse hardware and software preferences.
Increased Sales and Revenue: Potentially increase sales and revenue by catering to a wider range of players.

Challenges of Compatibility Testing in Games:

Complexity of Modern Hardware and Software: The ever-increasing diversity of hardware and software configurations makes it challenging to test for all possible combinations.
Resource Requirements: Compatibility testing can be resource-intensive, requiring access to various hardware and software configurations, testing tools, and skilled testers.
Keeping Up with Rapid Changes: The rapid pace of technological advancements necessitates continuous testing to ensure compatibility with new hardware, software, and input devices.
Balancing Compatibility with Performance: Ensuring compatibility across a wide range of devices may require optimization to maintain performance on lower-end hardware.
Addressing Regional and Cultural Differences: Localization testing can be complex, requiring consideration of regional differences in language, culture, and regulatory requirements.

Strategies for Effective Compatibility Testing:

Prioritize Target Platforms: Identify the most relevant hardware and software configurations based on the target audience and market demographics.
Utilize Automation and Tools: Employ automated testing tools and cloud-based testing platforms to streamline the testing process and reduce manual effort.
Embrace Continuous Testing: Integrate compatibility testing into the development process, performing tests throughout the development cycle and after updates.
Gather User Feedback: Encourage user feedback through beta testing programs and community forums to identify compatibility issues in real-world scenarios.
Maintain Compatibility Documentation: Document compatibility test results and identify issues to facilitate future testing and troubleshooting.

#5) Tree Testing:

Tree testing is a usability testing technique commonly used in game development to evaluate the information architecture of a game’s menu system or navigation structure. It helps to determine how easily players can find the desired information or functionality within the game’s user interface.

The objective of Tree Testing in Game Testing:

Assess Navigation Clarity: Evaluate the intuitiveness and clarity of the game’s menu structure and navigation options.
Identify Label Effectiveness: Assess the effectiveness of menu labels and category headings in conveying their intended meaning and guiding players to the desired content.
Measure Task Completion Rates: Determine how successfully players can complete specific tasks, such as finding a specific item, accessing a particular setting, or unlocking a new feature.
Uncover Usability Issues: Uncover potential usability issues that might hinder players’ ability to navigate the game efficiently and effectively.
Optimize Menu Design: Gather insights to optimize the menu design and improve the overall user experience.

Methodology of Tree Testing in Game Testing:

Create a Hierarchical Tree: Represent the game’s menu structure as a hierarchical tree diagram, with each node representing a menu or submenu option.
Recruit Participants: Recruit a representative group of players to participate in the tree testing session.
Present Tasks: Present participants with a series of tasks, each requesting them to locate a specific item or functionality within the game’s menu structure.
Observe and Record: Observe participants as they navigate the menu, recording their interactions, comments, and any difficulties they encounter.
Analyze Results: Analyze the collected data to identify common patterns, usability issues, and areas for improvement.

Benefits of Tree Testing in Game Testing:

Early Identification of Usability Issues: Uncover usability issues early in the development process when they are easier and less costly to fix.
Iterative Design Improvement: Enable iterative refinement of the menu design based on user feedback and observed behaviors.
Enhanced User Experience: Contribute to a more intuitive and user-friendly game experience, reducing frustration and improving player satisfaction.
Reduced Development Costs: Prevent the need for costly rework later in the development cycle due to usability issues.
Improved Game Quality: Enhance the overall quality of the game by addressing usability concerns early on.

Challenges of Tree Testing in Game Testing:

Representing Complex Game Menus: Accurately representing complex game menus with multiple levels and branching paths can be challenging.
Participant Selection: Selecting a representative sample of players with diverse gaming experiences and backgrounds can be tricky.
Task Design: Crafting clear and concise tasks that accurately reflect real-world player actions can be challenging.
Managing Participant Expectations: Setting clear expectations and avoiding confusion with participants unfamiliar with tree testing
Interpreting Results: Interpreting qualitative and quantitative data from tree testing may require expertise in usability analysis.

Improves the overall understanding of the complex features in the game

#6) Regression Testing:

Regression testing is an essential part of game development, ensuring that new code changes or updates don’t introduce new bugs or regressions. It involves selectively re-testing a system or component to verify that modifications have not caused unintended effects on previously running software or application modules.

Why Regression Testing is Crucial in Game Development

Maintaining Game Stability: Regression testing helps maintain game stability and ensures that new updates don’t break existing functionality or introduce unexpected glitches or crashes.
Preserving User Experience: Regression testing safeguards the user experience by preventing new bugs or regressions from disrupting gameplay or causing frustration among players.
Preventing Rework and Cost Savings: Identifying and fixing bugs early in the development cycle through regression testing reduces the need for costly rework later on.
Enhancing Quality Assurance: Regression testing contributes to a comprehensive quality assurance process, ensuring that games meet high-quality standards and user expectations.

Strategies for Effective Regression Testing in Game Development

Prioritized Test Cases: Prioritize test cases based on critical game features, areas with frequent changes, and potential risk factors.
Automated Testing: Automate repetitive test cases to reduce manual effort and improve test coverage.
Continuous Integration: Integrate regression testing into the continuous integration (CI) pipeline to catch regressions early and prevent them from reaching production.
Exploratory Testing: Utilize exploratory testing techniques to find unforeseen problems or edge cases that scripted tests might not cover.
User Feedback Analysis: Analyze user feedback and bug reports to identify potential regression issues and prioritize them for testing.
Version Control: Maintain a comprehensive version control system to track changes and easily revert to previous versions if regressions occur.

Tools for Regression Testing in Game Development

Game Testing Automation Frameworks: Utilize game testing automation frameworks like Unity’s Automation Tools, Unreal Engine’s Automation Tools, or Selenium for automated testing.
Defect Management Tools: Implement defect management tools like Jira or Bugzilla to track, prioritize, and manage bugs identified during regression testing.
Performance Monitoring Tools: Employ performance monitoring tools like New Relic or AppDynamics to detect performance regressions during testing.
Code Coverage Tools: Utilize code coverage tools like JaCoCo or Codecov to ensure that regression testing adequately covers the codebase.
Continuous Integration Platforms: Integrate regression testing into continuous integration platforms like Jenkins or CircleCI to automate the testing process and provide real-time feedback.

Ad hoc testing is an informal software testing method that is often used in game development. It involves testing the game without a predefined plan or test cases, relying on the tester’s experience, intuition, and creativity to identify defects. Ad hoc testing can be performed at any stage of the development process, but it is most often used in the later stages when the game is more stable and there is less time to create and execute formal test cases.

Benefits of Ad hoc testing in game testing:

Can identify defects that formal testing may miss.
Can be performed quickly and easily.
Does not require any documentation.
Can be used to test the game in a variety of real-world scenarios.

Challenges of Ad hoc testing in game testing:

Can be difficult to track and manage.
Can be inconsistent in its results.
Can be difficult to automate.
Can be time-consuming if not performed carefully.

Here are some tips for performing ad hoc testing in game testing:

Be familiar with the game and its features.
Start by testing the most basic functionality of the game.
Gradually explore more complex features and scenarios.
Use a variety of input methods and devices.
Pay attention to your instincts and follow up on any hunches you have.
Record your findings and share them with the team.

Ad hoc testing can be a valuable tool for identifying defects in game development. However, it is important to use it in conjunction with other testing methods, such as formal testing and exploratory testing, to ensure that the game is thoroughly tested.

video game tester

Here are some examples of how ad hoc testing can be used in game testing:

Testing the game’s controls to make sure they are responsive and intuitive.
Testing the game’s menus to make sure they are easy to navigate.
Testing the game’s levels to make sure they are free of bugs and glitches.
Testing the game’s multiplayer mode to make sure it is stable and free of connection issues.
Testing the game’s localization to make sure it is accurate and culturally sensitive.

