What are the best ways to test game mechanics in QA?

Regression testing is one of the most vital methods that one should follow during testing. It ensures the capability of the application by keeping the futuristic changes in place. Also, Regression Testing rechecks the entire functionality of the application from scratch and highlights new bugs.

Make sure your test cases covers all ground. You should test it for values you know should work, for values on the limits and for values that should normally be rejected. Furthermore, try to make test cases where you know this may cause an error so that you know how your game mechanics behave in such situations

Si! Hay que tener esto bien definido si no, lo que va a pasar es que el QA se va a alargar y el equipo de QA se va a distraer y desenfocar al no saber que está buscando. Es común que mientras busques generar un error se produzca otro, y si no estás bien enfocado puedes perder el foco, debes de apuntar ese nuevo error y seguir buscando el objetivo, pero para esto, lo tienes que tener muy claro

As a member of the playtest team, it's crucial to define, before the event begins, the questions your test is aiming to investigate. Sure, you can test for the sake of testing, but when you frame your playtests around what is ACTIONABLE, that's the point where real value can be extracted. Use excel to document observations, no matter how minor, and upload the results to a team documentation hub to share the knowledge you gained. Archive work is a potent well of fuel for your team's creative fire. Set up a hot-key to use Shadowplay and point this out to participants. Sure, you might have infinite computer memory to record everything, but if the player encounters a detail they deem important, give them the tool to show you what they mean.

Automation streamlines repetitive testing processes, enables consistency, and identifies issues more efficiently, thus enhancing the quality of the game. As Bill Gates wisely stated, "Automation applied to an inefficient operation will magnify the inefficiency." Utilizing automation and tools also magnifies the efficiency of game mechanics testing, reducing human error and allowing QA teams to focus on more complex aspects of quality assurance.

Automation is the key for testing. If you have a complex game and you're testing it manually, especially if you don't have a team, it can become very time consuming. Using automation tools can help ensure the quality assurance of the game.

Exploratory testing is a great complement to scripted testing, and perhaps just as important. In my days as a QA tester, a significant portion of my time was trying to "break" the game in creative ways, creating scenarios that were perhaps not common, but possible for the average player to find. Thinking like a new player or a speedrunner helps moving away from the developer's familiar mindset, and helps find unexpected issues or emergene behaviors that could potentially break the player's experience.

Having no set plan or script when testing is a great way to encounter situations a player may encounter. If you are told "Go chop the tree then defeat the zombie" You will do those actions in that order. However, a player may do them in the wrong order and it could cause a sequence break or softlock. Giving the testers freedom when testing will allow them to do more creative tests. With no plan, they may test some obscure mechanic and discover something odd. As a random example, maybe cutting down 100 trees before defeating the zombie can skip the encounter or start a different tutorial, thus confusing the game. Testers who have freedom will find bugs others wouldn't. If these issues are found early on its easier to find the root cause.

Insight from other people is always important when testing. Everyone has a different perspective on how things are tested and tackling new content from every angle imaginable is key. Say, you have a team that is good at testing the basics of an update quickly. You will ensure that your update wont have any progress based bugs. You also want a secondary team who is good at edge cases and have both teams collaborate on the content. For example, a quest is added where you need to kill 1000 zombies. One team will focus on killing the zombies whereas the other may focus on trying to cheat the number without killing the zombies. Multiple teams who collaborate on what has and has not been tested will better ensure issues are found before launch.

Hiring playtesters should technically be in your "To do" list as this will save you a lot of valuable time. When I hired my first one, I was actually shocked by the amount of bugs he found, some of which I didn't see when I did the testing.

Additionally, documenting your automated testing procedures and maintaining version control for your game’s codebase can enhance collaboration among team members and provide a clear history of changes.

Quality Assurance (QA) testers ensure smooth game mechanics for an immersive gaming experience. They meticulously scrutinize gameplay, using manual testing to explore scenarios and ensure all mechanics function as intended. Unit testing isolates components to assess functionality independently. Integration testing examines cohesive mechanics interactions. Regression testing maintains stability post-updates. User testing gathers player feedback for insights. Automated testing boosts efficiency. Balancing testing refines mechanics for fair gameplay, while scenario testing validates them across contexts. These methods ensure game mechanics resonate with players, enhancing the overall gaming experience.

QA engineers should start getting involved in testing from the beginning. It's a good idea to conduct playtests (specifically for the prototype of the feature) with the QA department. After approval, QA should review the document about the feature before implementation begins.

When it comes game mechanics, first figure out how the mechanics work. Then play out those game mechanics in different ways/scenarios. Then of course try to break said mechanic. This could include pressing other buttons while the mechanic is being played out. See how that mechanic reacts to other inputs being put in. Every possible contingency needs to be counted for if we want to know if the mechanic is polished or still needs to be worked on.

QA is an important part and will provide the most valuable feedbacks on the game mechanics. Planning and testing the game in multiple scenarios will often show the game mechanics breaking and areas to improve. Some errors may even give new ideas for game mechanics. QA in my experience is the most efficient way to make sure your game mechanics are stable and do not ruin the players experience after release.

Testing needs to be done in steps. Every single feature will need testing, and every mechanic needs to work well. If any mechanic is hidden or unknown testers will not be able to ensure the mechanic is flawless when used with others. QA teams also need to ensure the mechanics are fun, so if they understand what the content is they can help judge the entertainment value. Overall, it is important that everything is tested, as a game breaking bug may destroy all the progress a player has made. Thus, every feature needs to be tested to ensure game breaking bugs do not hinder the experience of players.

A few things I feel others have missed is what I as a developer love when interacting with QA and that is developing an interest in the why and how mechanics and features come to be. Even a cursory understanding of workflow or the general logic flow of a feature or asset use can really bolster the testing process. If you're aware of a to b to c and not just the end result you'll not only open dialogue to those you work with directly but have a great deal more insight to what you're looking at and what else could be wrong that you might otherwise think is okay.

Continua haciendo QA y pruebas de rendimiento todo el tiempo que puedas, pero una vez que ya este listo, saca tu juego a la luz. Si no está perfecto, los jugadores mismos serán tu QA y podrás mejorar con parches. No saques un producto mediocre, saca un buen juego y estable, pero ten en cuenta de que pueden existir "vicios ocultos" en tu juego, no hagas drama, si tu juego es bueno y lo están jugando, puedes lanzar parches y que la comunidad te ayude a dejarlo al cien!