Test Realm is for Testing! (A short thread)

Players should make the shift from viewing Test Realm as a preview ("This is what's happening!"), and towards an opportunity to provide feedback (and, yes, of course, bug reports! we need those desperately!)

True, there's some things we can't change - the basic story, the VO, large swaths of art or quest design.

But there's a lot that we can change, and oftentimes fairly quickly. It varies by discipline (design, art, or programming) but we do listen - and can respond.

And though some may characterize it as a 'trick,' we do sometimes preview things that are... let's say, "a little bit painful."

Sometimes a doctor needs to poke on the painful spots to get a good diagnosis of the problem.

Design can be like that, too.

Design is rarely perfect right out of the gate. If we err on the side of "too good," we're not likely to get a lot of good feedback.

If we err on the side of "painful," we'll certainly hear about it - and that gives us more information to work towards a good result.

Now, it's true - it can be hard for us designers to hear complaints on day 1.

But we know it's coming.

And it's wonderful for us to hear, "It started out kinda shaky, but we players are really happy with where Test Realm ended up."

The response so far has been great! We knew you'd love the world, the story, and the humor. We're sharing some of the best responses we've seen with the team.

Keep the feedback coming! Test Realm is for testing - and it's a journey, and it's a collaboration.

Now - back to it!