Ad hoc testing can be a great way to find defects that might otherwise go unnoticed. However, it is important to remember that it is not a substitute for formal testing. It is important to use a variety of testing methods to ensure that the game is thoroughly tested and free of defects.

Must Read : 52 Software Testing Tools You Must Know in 2019

#8) Load Testing:

Load testing is a crucial aspect of game development, ensuring that the game can handle the anticipated number of concurrent users without experiencing performance degradation or stability issues. It involves simulating a large number of users interacting with the game simultaneously to assess its scalability and identify potential bottlenecks that could hinder the player experience.

Objectives of Load Testing in Game Testing:

Determine Maximum User Capacity: Identify the maximum number of players the game can support without performance deterioration.
Evaluate Server Scalability: Assess the game’s ability to scale up and down effectively in response to varying user traffic.
Uncover Performance Bottlenecks: Identify areas in the game’s infrastructure or code that may cause performance issues under load.
Prevent Crashes and Stability Problems: Ensure the game remains stable and crash-free even under heavy usage.
Optimize Resource Utilization: Analyze resource utilization patterns to identify areas for optimization and efficiency improvements.

Techniques for Load Testing in Game Testing:

Simulation Tools: Utilize specialized load-testing tools to simulate a large number of concurrent users and generate realistic user traffic.
Cloud-Based Testing: Leverage cloud-based testing platforms to access a vast pool of testing resources and simulate a wide range of user scenarios.
Performance Monitoring: Employ performance monitoring tools to track key metrics such as server response time, resource usage, and error rates.
Gradual Load Increase: Gradually increase the simulated user load to observe the game’s behavior and identify performance degradation points.
Real-World Scenarios: Replicate real-world usage patterns, such as peak player activity during game launches or popular events.

Benefits of Load Testing in Game Testing:

Proactive Defect Identification: Uncover performance issues and potential crashes early in the development process, reducing the cost of fixing them later.
Enhanced Scalability: Ensure the game can handle the anticipated user demand, preventing server overload and player frustration.
Improved Game Performance: Optimize the game’s performance under load, providing a smoother and more enjoyable player experience.
Reduced Server Costs: Identify and address performance bottlenecks, potentially reducing infrastructure costs associated with scaling up servers.
Enhanced Customer Satisfaction: Minimize downtime and performance issues, leading to happier players and positive word-of-mouth.

Challenges of Load Testing in Game Testing:

Complexity of Game Systems: Simulating the complex interactions and behaviors of a large number of players can be challenging and resource-intensive.
Variable User Behavior: Accurately replicating real-world user behavior patterns can be difficult, as players may exhibit diverse actions and preferences.
Resource Requirements: Load testing often requires access to substantial computing resources, which can be costly and time-consuming to procure.
Interpreting Results: Analyzing the vast amount of data generated during load testing requires expertise in performance analysis and optimization.
Integration with Agile Development: Adapting load testing to the iterative nature of agile development requires careful planning and coordination.

Strategies for Effective Load Testing in Game Testing:

Define Clear Testing Objectives: Clearly define the testing objectives, such as determining maximum user capacity or identifying specific performance bottlenecks.
Choose Appropriate Tools and Methods: Select the most suitable load-testing tools and methods based on the game’s architecture, complexity, and testing goals.
Create Realistic Scenarios: Develop realistic test scenarios that accurately reflect real-world player behavior and usage patterns.
Monitor Key Performance Metrics: Continuously monitor key performance metrics, such as response time, resource utilization, and error rates, to identify potential issues.
Analyze and Prioritize Results: Thoroughly analyze the collected data, prioritize identified issues based on their severity and impact, and develop a remediation plan.
Communicate Effectively: Communicate testing results to stakeholders, including developers, product managers, and executives, to inform decision-making and ensure timely resolution of critical issues.

#9) Play Testing:

Play testing is a critical aspect of game development, involving actual players interacting with the game in a real-world setting to provide valuable feedback and identify potential issues. It complements other testing methods, such as functional testing and performance testing, by providing insights into the overall user experience and gameplay.

Objectives of Play Testing in Game Testing:

Evaluate Gameplay Mechanics: Assess the effectiveness of the game’s core mechanics, ensuring they are engaging, balanced, and enjoyable for players.
Identify Usability Issues: Uncover usability issues that may hinder players’ ability to navigate the game, understand its rules, and achieve their goals.
Gather Feedback on Game Design: Collect player feedback on various aspects of game design, including character design, level design, storytelling, and overall aesthetic.
Detect Bugs and Glitches: Identify bugs, glitches, and other technical issues that may disrupt the gameplay or cause frustration for players.
Validate Game Balance: Assess the overall balance of the game, ensuring that different elements, such as characters, weapons, and difficulty levels, are appropriately balanced.

Types of Play Testing in Game Testing:

Alpha Testing: Conducted early in the development process, typically with a small group of internal testers or trusted players, to gather feedback on core gameplay mechanics and identify major bugs.
Beta Testing: Involves a larger group of players, often selected through invitations or registrations, to provide more comprehensive feedback on the game’s overall experience and identify potential issues.
Stress Testing: Focuses on simulating extreme conditions, such as a large influx of players or unexpected usage patterns, to assess the game’s scalability and stability under heavy load.
Localization Testing: Ensures that the game is properly localized for different languages and regions, considering cultural nuances, translation accuracy, and user interface adaptations.
Accessibility Testing: Evaluates the game’s accessibility for players with disabilities, ensuring that they can navigate the game, understand its mechanics, and participate fully in the gameplay.

Benefits of Play Testing in Game Testing:

Uncovers Real-World Issues: Identifies usability issues, bugs, and balance problems that may not be apparent through traditional testing methods.
Provides Player Perspective: Offers valuable insights into the game’s playability, engagement, and overall user experience from the player’s perspective.
Early Defect Detection: Detects bugs and issues early in the development process, reducing the cost of fixing them later.
Improved Game Quality: Leads to a more polished and enjoyable game that meets player expectations.
Enhanced Customer Satisfaction: Prevents frustrating experiences for players, contributing to positive word-of-mouth and customer satisfaction.

Challenges of Play Testing in Game Testing:

Managing Feedback: Effectively managing and analyzing a large volume of player feedback can be challenging.
Prioritizing Issues: Prioritizing identified issues based on their severity and impact on the overall gameplay experience requires careful consideration.
Balancing Feedback: Balancing feedback from different players with diverse preferences and gaming styles can be tricky.
Maintaining Transparency: Communicating play testing results and addressing player concerns effectively is crucial for maintaining transparency and trust.
Integrating with Agile Development: Adapting playtesting to the iterative nature of agile development requires flexibility and collaboration between testers and developers.

Strategies for Effective Play Testing in Game Testing:

Define Clear Goals and Objectives: Clearly define the goals and objectives of each play testing session, focusing on specific aspects of the game or gameplay elements.
Recruit a Diverse Group of Players: Select a diverse group of players with varied gaming experience, backgrounds, and skill levels to represent the target audience.
Provide Clear Instructions and Feedback Mechanisms: Provide clear instructions and establish effective feedback mechanisms to gather comprehensive and actionable feedback from players.
Observe and Monitor Player Behavior: Observe players’ interactions with the game, note their reactions, and monitor their progress to identify potential issues.
Analyze and Prioritize Feedback: Analyze the collected feedback, prioritize issues based on their impact, and communicate findings to developers for timely resolution.
Iterate and Improve: Continuously iterate on the game based on player feedback, refining the gameplay experience and addressing identified issues.

