Playtest

How it is used

Also a verb: we playtested the new level. Internal playtests use team members; external playtests bring in players who have never seen the game. The players are called playtesters. A key rule is to watch quietly and not explain the game.

Example sentences

1. In yesterday's playtest, four of six players missed the hidden door.

2. Let's playtest the boss fight with people outside the team.

Common collocations

• run a playtest
• external playtest
• playtest session
• playtest feedback
• playtester

Related terms

• prototypeA quick, rough version of a game or feature made to test whether an idea is fun or works, before the team spends time on final art and polish.
• QAShort for quality assurance: the work of checking that software meets its requirements and works well. It also names the people or team who do this work.
• onboardingThe first screens a new user goes through after installing an app, which explain the main features, ask for permissions or help set up an account.

This word in other fields

The same English word can have a different meaning in another field:

• playtest · Game Development

More terms: Testing

• unit test
• test case
• edge case
• regression
• integration test
• test coverage
• mock
• end-to-end test
• flaky
• test suite
• manual testing
• automated testing