Appropriate etiquette

[Mad Russian]

Here are some of my thoughts on playtesting etiquette...they are by no means all inclusive. Just some things to think about.

As the playtester:

1) Go into the playtest with some kind of delicacy. The scenario that is being played is a labor of no less than hard work and very likely a labor of love for the designer.

2) If you consider the scenario to be grossly unbalanced or have alot of negative comments take them to the designer personally.

3) Once you commit to a playtest you should finish it unless there is evidence that the scenario is greatly flawed. Or if life shows up and makes one of the playtesters ( YOU if you're playing vs the AI) have to stop.

4) When writing up the AAR after the playtest you need to be as objective as you possibly can. Also be as detailed as you can. I never met a designer that thought he ever got too much information.

You want your AAR to lead to discussions with the designer about any and everything you have a question about. I promise you that if you find something that you don't think is quite right others will later as well.

The designer will usually answer your questions. He wants his work to be as good as he can. Playtesting helps that.

5) If you pull out of a playtest let the designer and others know why. If I just started this scenario and you find something that makes it not play out right I may want to stop my playtest on it until the designer fixes that issue.

6) You will develop your own style of playtesting and get a very good understanding of what you like and what you don't like. It's okay to voice your preferences after the scenario is over but don't expect the designer to agree with all of your opinions.

Just be honest. Remember the comments you make, or don't make, will affect how this scenario plays if the designer makes changes or doesn't.

Hope this helps those that haven't done much playtesting in the past. For those that have these are obvious.

Good Luck and Good Hunting.

MR