Conclusion

So what should the main focus of game testing be, should it be reality or vision? Nowadays, a game development team needs to spend more time on testing procedures than any other app development procedure as sometimes it becomes more complex due to the different components.

Even with better planning, an implementation may not necessarily work. And like any other app, users rely on charm only for some time and eventually want to have better results and a better user experience.

Recommended : 52 Software Tester Interview Questions That can Land You the Job

What is PlayTesting? How to Get Good Feedback For Your Game?

Posted on May 22, 2023February 1, 2024 by tbsupadminnxtbackendacc

In the process of creating a video game, playtesting is like assembling a band of courageous explorers to go off on a perilous trip to test the game.

Players may assume the roles of heroes and villains in this vast experiment, exploring virtual realms and facing off against pixelated adversaries.

But the game is more than just about defeating dragons and looting dazzling objects.

No, there’s a lot more to it than that! During playtesting, game designers anxiously watch these brave players and take notes on every movement, emotion, and victorious or frustrated grunt they make.

It’s an exciting moment to find the player experience’s buried gems and track down elusive bugs that hide in the code’s deepest crevices.

So muster up your bravery, my fellow explorers, because playtesting is the forging ground where games are created and legends are born!

What is Playtesting?

Playtesting is a commonly used testing technique for games. This quality control method repeats itself at many points of the gaming application/software design process.

A nominated group of players play on-going versions of a game to find failings in the game, and to discover bugs and gaming glitches. It also focuses on describing out the unclear points, increasing fun features or decreasing boredom, etc.

Playtesting is a very generic technique for testing gaming apps and software. It has become an important part of the gaming software’s design phase.

The expectations of the gamers have made the designers consider end-users’ feedback at every stage of designing.

It helps to ensure that the final version of the game is as per the end user’s expectations.

What are the different types of playtesting?

Playtests are done at four points during the design process:

Gross Playtesting: It includes the group of testers who test the most basic running model of the gaming app, they look out for the basic faults in the gameplay. The design team involved in the designing of the game itself play tests the game.
In-House Playtesting: it is carried out by contracted play testers or people of the company. To find more glitches in gameplay and formulate the game for broader testing, In-House playtesting is done.
Blind Testing: the group of testers who have no prior experience with the game tests the app during blind testing. The testing by end users detects many faults that are often missed by professionals.
Final Playtesting: it is the last phase of playtesting, and is done before the game launch. This playtesting version is close to the final version of the game.

The playtesters have an important role in improving the game, and hence they are paid for the work.

And this pay is even higher when it is done in the earlier phases when the game is in more technical stages.

Playtesting in Video games

In video games, playtesting introduces the game to the audience during the development phase to collect their feedback and design flaws.

It ensures that the game will be commercially feasible upon release. It is very different from Quality Assurance (QA) testing, which aims at finding software bugs and not to identify their commercial feasibility.

Role-playing games

Role-playing games focus on the game’s mechanics and flow of the game. The feedback from players helps developers to adjust and alter the mechanics as per the final audience’s expectations.

Other games

Playtesting plays an important role in all other types of games, in deciding the mechanism, game flow, content, and visual appearance of the game.

It helps in delivering the game as per the user’s expectations so that the game is commercially viable when launched and does not end up being just a flop.

Playtesting can be carried out in either a traditional manner or using automated techniques.

The Traditional Way of Playtesting

Playtesting is conducted to recognize the player’s experience. The gaming process is categorized into three parts.

Creation: designers use their imagination to create perfect graphics to justify the theme.
Balancing: designers take help of other people or playtesting companies to ensure the game is challenging and modify their game and twist it to make it entertaining for everyone.
Release: the game is released in the marketing.

What is automated playtesting?

Automated systems and scripts are used in automated playtesting, a method of game creation that eliminates the need for human interaction in simulating and analyzing gaming situations.

It entails programming agents or bots to play the game in accordance with predetermined rules and patterns, enabling developers to collect information and get insights on different gameplay elements.

The benefits of automated playtesting include scalability, consistency, and the capacity to repeatedly recreate certain situations.

Developers can effectively evaluate the mechanics, balance, and performance of games as well as spot any possible flaws or problems by automating the testing process.

Automated playtesting also lessens human bias and allows game creators to swiftly examine vast amounts of data, allowing for more well-informed judgments throughout the game development process.

Why do you need an automated Playtest?

Balancing is a time-consuming process, where the designers have to wait for weeks to get playtesters’ reviews.

After getting the reviews again days are spent to alter the game. It is hence a very time-consuming process. And there arose a need for automated playtesting.

Benefits of Automated Playtesting

The main idea behind automated play testing is to let virtual playtesters test the game.

By running them over the cloud and using the power of artificial intelligence the task that used to take weeks to be done could now be done within a few minutes. Virtual playtesting help in recurrent feedback reports.

Read also : Top 23 Gaming Glitches of All Times [Full-List with Video]

Playtesting had many benefits for game designers, but automated playtesting increased these benefits even further.

Some of the major benefits are:

Better Quality Content

Automated playtesting results in faster feedback, which assists the designers to do more revisions to the gaming content and hence ensures better content at a much faster pace.

It ensures that the final content users get is as per the end-users expectations.

More In-depth and Constant Playtest

With human playtesting, you might get confused with varied feedback. Due to the human factor, you ought to get different feedback from different.

This creates confusion for the designers and hence controls the best alterations. In automated play testing, such situations are wisely taken care of.

A QA (Quality Assurance) Byproduct

The automated playtesting also assists to find bugs and ensures that new features do not hinder the remaining game. It increases the games’ quality as a whole.

Disadvantages of Playtesting

Playtesting has many benefits, but one of the biggest risks that come along with playtesting is the fear of its leak to the internet even before its release.

Though there are ways to prevent this. If the game is not leaked, details can still be leaked.

Though manual playtesting is a very slow process and can delay the release date of the game.

But it has been taken care of by introducing automated play testing which is comparatively faster.

Since automation is costly, automated playtesting cannot be deployed by all the gaming agencies.

Tips For Better Playtesting

Create a comfortable and distraction-free playtesting environment.
Do not disregard user recommendations and comments because they are difficult to implement or would raise the game’s budget. Be honest and modest!
Playtesting may be done at any time. As soon as you have a working prototype of the game, you can give players access to it so they can provide insightful feedback and help you make quick changes. Early testing also gives you information that you may utilize to validate your game’s design later on.
You can be infatuated with the game you made. However, if a player has any reservations about any component of the game, they should consult with other players and take the appropriate action.
You already know what your game’s main element of engagement is. What if some players find the game’s other features to be more interesting? Finding it out can be very effective in enhancing the game as well as in marketing.
Avoid having in-depth discussions with people who are playing the game since it will sway their opinions.
While playtesting, capture their gaming session. It can reveal a lot.
Make a survey rather than recording user feedback.
Allow the user to abandon the game if they become tired of it. Never force someone to play a game simply because you paid for it. Make sure you ask them what’s wrong if they find it uninteresting.
Make sure your team includes people who are not simply professional gamers.
Take note of common pain points, frustrations, and positive aspects mentioned by playtesters.
Iterate and make changes based on the feedback received, aiming to improve the overall game experience.
Collect both quantitative and qualitative data to gain a comprehensive understanding of the player experience.

