Pay a ention to what objects
they are focused on, where they click or move the
cursor when they get stuck or frustrated or bored,
and write down everything they tell you. They are
your guide, and it??™s your mission to have them lead
you inside the game and illuminate any issues lurking
below the surface of the design. If you train yourself
to do this, you will regain your objectivity and
be able to see both the beauty and the ?¬‚ aws in what
you??™ve created.
Many game designers don??™t involve playtesters in
their process, or, if they do bring in playtesters, it??™s
at the end of production when it??™s really too late to
change the essential elements of the design. Perhaps
they are on a tight schedule and feel they don??™t have
time for feedback. Or perhaps they are afraid that
feedback will force them to change things they love
about their design. Maybe they think that ge ing a
playtest group together will cost too much money.
Or they might be under the impression that testing is
something only done by marketing people.
What these designers don??™t realize is that by
divorcing their process from this essential feedback
opportunity, they probably cost themselves
considerable time, money, and creative heartache.
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