Week 13: Research

User Testing: Document the best practices that makes sense to you. Plan for a structure you can re-use in other semesters and projects.

Initially, I would like to build off of the method mentined in this article: On-site Testing. However, I will also add different techniques that I found to work well from experience and from other readings as well.

1. Prepare a space in which the usability test will be conducted. Usually this will be room or space that doesn't have too many disturbances (loud noises, crowded, etc.) and have tables and chairs if needed. Have the surveys ready as well as the game ready to run.
2. Arrange the time with the playtesters and let them know how long the gameplay session usually take.
3. Explain to the player briefly about what they are going to do in the game, or what the game is about, as well as the controls. However, make sure to not give too much information that it would take up the time or the player's from learning from the game's tutorial by themselves.
4. Let the player know that they should vocalize their thoughts throuhout the gameplay.
5. Let the player play the game and give them certain objectives if needed. During this time, there should be people from the team taking care of these positions:
   1. Obeserving the player's vocalized reaction & answering any questions they have. The questions that got asked should be noted down as well.
   2. If possible, anothe person taking notes of the player's character actions in the game, as well as the facial expressions and any frustatition that can be seen.
   3. Recording  a video of the session, preferrably from the angle that the player's face can be seen. The screen where the game is played can also be recorded.
6. After the gameplay is done, conduct a short interview session with the players. Some the questions can be:
   1. What did you like about the game?
   2. What was frustating?
   3. What do you wish you could do in the game?
   4. How do you feel about the art/story/controls?
   5. After this, the questions can get more specific depending on which topics we wanted to focus on, or which one stood out more to that players. This interview session can also be used to calrufy certain reactions the player had during the gameplay that stood out.
7. Finally, thank the players for their time and feedbacks. Depending on the state of the game and the target audience, let the players know if it would be helpful for them to come back for future testings as well. Sometimes, it is better to have new players all the time, especially to observe first impressions. However, sometimes players who experienced the different versions of the game can provide insightful feedbacks as well.