Conclusion:

Play testing is an important process of gaming development; it focuses on altering the game as per the expectations of its end users. A designated group of end-users tests the game to find unclear points, increasing fun features or decreasing boredom, etc.
Play testing increases the chances of the game to be accepted by its end users and be liked by them. After play testing there are few chances that game will be disowned by its users.

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My Journey as a Video Game Tester

Posted on September 12, 2019 by tbsupadminnxtbackendacc

Hi, my name is Hari Panicker. A passionate video game tester, Also, I am a die-hard fan of playing (Role-Playing, Adventure, MMORPG & arcade games. My unmeasurable love towards game is the main reason why my career as a video game tester flourished.
It all started with the game called Contra and Dangerous Dev in my 4th standard.
The game was so interesting that after school I used to dash towards home to complete my homework then sit and play till bedtime without even flinching. Ah! How can I forget?
As I grew up I discovered more and more intense games like CS, Dota I, Red Alert, AOE (Age of Empires), GunZ the Reloaded Duel and many more. Among the huge list, hands down my favorite, the one, and only Ragnarok Online.
About the game, Ragnarok is an MMORPG created by Gravity. I was so into this game that I used to sometimes skip my study hours for playing the game with my friends (lol..). I and my friends used to party up and level up our characters, hunt equips /attribute card from morning till noon.
Then in the evening, we party up again for some PVP (Player vs. Player) and GVG (Guild vs. Guild) fights. It was not just playing the game for me and my friends we started to make money by selling some rare items in-game which was very hard to obtain.
After a few years, the game server closed so I had to move to another Ragnarok server. This was a Malaysian Server called Happy Ragnarok Online. I was the No.1 Player of the server which gave me the opportunity to work as a Game Master for this game.
From there my Game Testing life started I had to report Bugs, find out who is using Cheat (Botting) result to permanent BAN and Ragnarok Support (Help players if they have any questions regarding the game).
Moving on I realized that my career is into Game Testing and further started to work in a game testing company where I got to learn many new things about games and how it works (many new terms used in-game, writing bugs, uploading them on Jira, Mantis, etc.) in testing.
Within 6 to 7 months I got promoted to a Senior Test Engineer where I had to handle a team of 8 to 15 people, explains them the task to do, solve their queries about the game, review the bugs properly and send daily status reports.
Games I have tested:

Battle Born – (2K Games) (PS4, Xbox).
Dragon Ball Xenoverse 2 – (Bandai Namco Entertainment) (PC, Xbox, PS4).
Project X Zone – (Bandai Namco Entertainment) (Nintendo 3DS).
Killing Floor 2 – (Tripwire Interactive) (PS4, PC).
Brothers A Tale of Two Sons – (505 Games) (Xbox).
MX vs. ATV – (Nordic Games) (PS4).
Roller Coaster Tycoon World – (Atari) (PC).
Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: Mega Battle – (Bandai Namco Entertainment) ( PC, PS4).

My team had good times and bad times in projects we tested. we were gifted with immense pleasure when the tested game gets positive feedback from the clients with some Goodies (Gifts) 😊, and of course, there is a lot of pressure when the delivery date approaches. But yes, after all, its fun testing more and more games 😊

My craving for games and testing them will never end. It’s like my hobby turned in to my career.

Top 23 Gaming Glitches of All Times [Full-List with Video]

Posted on June 12, 2019 by tbsupadminnxtbackendacc

Gaming glitches are indeed deadly for any game development company. However, glitches have often worked the opposite made the company famous too. But be it any circumstances, users might never enjoy such glitches as it can hinder their gaming experience.
But have you ever wonder which games have pushed the glitch scenario so far that it has become hilarious? if you don’t, read our blog and find out.

1. Skyrim
What’s the point in a man running on horse’s back, while the horse is also running? Sounds weird isn’t it, but that is how it goes in Skyrim. Things get even weird when man’s body spins on the horse’s head.


2. Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance
Sometimes your favorite games can put you in a real muddle, how can your enemy still move and walk after you have cut off his torso apart from his legs and is now without the legs.

3. Assassins Creed Brotherhood
Assassins Creed leaves you all creepy by letting Ezio’s torso disappear and letting you watch only his legs walk.

4. GTA Vice City
What would you call a car traveling on the water – A glitch for sure! GTA shows you some extraordinary and bizarre adventure. The GTA car flips, bounces, and tumbles in the water.

5. Battlefield 3
Things can’t go weirder than watching your partner turn into an enormous worm-like creature. So creepy! Isn’t it? Not only will your partner turn into an ugly creature but will also slither around the battlefield.

6. Super Mario 64
Some glitches make you all perplexed, and same happens while you play Mario and watch him lose his legs and arms and still fly around.

7. Mario Kart
The glitch in Mario Kart is extremely irritating especially when the players don’t know it is a glitch. The endless track in it just keeps going endlessly. The endless track is very irritating and frustrating.

8. Oblivion
One of the creepiest gaming glitches I have ever come across is in the Oblivion where an unknown thing approaches you while you walk in the foggy woods. Can you dare to find out, who?

9. The Last of Us
Even the famous game “The Last of Us” is not free from glitches. The famous Ellie of this game at one point of time is completely disfigured and looks no less than a scarecrow. And even scary and worse is watching Ellie lying still in the air.

10. WCW
In WCW you will witness wrestling moves you would definitely never want to witness again. It certainly creepy to watch your wrestlers stretch out to mid-air – But the question is how can a human body stretch out so much? Are they made up of elastic?


11. Minecraft
If you dare to travel beyond the game’s boundaries to the ‘infinite map’ you will encounter some very strange land including the floating land. Sounds weird, but it is even weirder to experience. If you continue even further you will land up into a deep, black, and inescapable black void. Though the glitch is now resolved you can still find it if you have the old versions of this game.

12. Fallout: New Vegas
Enter the New Vegas‘ and in the very first scene encounter the crooked head glitch. As soon as the game begins you will face Doc Mitchell whose head will start to spin rapidly without any warning and without and biology, physics or chemistry involved in it.

13. Xenogears
In Xenogears, while you are fighting Deus, he would blast-off his powerful attack that would freeze your game. But, you might encounter it if you play Xenogears on PlayStation 2, and not with original PlayStation. You can also avoid it by killing Deus even before he could launch his bizarre attack.

14. Banjo-Kazooie
Collecting Jiggys is one of your main aims when you play this game. But, what if the Jiggys doesn’t count towards your collection. That is what happened in Banjo-Kazooie: Clanker’s Cavern. The glitch left the players all irritated and annoyed. The only way to avoid this was to restart the game and to collect the Jiggys in another order.

Also Read: 15 Failed Games that will show Testing is important

15. Viewtiful Joe 2
One of the biggest gaming glitches of all times happened back in 2004 when the CD of demo of Viewtiful Joe 2 was released. Though the demo CDs do no harm are not connected to any glitch, but this CD had a major glitch as it deleted all the gaming files stored in the player’s memory card.
The only way to avoid the glitch was to remove the memory card before inserting the CD into your Play station 2.

16. Trinity
Another huge glitch rocked the gaming society when back in 2007; the players had to witness their operating systems going corrupt while loading Trinity.

17. Assassin’s Creed: Unity
Some gaming series was famous for the surfeit of bugs found in them; and Assassin’s Creed: Unity was one among them. The game was not able to extract character models properly, leaving them without faces. The non-player characters collapsed into each other giving them an appearance of crotch brutes. The lists still continue with you finding yourself stuck in the air or fall into an endless dungeon while you leap and so on.

