Improving usability playtesting for experimental games - An analysis of how fidelity and the playtest process impact player feedback

Sammanfattning

This thesis explores the playtesting process, with a specific focus on usability testingfor games with experimental mechanics. The aim was to derive practical advice fordevelopers to use when eliciting feedback, which was successfully achieved. Twodifferent aspects of the playtest were directly investigated in this research project.The first was whether or not the playtester should state their thoughts out loudwhile playing. This was conducted by having two groups of testers play through thesame demo, with one group playing silently and the other being more active. Thefindings show that having the tester give feedback while playing, as well as havingthe facilitator ask questions throughout, elicits far more usability feedback withouthaving a noticeable effect on the player experience.The second aspect under investigation was the impact of prototype fidelity on thefeedback elicited. For this, three versions of the same experimental game prototypewere made; a fully polished version, a low fidelity digital version, and a paper prototype. By comparing the feedback elicited from each prototype, the effectivenessof each technique for playtesting could be investigated. From our findings, a paperprototype is sufficient for testing the initial concept but not ideal for usability orexperience testing. Meanwhile, a low fidelity version is ideal for eliciting usabilityfeedback but unreliable with regards to understanding the player experience.