Hey Movers,
Today we thought we’d talk about… YOU, the players! User testing is such a big part of what we do here at SMG that we try not to make a final call unless it’s passed the ‘people test’. It’s pretty great how many ideas have come from watching the playthroughs and we love being inspired by our players. With ideas being shared so organically, it’s a far cry from an isolated development experience!
One of the standout game mechanics that was born through user testing was the co-throw. In one of the playtests, the players tried to chuck a photocopier over the side of a balcony. At this stage, we’d only really let users throw smaller objects, but these testers opened us up to the idea that we could try a cooperative throw! By working together to swing big ticket items and releasing at just the right moment, we could allow players to throw hefty objects over balconies, pools and into fully loaded trucks. This simple idea changed the game so quickly!
Another cool element that came from watching the playthroughs was to do with the animals. One time a player was chasing after a goose, trying to catch it to give it a hug. We thought this was such a cute idea that we added this functionality to the game and now you can grab and hold all the animals. It seems so obvious now, but without user testing we may never have gotten there.
As for the actual user testing process, we recorded gameplay footage and captured tester audio which gave us unfiltered, on-the-spot, contextual user feedback. It was this sort of immediate sharing of ideas that led us to ‘the macaroni.’
We’d seen that there was a hole in the gameplay, so we added a large, curved item to our list of movables. We weren’t sure what this would be art-wise, so we just dropped it into the game as a big, yellow tube. One of our play testers was so excited at the sight of what they called the ‘giant macaroni’ and their enthusiasm was so infectious, that despite it being a large, curved sofa in game now, it is and always will be known to us internally as ‘the macaroni.’
User testing played a huge role in the development of Moving Out. From early versions of levels to suggestions and bugs, our players really helped guide our decisions by showing us so quickly what did and didn’t work.
We’d like to thank everyone that was kind enough to play the game throughout the development. Games are such a collaborative process and good ideas can come from everywhere. So thank you to all of our testers for being so enthusiastic and for helping to make the game what it is today.
See you next Monday!