- * **Expect no mercy**. Although it hurts, a merciless approach is what
- you need at this time; much better to discover your errors and
- oversights now, before you release the game more widely. And don't
- forget to acknowledge your testers' assistance somewhere within the
- game.
-
- * **Never say never**. If your testers suggest that the game should
- respond better to an attempted action, don't automatically respond
- with "No one's going to try that!" They already have, and will again
- -- be grateful for your testers' devious minds and twisted psyches.
- Although a normal player won't try all of those oddball things,
- every player is bound to try at least one, and their enjoyment will
- be greater, the reality enhanced, if the game "understands".
-
- * **Ask for more**. Don't treat your testers simply as validators of
- your programming skills, but rather as reviewers of your
- storytelling abilities. Encourage them to comment on how well the
- pieces fit together, and to make suggestions -- small or radical --
- for improvement; don't necessarily reject good ideas just because
- implementing them "will take too long". For example: "the scene in
- the Tower of London doesn't somehow seem to belong in an Arabian
- Nights game", or "having to solve three puzzles in a row just to
- discover the plate of sheep's eyes is a little over the top", or
- "this five-room trek across the desert really is a bit dull;
- perhaps you could add a quicksand or something to liven it up?", or
- "the character of the eunuch in the harem seems to be lacking in
- something". That is, view the testers collectively not as simple
- spell-checkers, but rather as collaborative editors on your latest
- novel.
+* **Expect no mercy**. Although it hurts, a merciless approach is what you
+ need at this time; much better to discover your errors and oversights
+ now, before you release the game more widely. And don't forget to
+ acknowledge your testers' assistance somewhere within the game.
+
+* **Never say never**. If your testers suggest that the game should
+ respond better to an attempted action, don't automatically respond with
+ "No one's going to try that!" They already have, and will again -- be
+ grateful for your testers' devious minds and twisted psyches. Although a
+ normal player won't try *all* of those oddball things, every player is
+ bound to try at least *one*, and their enjoyment will be greater, the
+ reality enhanced, if the game "understands".
+
+* **Ask for more**. Don't treat your testers simply as validators of your
+ programming skills, but rather as reviewers of your storytelling
+ abilities. Encourage them to comment on how well the pieces fit together,
+ and to make suggestions -- small or radical -- for improvement; don't
+ necessarily reject good ideas just because implementing them "will take
+ too long". For example: "the scene in the Tower of London doesn't somehow
+ seem to belong in an Arabian Nights game", or "having to solve three
+ puzzles in a row just to discover the plate of sheep's eyes is a little
+ over the top", or "this five-room trek across the desert really is a bit
+ dull; perhaps you could add a quicksand or something to liven it up?", or
+ "the character of the eunuch in the harem seems to be lacking in
+ something". That is, view the testers collectively not as simple
+ spell-checkers, but rather as collaborative editors on your latest novel.