18. Half-life
To add to the list of some more creepy glitches, here we have a glitch from the famous Half-Life game. How would you react if a person changes his face while still talking to you? Scary! Isn’t it? The same happens in Half-Life when scientist’s face while he continues to talk.

19. Super Smash Bros
While you are in a mission to rescue the princess, you get locked in a power struggle. Not only this your screen also gets slow and the princess turns into a creepy creature.

20. Final Fantasy VI
Even the final fantasy series was not immune to bugs. In Final Fantasy VI, the main character Relm had a special power to sketch his enemy in order to use its power against it. But this special power turned against the game as whenever Relm tried to sketch some very difficult sketches, your game was at stake. It led to the freezing of the game or led to some graphical distortions, even it led to replicating arbitrary items in your account, crashing up the game.

21. The Sims 3
The Sims 3 had a glitch that spread online. The game gave birth to a corrupted file that attached itself to the shared item like clothing, houses and other objects. Whenever a person shared any of these objects with fellow players the corrupted file was also shared. The file was in the form of a doll, and this innocent looking doll slowed down or crashed the player’s game.

22. A pool of Radiance: Ruins of Myth Drannor
Another big bug that disappointed the gaming community was found in Pool of Radiance: Ruins of Myth Drannor. The game was a little upsetting for the players, but the bigger shock came to them when they tried to uninstall the game. The uninstalling the game resulted in deleting some of the important files, thus corrupting their operating system.

23. WWE 13
Things turn completely when a game like WWE 13 gives you some moments to laugh. The bug in the game leads to face deformation of your favorite WWE stars. The deformation takes you to a completely different zone, forgetting the fight and laughing your heart out.


These bugs had an adverse effect on the image of these games. With efficient testing, you can definitely diminish these gaming glitches and bugs assuring a joyful experience for your customers

How to Become a PlayStation 4 Beta Tester: Sign up process

Posted on February 15, 2019 by tbsupadminnxtbackendacc

PlayStation 4 Beta Tester sign-up process is simple. First of all, those who wish to be a part of the program must understand that there are two processes available at the moment

Private beta test program
Open beta test program

Private beta test program	Public beta test program
Meant for product quality	Helps in product quality as well as marketing
Happens inside a closed group	A large group of people located at nook and corner of the world takes part in the process
Fixed time	Does not have a fixed time
The tester must know about the demographics specificity of the product	No such requirement
Varied remuneration based on tester expertise	No payment involved
Staged recruit	Direct access
Takes place secretly	The program will be publicly announced

before you sign up, have a look at their privacy policy in detail

1. Beta Product

The Licensor provides you the beta software, documentation, and access to the beta test program. Your participation in the Beta Product is subject to your agreement to their terms.

The Licensor holds the power to terminate your access to the Beta Product at any time without prior notice. You must take responsibility for the Beta Product and take reasonable efforts to prevent others from accessing it without your knowledge or permission.

You are solely responsible for any loss or damage to your Beta Product or to the Licensor’s intellectual property rights caused by the disclosure of the Beta Product.

In case you learn that the Beta Product that has been offered to you has been either distributed or transferred to a third party, it is your responsibility to immediately notify the Licensor. You must ensure to assist in the recovery of the same so that the Beta Product can be prevented from any further loss or disclosure.

License: On installing the Beta Product, the Licensor issues you a limited, non-exclusive license for your personal use. For the PlayStation4 Beta Products, the Licensor even grants you a limited, non-exclusive license to use the Share button. This allows you to stream or replicate the audio and video output of the Beta Products to third-party services supported by the PlayStation4 system. This limited license, which is non-exclusive in nature includes the permission to record portions of the content of Beta Product to the PlayStation4 system and to access the tools within the system to edit the said recordings. Rights that are reserved for the Licensor, are not explicitly granted to the Beta Tester under this license. An example of these is the rights to all intellectual property that are contained within the Beta Product.

This license doesn’t involve the right to, and you agree not to perform the following actions –

Know More: Blockchain Game Testing: What You Need To Know!

[a] Lease, rent or sublicense the Beta Product or make it available on a network to other users;

[b] Modify, translate, reverse engineer and disassemble the Beta Product;

[c] Create works that are derivative from the Beta Product;

[d] Copy or broadcast the Beta Product in an unauthorized manner.

User-Generated Content: You might have the option to create, post, stream, transmit and offer content such as pictures, photographs, game related materials, or other information through the Beta Product.
You acknowledge that you have received the license of the rights in your user material from the Licensor, who if he/she so wishes may further sublicense its right to your User Material to a third party. You are required to waive, to the extent permitted by law, all claims, involving any moral rights, rights of publicity or rights that are patrimonial, against Licensor and its affiliates or any third party that uses your User Material through the Licensor, by creating, streaming offering or transmitting licensor any User Material, you represent and warrant that your User Material doesn’t infringe on the intellectual property.

Updates and Online Server Support: This Agreement applies to Beta Product updates, involving all content that is downloadable for the Beta Product. Through automatic update or otherwise, modification of the Beta Product can happen at any time and for any specific reason. If the Beta Product is relying on online servers, Licensor will not have any commitment to make the servers available at any time.

Miscellaneous: This Agreement is interpreted and constructed in accord with the laws of the State of California applying to contracts, that is fully executed and even performed within the State of same. In case Section 9’s binding arbitration terms are unenforceable on any specific dispute, both parties involved are required to submit to personal jurisdiction under the Californian Law. Additionally, they are also required to agree that any dispute between them, shall be taken to a court under the jurisdiction of the San Mateo County, California. In situations where, any provision of this Agreement is conducted invalid or unenforceable, in whole or in part, that specific provision will be modified to the minimum extent vital to make it valid, and the validity and enforceability of all other provisions of this Agreement shall continue to remain unaffected.

There are some clear advantages and benefits to be a beta tester. The last advantage is that you get to have an early look at all of the interesting and fresh new features that will come with the PlayStation 4 v5.5 firmware update. The previous year, beta testers for the v5.0 update got a sneak peek at the new features, like the enhancements for Twitch streaming on PS Pro platforms, updates to Family account to Family account management settings. In addition to being privy to the plans Sony has for the next big update, beta testers are also awarded an exclusive PSN avatar.

If you determine to be a beta tester for Sony, and you end up hating certain aspects of the new firmware update, don’t worry; beta testers have that capability to “roll back” their firmware to previous versions. Another advantage is that successful beta testers can select to be registered automatically for the next round of console testing.

At present, nobody is certain about the exact features that are to be the highlight of the latest firmware update, or which of the PlayStation application and games will be improved. However, if you are very curious regarding beta testing and you meet all of the needs set out by Sony which are mentioned above, it might be worth your while to give it a shot.

How to Become a PS4 Software Beta Tester?

The first step to becoming a PS4 Software Beta Tester is signing up for the Play Station 4 System Software Beta. Given below are the steps that can help you to do so.

1. Visit the Sony’s official website page where you can sign up as a PS4 software beta tester.

2. Sign-In with the E-mail address that you have given when you created your Sony Entertainment Account and the password of your Sony Entertainment Account.

3. Click on “Sign in” and you will be led to the Enrolment Form

4. Read the Private Beta Trial Agreement and, click yes

5. Finally, click on “Submit”

Not sure if you should take the plunge? Well, there are some things to bear in mind before you sign up:

1. Places are limited. Sony might have opened their gates to more testers, but it’s not allowing everyone to jump in and experience the new beta firmware all at once.

It is open only to the PS4 master accounts. No sub-accounts are eligible to take part.

2. The PS4 should be supported by an active Internet connection. This is because Sony will not be distributing the beta firmware as a downloadable file from its website.

