Tell me about the difficult art of playtesting!

[Turanil]

Well, I sometimes notice on these board a publisher calling for playtesters. At other times I read complaints that X product was certainly not playtested.

Hmmm... I guess that playtesting is not just creating a PC out of this new class or new feat, and then using it during a gaming session? If so, how one can be sure to notice if the new class or feat is balanced or not? After all, it depends on the genre of the adventure the PC will play in, and other factors. How one could discover that the new class or feat is balanced or not in relation with the other PCs?

So, who has been already involved in playtesting anything (from a houserule, to a commercial product under nondisclosure agreement)? How do you really, seriously, playtest something?

(I need to know before unleashing my broken gaming material on the world... if that ever happens, that is.)

Thanks.

 

[diaglo]

i'm still playtesting 1edADnD material from the DMG revised (1979).

i'm still playtesting 2edADnD material

i'm still playtesting the 2000ed and 3.11ed for Workgroups. you can see some of the stuff i've tried as a player in the story hour in my sig.

for me, playtesting requires testing the boundaries. coming up with the norms and the outliers. pushing it until it breaks. and then trying to reformat it so that it will work.

IMNSHO, OD&D(1974) is the only true game. All the other editions are just poor imitations of the real thing.

mainly cuz, the newer editions are broken and unfixable. but i'll keep at it. that's just the way i am.

 

[reanjr]

Finding playtesters is hard because people like their characters and they like their campaigns. It's hard enough to get people to use your product (even if it's free) when it's polished. Trying to get someone to play something that you are admitting may be broken, confusing, and/or dumb is nigh impossible, in my experience.

I know when I go to my players with new house rules, they oftentimes are a bit resistant. They usually end up liking the rules, but getting them to try it out is rough and fairly unrewarding.

 

[Turanil]

What if I "play" alone? Can it be considered true playtesting?

It would be incredibly boring, but for the sake of playtesting I could do it. Writing an adventure, and playing it along, trying some PCs and feats, and see how it works?

 

[reanjr]

What if I "play" alone? Can it be considered true playtesting?

It would be incredibly boring, but for the sake of playtesting I could do it. Writing an adventure, and playing it along, trying some PCs and feats, and see how it works?

It CAN work, but it's not true playtesting. You really need a real-life scenario with different players reacting to a situation in different ways. Though if you can find a consummate min/maxer who can't seem to abuse the rules and a "roll"-player who could still stomach using the rules, then it generally works balance-wise. Unfortunately, balance isn't the only issue. Usability is probably even more important. And that can really only be tested among groups of people.

 

[RFisher]

I've always wanted to be involved in playtesting, but it just isn't pratical. I only get to play one night a week & our campaigns tend to last about a year or so. The windows for playtests are typically too short to get the playtest on my group's schedule & have enough time to really do enough with it.

Although, I don't know that--if I did it--I'd enjoy as much as I think I might. I'd probably rather just play our regular game.