Episode 51 Applying Feedback

Applying Feedback

Hi and welcome to Experience Points by University XP. On Experience Points we explore different ways we can learn from games. I’m your host Dave Eng from games-based learning by University XP. Find out more at www.universityxp.com

On today’s episode we’ll cover “Applying Feedback”

Applying feedback from play testing games, table top games, and educational games is incredibly important. It’s important for multiple reasons. Those reasons extend from shaping the player experience; to connecting learning outcomes; to making sure that the experience stays “fun.”

But how exactly do you collect feedback? How should you interpret it? How should you use feedback to change your game design? How can feedback from play testing be used to improve serious games?

This episode will review different areas of player feedback from play testing. It includes the steps for collecting feedback as well as how to specifically ask for actionable feedback from your playtesters. It includes the top three questions that I ask from all of my playtesters as well as common interpretations for the kinds of feedback that you’ll receive.

The episode will cover how to consolidate your feedback from playtesters as well as how to apply it. Review of the feedback process will be provided along with limitations of the entire feedback process.

Getting feedback for your game is one of the most important steps in the design process. But knowing how to get that feedback and then using it to improve your design can be challenging and daunting.

That’s why getting feedback from your play tests include at least two steps. The first involves interpreting the kind of feedback that you’ll get from your playtesters. Receiving information from your playtesters is part of the playtesting process. However, data alone isn’t that useful. So knowing how to interpret your feedback is a skill all by itself.

The second step is applying that feedback. Sometimes players will say one thing when they mean another and expect you to do something else. Sometimes your playtesters will be experienced designers who can provide some really actionable and incisive information.

But most of the time your playtesters will be other players; casual players; non-designers; or sometimes non-gamers. So it’s important to link the kind of feedback from your players with your interpretation in order to create some applicable steps towards improving your design.

Asking for feedback from players can be tricky. This is especially true if you’ve never held a play test before. But it’s an important step in growing as a designer; educator; and serious games designer. Asking players for feedback allows us to zero in on their experience in order to help us tailor exactly what we want it to be.

Table top games are unique in this regard because they are a very social experience. That means that gathering feedback from your playtesters cannot only include gathering data and putting numbers into columns. Instead, it also has to be about connecting with your playtesters in order to gain a true level of the emotions, fun, and motivation involved.

That means that as the tester and the designer, it’s best to guide your players into the experience of what the game is and what you hope to get out of the play test. This starts by welcoming them and allowing them to provide any and all types of feedback during the play test.

Often, one of the safest questions to ask your playtesters about your game is if they “thought it was fun?” This is good question to ask to support your own ego; but most of the time the responses to this question are not that actionable.

So, if you’re just starting out playtesting this is a question that you can lead with. But, you often won’t get very effective information from your playtesters’ responses.

That’s why I’ve evolved from this single question into asking three specific questions from each of my playtesters. These three questions allow me to extract as much actionable information from the play test as possible. That information allows me to improve on the design. Playtesters’ feedback allows me to iterate quickly so that I can get the game to where I want it to be.

Those three questions are: What was FUN about the game? What is the ONE thing that you would KEEP In the game? And what is the ONE thing you would REMOVE from the game?

I don’t ask playtesters if they thought the game was fun. Rather, I ask them something more specific: “What – if anything about the game – was fun?” If they say “everything” then I ask them to be more specific.

Getting down to this level helps me understand what is really driving the player experience. Playtesters’ answers will also help me determine what will keep players coming back to this game.

I then ask playtesters that if they could keep only ONE thing in the game what would that one thing be? This is different from the fun question because it requires players to think about the ONE thing that they would keep in the game IF they had to remove everything else. It forces them to prioritize what they thought was the most engaging, endearing, or connected part of the game.

Finally, I ask them what is ONE thing they would remove from the game. This helps me determine if there is anything that is “getting in the way” of the player experience. Then, I determine if that “thing” is auxiliary and ask myself:  “does this need to be part of the design?” If it doesn’t then I have a good reason to cut it.

You’ll often get many different types of feedback from your play testing sessions. While players will say one thing; what they mean is often completely different. So here are some of the most common pieces of feedback that you’ll receive and some interpretations of what they could mean.

If players say that the game is too long or that they game isn’t fun then engagement might be an issue. Are they doing anything on other players’ turns? Where is their attention when it is their turn? Are they given enough decisions during the game? Or not enough decisions? Really, boredom often comes from a lack of engagement.

This can often come about if your players say the game was really slow or if there was a lot of down time between turns. This means that players might not have enough to do on their turn. The game becomes bogged down because of that. Likewise, players could say that aren’t enough “cool” things for them to do on their turn. That could mean that they aren’t given enough interesting options when their turn does come around.

Sometimes your players might say that their decisions felt scripted or that there was no unique outcome for them. Or that there was only one “right” choice. In that case it could mean that your players aren’t given enough unique options when their turn comes around.