3. It is advisable that you do not install the beta firmware, especially for the safety of your saved games and/or installed software. The instability of the beat firmware might lead you to experience odd quirks while using your PS4.

4. You can always roll back to a previous version of the firmware if you are unsure of staying in the beta.

On a central portal, an open invitation for beta testers was declared. Sony has earlier opened up early versions of their system updates to beta testers, but one basic difference this year is that testing is now open to Canadian gamers.

Previously, beta testing was exclusively available to individuals residing in the United States. Sony is even about to extend beta testing to gamers in Japan, but applications for this region are not yet available.

If the prospect of becoming a beta tester for the new system update for the PlayStation interests you, there are just a few primary things you require. The initial requirement is obviously that you have to already own a PlayStation 4.

You even require to have a stable internet connection, as well as a Sony Entertainment Network or PlayStation Network account. It’s even compulsory that all beta testers are at least eighteen years of age.

Know More: Salary of a Game Tester 2019

Sign up process to be become a play station beta tester

By downloading the game you are agreeing to license and privacy terms and you can read more about here

How to get enrolled in the beta program/ Sign-up process for the beta program?

Access the link mentioned above and go through their privacy policy and terms. If you agree, you have to click the agree button on the registration page

Once you agree you will be asked certain questions

Once you submit, your approval request will be reviewed by Sony
You will be notified via mail once you get the approval

Points to remember

Chances of your profile getting approved for the program is very less because Sony is only accommodating very limited beta users
You must have a PS master account

5 Things You Need to Focus On To Get a Game Tester Job

Posted on February 6, 2019 by tbsupadminnxtbackendacc

Game testing has been an essential part of the gamer’s world. It will make two things pop into the mind of a tester, a lazing around a job or dream job. As a matter of fact, the truth is different from what we believe.

There is a difference between playing a game and testing it. The whole process has two different mindsets on which an individual will work. While playing a game, one is completely focused on the entertainment prospect of life whereas a tester will focus on every single detail.

So, let us get your all buckle up before we take you to the bumpy ride of game testing.

The job of Game Tester

Software tester and quality tester are the designations that have a number of responsibilities of their own.

The main aim of both the job is to give out error-free work with the assured quality of software and game respectively.

In this manner, one have to work on the game that allows them to check out the errors or the expectations that might be falling out in the whole process. If we say it in a simple language then the tester will start by finding bugs.

The work is not to play and have a gala time but to go to the depth of the code and extract any part that has no added value to the game or a part that is creating trouble to it.

Hence, it is essential to stop the conventional way of playing the game and work on every single detail from the movement of the hand of a player to the environment that they are playing it.

We have witnessed the craze of Pubg in recent months. It has different environment change as per our movement. In addition to this, the players keep on popping in from different sides that make it difficult to have a hang on.

In such a case, one must have the proper game mind to work on the environment and extraction of the gun from a box. The character, objects, environment, real-time sequence, etc. compiled it all together.

It is essential to combine it all in order to get to the depth of the whole process. The functions and character and compiled in such a way that makes us want to think out of the box.

In such a case, one has to work on the requirement and every single module effectively. Also, one has to keep the mind in the game to ensure that the process is going in the right direction.

5 things to work on

Now, since we know that being a game tester is no cake walk, we need to work on the right path to ensure that we come up with the most perfect part of the process.

It can only be achieved if we focus on 5 important part of the Software testing game that can allow us to have astable testing future. So, let us focus on the famous five:

Passion –

If one is not passionate enough to complete the whole game testing process then it won’t be possible for them to survive. It is essential that one is passionate enough to give their time to do this job precisely and work in the right direction to make the game error-free.

Just because one is passionate about playing games, doesn’t mean that they will be focused on the whole setup process as well. However, everyone is not going to be focused on the manner whether you like to do it or not so if you are interested in finding the bugs then it might do well with you.

All the employers will need is a person who is able to sit in front of the system while working on a game to come up with a possible outcome. In addition to this, it is also important that people are focused on the gameplay while working on it.

Hence, a tester must start with working on the small modules then moving towards the bigger part to get in a habit of testing. There are many tools that allow one to work on such a prospect.

Education or Technical Skills

When it comes to testing, there is no major degree that is mentioned in the whole job scenarios.

However, they do prefer candidates that know the coding and ways around it. This is the main reason that companies usually go for engineering students in order to fill in the job profile instead of any other person.

The coding is the main point that must be covered by the candidates in order to secure a job.

It can be with a certification or with the help of the proper graduate degree in any of the coding line. The main task that will require technical skills are troubleshooting in the hardware issues and to build in a PC as per the game requirement.

Also, one must know the software language if they are into the localized testing form to keep matters in the hands only.

Also, it is expected from the compliance testers that they know about the whole constructor’s process in the certification work. Hence you need to cover up the topic before the company gets it out of you.

Core Skills

Without core skills, you simply can’t do much in the game testing field. One must have the main skills so that they can cover up the main part of the whole process.

The major skills that must be covered up by the software tester are:

Troubleshooting and investigation skills –When we work on a system – software and hardware – then it is common to come through a few errors that one simply can’t avoid. It becomes the tedious task for them to manage the whole process easier if a tester doesn’t know how to get it over with. Hence, it is essential to get information on how to resolve certain issues with the troubleshooting mode.
Observation and orientation – In this part, one must have amazing observation power that makes them catch any detail easily without worrying about the tedious part of testing. If they have observation and orientation skill then work can be done easily and on time.
Analytic thinking – This type of skills is required to secure a good job in the company while having ‘out of the box’ thinking. It is essential to have the proper setup and process to ensure that work is done easily with no error.

These are the major skills that one must work on when you still have time.

Experience

This actually counts when one knows how to test. This adds value to the whole resume and makes companies jump towards the candidate. The main reason behind this is that companies don’t have to train a candidate and invest any money in them to polish them up. They can simply get the work started with no delaying of time. This makes the companies work on the experienced candidates in place of a fresher with a higher degree. However, it simply doesn’t mean that fresher can’t apply for it. They are only required to put extra efforts in their skillset and prove their worth during the time of the interview.

Additional Skills

The main skills that are added when one want to be a game tester are:

Written and oral communication –It is a major part of the whole setup when it comes to communication skills. The person must be able to have the flawless report about bugs so that developers can work on the errors easily. Also, it is essential for them to explain every single point in details that are easily understood by the other person.
Team player – When you are hired as the game tester, you are not going to work alone. There will be a group of tester and developers with whom you have to get in touch with every now and then. Hence, it is essential to have this ability to work in the team. It is not about sitting alone and working on the testing. The testers are required for other departments as well that might mean that you need to relocate for a certain project.
Work ethics –This part is also essential when it comes to the testing environment. Yes, it might be easy to simply ignore a bug and assume that no one else is going to know about you. But the workers are relying on you for the project so you need to make sure that their trust is intact.
Good working relationship – It is part of good communication only. If an individual can work in the collaborative team with flowing communication then it will be easy for them to have a great bond.

These are the major points on which an individual must work on to ensure that they have a safe and secure future.

Video Game Tester Salary (India and Globally) 2021 | Testbytes

Posted on January 21, 2019 by tbsupadminnxtbackendacc

Video Game Tester Salary is something that evokes curiousness of many. First of all, there is a widespread misconception that all video game tester has to do is play games.
However, those who are into game testing and knows about the industry would beg to differ.
Game testing is strenuous and requires great skill and technical knowledge.
But have you ever wondered how much they get a salary? If you have, follow this blog and find out.

What are the Job Requirements For Game Testers?

1) Education

As mentioned earlier, game testing has a low education requirement. Also, there is no college or school which teaches this particular subject. Thus, the education requirement for this job is also not specific.

However, having a little knowledge about programming, software and hardware will only prove to be helpful in this field.
More often than not, game testers are trained in computer science or another field related to software.
Thus, if you hold a degree in any of these fields, you will be preferred for the job. This is because you will be able to understand the working of a game better and test it more efficiently.
Degrees that may be preferable for a game design job are computer programming, software engineering, game design, software testing,

2) Skills

There are certain technologies and things you should be familiar with in order to become a game tester and earn higher, like, XBOX, PS3, Android, QA Testing, and Gaming.
These skills are in high demand in the game testing industry as most games are developed for or on these platforms.
Apart from these, the core skills that employers look for in a game tester are:

Knowledge about the latest games and technologies used in game development
Game playing skills are very important for a game tester job as you will be expected to play a game in various different circumstances.
You are expected to have an eye for detail when becoming a game tester. Unless you can detect the minute flaws in the game, your job as a tester is of no use.
Self-motivation is a skill that you will definitely need as a game tester. This is because you will have to play one game repeatedly, several times, in order to test it for any possible bug or error. This recurrence can get monotonous and so you need to stay self-motivated to work as a game tester.
Teamwork is very important in this field as you will not only have to coordinate with your fellow game testers but also with game developers and designers working on a particular game.

3) Experience

Experience is another important requirement for this job as the more you work in this field the more skilled you get. You will be able to test any game efficiently if you have experience in this field.
Recruiters look for the amount of experience you have in this field more than the degree you hold when hiring game testers.

Salary of Game Testers in 2021

Let’s take a look at how testers get paid based on different factors:

1) Based on the Education Level

In the game testing field, candidates who are high school pass-outs can also make big bucks as education level is of little to no significance.
According to the Game Developer Magazine survey, those who had nothing but a high school diploma earned the highest $52,500 per annum. In fact, those who held a bachelor’s degree earned the lowest among all, at $43,000 per year
People having an associate certificate or degree received a salary between $49,000 to $50,000.
These stats suggest that game testing jobs do not require a high level of education. If you have the skills, you can earn a handsome amount of salary regardless of the degree you hold.

2) Based on Experience

Game testing is one of those jobs where job experience matters more than your education level. You might have a higher degree in your hands, but unless you are experienced in the field, you will get paid lower than most.

However, to think that freshers cannot expect a good salary is completely wrong.
In 2011, Game Developer Magazine conducted a survey that found out that testers with an experience of 3 years or less get paid an average of $36,136.
Those who have experience of 4 to 6 years can expect a salary of $45,769 annually.
In India, freshers can expect a minimum starting salary of Rs. 5000 per month and as the years pass by, can end up with a salary of 150K per month too!
The average salary of a game tester with 3 to 4 years of experience is 50k to 60k per month. If you have the skills that are in demand like, XBOX, PlayStation, etc, then even people with less than 3 years of experience can get a minimum pay of 25K.

3) Salary Per Hour Basis

According to ZipRecruiter, the average hourly wage of Game Testers in the United States is found to be $33.
25 percentile of game testers gets paid $15 per hour whereas the other 75 percentile make roughly $48 in an hour.
ZipRecruiter studied the recent job postings in New Delhi, India, and found those game testers earn a salary of $33 per hour here too, which is the nationwide average hourly salary.

4) Game Tester Salary Per Week

Surveys conducted by ZipRecruiter found that the average weekly wage of game testers is $13.46
The average base salary of a video game tester per month is $3,503
This huge difference between the weekly earnings of gaming testers is the result of the amount of experience in the industry and skills that they have.

5) Monthly Salary of Game Testers

Monthly salaries of game tester salary range from $1,625 to $11,708 as observed by ZipRecruiter. Across the US, 25% of testers have an average monthly salary of $2,625. The rest 75% of people earn an average of $8,667 every month.
In India, the average monthly salary of game testers is $5,846.
Game tester salary in the USA ranges from USD $18,000 and top out around $55,000 based on various factors
.

6) Game Tester Salary in India

In India, game testers are living a good life with the perfect job and the perfect salary too!
According to payscale.com, fresher’s get an average salary of Rs 233,462 per annum. This is an ideal salary to begin your career with.
Payscale.com analyzed the salary structure of game testers in India. This is the salary you can expect at the entry-level:

Salary at Entry Level Rs 120,145 – Rs 421,567
Bonus Rs ₹5k – ₹51k
Profit-Sharing ₹919 – ₹255k
Total Pay Rs ₹138k – ₹545k

Game testers who have more than 3 to 4 years of experience can expect an annual salary of Rs 800,000 to 1,000,000.

7) Other Factors

The game tester’s salary may get affected based on the region you reside in. In places where the gaming and IT market is widespread, the job opportunities and salaries will also be higher than in places where this job is in low demand.
The survey conducted by Game Developer Magazine in 2013, found out that game testers in the west earned an average of $47,167 per year. In the east, however, the salary of a game developer is higher with an average of $49,643 per year. The lowest salaries of all regions were found to be in the south where the average game tester salary was $ 35,833.
Game testers can earn additional income apart from their salaries too. 73% of video game testers, as surveyed by Game Developer Magazine in 2011, got additional income in the form of a bonus, royalties, stock exchange, etc.
The average bonus calculated was $7,824 in a year.
Another thing noted by Game Developer Magazine is that 95% of game testers are male who earns an average of $48,000 per year. The remaining 5% are the female population who earn significantly higher than men, with an average salary of $62,500 per year.

Conclusion

The gaming industry has a high demand for game testers as games are becoming more popular among people. It is a job that demands a high level of skills and dedication but has a low education requirement.
This makes game testing a very popular career path among young people. The fact that game testers are paid a handsome amount of money makes this job even more desirable.

On average, in the year 2021, experienced game testers can earn around $52,500 per year to as high as $100,000 per year. Freshers can start their jobs with a salary of $20,000 to $36,136.
2021 is the year of gaming and we can hope to see a number of amazing innovations and growth in this industry. Along with that, we may also see a rise in job opportunities and salaries of game testers and developers alike.

Also Read: Software Tester Salary in India, Canada and USA 2020

Testing a Game Like PUBG: What to Consider?

Posted on January 10, 2019 by tbsupadminnxtbackendacc

Player Unknown Battlegrounds aka PUBG is everywhere nowadays. Millions of users are playing the game even while you are reading this blog.

It’s a huge online game and the company is frequently introducing features to make the battle royale game more interesting.
For these obvious reasons, Game Testing is absolutely necessary for the survival and continued success of the game.
The main purpose of game testing is to ensure that the game is appropriate. There is a number of predefined features and requirements that are tested in an application to ensure that an application is up to the mark.
However, when it comes to game testing such as PUBG then it is essential to be precise and follow up every single detail.
Difference between Regular Testing and Mobile Game Testing
In order to understand the whole concept of mobile game testing such as PUBG, one must understand how it differs from regular testing.