You could also get some serious or lighter pieces of feedback. If someone says that they don’t like your art, then that’s something that may not be actionable. That’s because the version of the game they are playing is often a prototype without finalized components. 

Likewise, a player could say that they feel frustrated that they can’t “catch up” in the game. This could mean that there is a serious flaw in your game’s core loop that needs to be addressed.

Now it’s time to make a list of changes to be implemented in your game with your new feedback.  Some of those changes can be smaller ones. Those include changing the values of a single card; changing the way that turn order is selected; or re-arranging the phases of play.

These represent some minor issues the can be fixed prior to your next play testing session. With enough time, you can even make these changes during your current play test with your players. You can then start a new game with these new updates.

You can apply feedback in one of two ways. If your schedule permits, you can “play test” with yourself by representing multiple different opponents.  This will also allow you to reveal any discrepancies with your implemented new changes. Otherwise, you can wait to meet with your playtesters again to implement those new changes in a new play testing session.

No matter how you make those changes you should do so with only one major revision at a time. This will help you determine what changes are having what effect on the game and player experience.

You can take this one step further and test the change in your game at least 10 times before making additional edits. This ensures that your new revision has a lasting change that will affect the game positively.

Based on these new changes you should organize and summarize your information. What feedback did you get from your playtesters? What did you think that feedback meant; what change did you make; and what were the results of those changes?

Ideally, you should setup your next play test with the same group of playtesters from last game. This will help provide a continuous development overview of your game. Your players will also be able to see how your game has progressed from your last iteration.

Getting feedback from your playtesters can often be a very incisive and critical process. But it’s important to not take the feedback of playtesters personally. They are criticizing your game and not you as a designer. Part of becoming a successful designer is gathering; interpreting; and implementing the feedback from your playtesters.

It’s also important that you get feedback from as many different playtesters as possible. Sometimes you can go back to your own play test group; but it’s also good to be able to branch out and get new insights and feedback. Don’t let one play tester dominate how your game is designed. At the end of the day; this is your game and your design.

Feedback will always have its limitations. If you want to play test a social deduction game with players who don’t like social deduction games, then you’re going to have a bad time. Often, nothing you can do will help them like your game.

Also, know that different playtesters of different backgrounds will provide different perspectives and feedback for your game. Casual gamers are different from hobby gamers who are different from game designers; and academics. Knowing how to gather your feedback and how to apply it are all part of becoming a successful designer.

This episode reviewed different areas of player feedback from playtesting. It included the steps for collecting feedback as well as how to ask for specific and actionable feedback from your playtesters. It included the top three questions to ask from your playtesters as well as common interpretations for the kinds of playtesting feedback that you’ll receive.

The episode covered how to consolidate your feedback from playtesters as well as how to apply it. Review of the feedback process was provided along with limitations of player feedback.

I hope you found this episode useful. If you’d like to learn more, then a great place to start is with my free course on gamification. You can sign up for it at www.universityxp.com/gamification You can also get a full transcript of this episode including links to references in the description or show notes. Thanks for joining me!

Again, I’m your host Dave Eng from games-based learning by University XP. On Experience Points we explore different ways we can learn from games. If you liked this episode please consider commenting, sharing, and subscribing.

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References

Eng, D. (2019, September 10). The Player Experience. Retrieved February 20, 2020, from https://www.universityxp.com/blog/2019/9/10/the-player-experience

Eng, D. (2019, July 31). Fun Factors. Retrieved February 20, 2020, from https://www.universityxp.com/blog/2019/7/31/fun-factors

Eng, D. (2019, December 3). Core Loops. Retrieved February 20, 2020, from https://www.universityxp.com/blog/2019/12/3/core-loops

Marriott, E. (2013, July 18). Game Design Process: Applying Feedback. Retrieved from https://boardsandbarley.com/2013/07/18/game-design-process-applying-feedback/

Wiltgren, F. (2016, January 18). A Simple Way to Get Great Playtesting Feedback. Retrieved February 20, 2020, from https://www.wiltgren.com/game-design/a-simple-way-to-get-great-playtesting-feedback/

Rollins, B. (2017, October 20). How to Turn Negative Play-Test Feedback into a Brilliant Game. Retrieved February 20, 2020, from https://brandonthegamedev.com/how-to-turn-negative-play-test-feedback-into-a-brilliant-game/

Playtesting: Get that Feedback! (2018, April 3). Retrieved February 20, 2020, from https://github.com/leemet16/game-design-toolkit/wiki/Playtesting:-get-that-feedback!

Slack, J. (2019, December 2). Getting good feedback (and what to do with it). Retrieved February 20, 2020, from https://boardgamedesigncourse.com/getting-good-feedback-and-what-to-do-with-it/