The first and foremost difference between the both is strategies and impact of software. The regular mobile application, have a limited number of features and users have to go through them only.
But when it comes to mobile games, they can be unpredictable. The whole game will depend on what route a user is following that can be different from the one tested.
This behavior of a user impacts the game on a huge level. However, the major point to keep in mind is to ensure that the game is easy to interact.
In addition to this, you need to work on the complex part where user influence can take part. However, the game like PUBG works on player’s behavior only. It will depend on the course a player is moving toward that will change the whole concept.
Hence, you need to be more careful with it.
Different Part to Test in PUBG
When it comes to mobile phone games, you need to set things as per the priorities. Especially, with PUBG where there are so many feature to cover. You can prioritize them in order to have a proper game test. Here is a list of features to add on to your priority list.
1. Graphics Performance
You need to ensure that all the graphics are up to the mark in your game. The mobile games similar to PUBG will have high graphics and since it works in real time, it might be difficult to be abreast with the environment and every single player. Hence, you need to ensure that it is smooth and is extremely responsive. A game with graphics issue can be slow or might crashes a lot.
In order to test the graphics of a game, stress testing technique is used. Hence, one can know the actual speed or performance of a game in mobile phones.
There are several tools that can be used to check on stress or graphics of a game. This will give you an idea about the flaws of a game and also analyze its working in the real environment. It will also give you an idea of the traffic workload and how it will work under extreme stress.
2. Social Media Integration
Another the essential feature of a mobile game is its connection to social media accounts. This feature is covered up in different gaming application including PUBG.

Also Read: 15 Failed Games That Will Show Us Why Testing is Important

If anything, it is for the success of that particular game only in this digital world. Every single thing in the current world depends on social media.
Hence, it becomes essential to be updated with social media to ensure that a maximum of people is connected with each other.
In addition to this, it can be taken up as a marketing strategy as well. There are so many games such as Candy Crush Saga that is popular due to the integrated form of social media. Hence, this is one of the essential features to test while checking up on the list.
3. Game functionality and User Interface
Another of the essential feature to keep in mind is the UI of the game. People are attracted to a particular game due to its amazing User Interface. Hence, it is essential to keep in the priority list.
Also, the functionality and how it is reacting when a user changes its course is another factor that will set up mobile phone priority.
Is the resolution of a game perfectly?
Do you think that games will be satisfied with these features?
Are all the features to mark irrespective of player’s behavior?
These are some of the crucial aspects to keep in mind when it comes to the game like PUBG.
Also, one must know what the function and structure represent to check on the screen orientation and layout. It is the not to be missed part of this whole checklist.
4. Multiplayer
PUBG is a multiplayer game that works together in a real-time environment. Here players compete with other real players on a single platform.

They can be their family or friends making a game success. However, if the real-time part of this whole setup is not working up then you can know the disaster it will have for a game.
Hence, multiplayer functionality must be kept in mind if you are testing something similar to PUBG.
The worst part about multiplayer work is that is can be a daunting task to get the hang of it. There is simply so much to cover up with you is testing an application for more than one player at a time.
The same interference in real-time for players setup is a challenge that one has to go through. On top of that, the data is exchanged between a server and a device that makes it even more challenging.
In such case, you need to work on the server to ensure that it can work for the whole setup without a hitch.
Different Type of Testing Used for Game
1. Sound Testing
PUBG have a feature where a team of players working against others can easily communicate through messages and voice.
On top of that, the gunshot, walking, running, etc. type of sounds are amazingly instilled in the application.
When it comes to checking on these features, then it can be difficult. Hence, one must have an idea about file loading, distortion errors, analyzing CC profilers, color commentary, etc.
2. Compliance or Conformance Testing
Yes, this is one of the most essential types of testing when it comes to games. It requires a proper workflow in terms of compliance.
Also, there are a few things that are prohibited by stores that make it essential to keep a track of them.
Hence, while performing this testing, one has to keep an eye for the content that might be against guidelines. It is to ensure that any inappropriate content is not affecting the rating of a website.
3. Functional Testing
This type of testing is mainly to understand the functions of the whole game. It will give an insight on different functions on the generic level of a game.
It will cover the graphics, interface, and features of an application. There are several issues that can be found through this testing such as stability, mechanic, user-friendly, user interface, etc.
4. Soak Testing
In this testing, one can come out with a mode that is used in operation of a game. It will give a running of a game in the prolonged period.

This basically explains the rounding errors or memory leak type of errors in an application that can end up with crashing the whole game.
5. Performance Testing
It is one of the most essential types of testing that is used in a game. It will give an insight into the optimization of the game in terms of speed.
Also, one can work on the performance of a game to get the response time, transaction time, network coverage, peak load performance, low battery, memory leakage, longevity, application download, low memory, etc.
In addition to this, it will also cover network connectivity, memory and processor constraints, graphics consumption, etc.
Adaptive Technology Assistive Gaming
This type of testing technique will include the whole accessibility format of a game. It is mainly due to the features that will have several features added to it such as blurred vision, low vision, blindness, etc.
These disabilities are added in the list with the other such as cognitive, hearing, speech, colour and even mobility impairments.
In such modes, there are many games that have to ensure to add features to the people that are challenged in terms of visual. Hence, if a game has such features it is essential for a tester to watch out for testing methods for these such as visual data, colour, gaming dimensions, etc.
Game Testing Risks
Yes, with work comes challenges and things that we must steer clear off. Here, are few of the topmost risks:

No player-centric design
No compelling expiring that might be difficult for gamers to play
Missing out of gameplay features
No fast-paced, competitive and unique part of the game
Over budget gaming development
Failure concerning critical bugs, technical issues, poor video, music sound an even broken features
Simple aesthetic design.

Also Read: Video Game Testing – Play Games and Earn Money

Game Development Process: Step-by-Step

Phase #1

Phase #2

Phase #3

Phase #4

Marketing

What do you think the Game Testing Stage is intended to reveal?

Who is a Game Tester?

What are the requirements to Become a Game Tester

What does a Games Tester do?

The process involved in Game Testing

6 Steps of the game testing are as follows:

Parts of Games That Undergo Testing

Types of Game testing that need to be followed in the Testing Process

Black Box Testing

Clear Box Testing

Functional Testing

Stress/Load Testing

Combinatorial Testing

Feature Testing

Critical Path Test

Play Testing

Limitation testing:

Smoke Testing

Regression Testing

Multiplayer Testing

Sound Testing

Ad-hoc Testing

Test Flow Diagrams

Test Trees

What is Bug Hunting?

Types of Game Bugs in Game Testing

Crash

General

Minor

Severe

Graphics

Sound

Algorithm Bugs

Fatal

Configuration Trigger

Title or Subject –

Classification

Generation Steps –

Extra Information –

Levels of Game Testing

Alpha Testing

Beta Testing

Quality Assurance (QA) Testing

What is Gold Testing or Post-Release Testing?

Mobile Game Testing

The Significance of Mobile Game Performance

Testing Navigation Flow, Usability, and User Experience

Graphics Execution and Early-Stage Performance Tests

Three Basic Phases of Mobile Game Testing

Conclusion

Importance of Exploratory Testing in Game Testing

Beta Testing! It’s Important!

Conclusion

#1) Combinatorial Testing:

Benefits of Combinatorial Testing in Game Testing:

Application of Combinatorial Testing in Games:

Challenges of Combinatorial Testing in Games:

#2) Clean Room Testing:

Clean Room Testing in Game Development

Key Principles of Cleanroom Testing in Game Testing:

Benefits of Cleanroom Testing in Game Testing:

Challenges of Cleanroom Testing in Game Testing:

#3) Functionality Testing:

Objectives of Functional Testing in Games:

Techniques for Functional Testing in Games:

Benefits of Functional Testing in Games:

#4) Compatibility Testing:

Objectives of Compatibility Testing in Games:

Techniques for Compatibility Testing in Games:

Benefits of Compatibility Testing in Games:

Challenges of Compatibility Testing in Games:

Strategies for Effective Compatibility Testing:

#5) Tree Testing:

The objective of Tree Testing in Game Testing: