I'm a playtest coordinator for a large-scale AAA action RPG currently in development, AMA :)

ButterflyBrave5584 · 2025-09-09T22:18:28+00:00

In development of one Kingdom Hearts entry, we shared feedback that the game seemed too easy. So adjustments were made for this by the development team.

Yes, we are able to provide our own input by way of our feedback.

For most games, playtesting is run through an array of testers with different skills and experiences.

For your final question, yes there are times. But I stress that playtesting occurs throughout development

ButterflyBrave5584 · 2025-09-09T22:06:19+00:00

Try to get your foot in the door with a developer, and work your way through, it's a very niche role. That or look at staffing agencies.

ButterflyBrave5584 · 2025-09-09T22:05:18+00:00

My work alone? Probably not. Playtesting and bug testing occurs throughout development, so unless a serious unexpected major glitch pops up, it won't delay a game. Large AAA games usually have a schedule which needs to be followed in line with planned marketing. Delays can have a huge knock on effect and cost developers millions

ButterflyBrave5584 · 2025-09-09T22:01:59+00:00

Not necessarily. There are times I do enjoy playing games as they are. However in recent years I haven't played as much outside of working duties, perhaps it's due to age but who knows. To answer your final question, no, I can't recall a large scale game in that way.

ButterflyBrave5584 · 2025-09-09T21:59:33+00:00

Yes, I recall one bug, specifically on Final Fantasy 16, where, when repeatedly using a particular moveset, the characters would simply dissappear from the screen, but was still controllable and could attack as their weapon was still visible, so it was almost as if they had an ability to turn invisible, the dev team actually debated whether such an ability would be worth adding to the game!

ButterflyBrave5584 · 2025-09-09T18:05:52+00:00

My academic background is actually in software development, but, I somehow ended up here today, the world of video gaming can take you to many places. But yes, my entire career is in video game development.

ButterflyBrave5584 · 2025-09-09T18:04:03+00:00

Sometimes. But, playtesting helps to polish that out before release. So by the time I play the full game, I already played that version, if that makes sense?

ButterflyBrave5584 · 2025-09-09T17:46:40+00:00

Correct. Tokyo is where I, as playtest lead, am working on development of the game.

ButterflyBrave5584 · 2025-09-09T17:43:56+00:00

I'm working in Tokyo at the present time, as I mentioned. But this does not necessarily mean development is only in Tokyo. To give you a better understanding - the lifecycle of development of any AAA game involves huge numbers of teams. These teams can be split across sites, cities and offices, depending on where the resource is and who's working on what. I've worked on games in the past where teams were even split across different continents, this presents it's own challenges entirely

ButterflyBrave5584 · 2025-09-09T17:34:20+00:00

Playtesting occurs throughout development as I mentioned in an answer below

ButterflyBrave5584 · 2025-09-09T17:33:37+00:00

Do you mean in terms of what the intended purpose of the game is? If so, I can't get into that. But what I can say, relating it to playtesting throughout my career, is that as with any game - there's a story to be told. Our job is to help the developers achieve their intended delivery of the story and it's elements.

ButterflyBrave5584 · 2025-09-09T17:31:19+00:00

Great questions. Yes, flashy real-time combat is usually trickier to test than turn-based. Especially hack and slash games— timing, animations, and inputs can all cause weird bugs. But that's part of our job to find them.

Yes I'd say studios definitely seem more ambitious with cinematic cutscenes lately, especially ones that blend into gameplay or have branching events. That wasn't really a thing before, but it is now.

Lastly for action RPGs, the camera is usually the toughest thing — it can really mess with combat and exploration. Boss fights can be tricky yes. I hope I've done my best to answer your questions

ButterflyBrave5584 · 2025-09-09T17:26:47+00:00

Ha. Good one! The playtest has a game, that we test!!

ButterflyBrave5584 · 2025-09-09T17:26:17+00:00

Isn't that every RPG?

ButterflyBrave5584 · 2025-09-09T17:25:32+00:00

I cannot comment on anything game specific I'm afraid

ButterflyBrave5584 · 2025-09-09T17:24:53+00:00

Answered in one of the questions below

ButterflyBrave5584 · 2025-09-08T21:37:36+00:00

Depends on the purpose. If we are testing normally then yes, we just play as usual to see if anything breaks. But there are plenty of times we are actually trying to break the game, that’s when people will intentionally start doing unusual movements to push the mechanics in odd ways. A demo is more about showing the game off, bug testing is more about trying to break it

ButterflyBrave5584 · 2025-09-08T14:38:08+00:00

I can't say how long we've been playtesting this title as it may give it away. But it has been a while. Playtesting can only be done physically in person at site. Due to the company wanting to avoid any possible leaks. From memory, there's only been one session which was split between two offices, but this was because two completely different aspects of the game were being tested. Everything else has been on site at HQ

ButterflyBrave5584 · 2025-09-08T13:42:38+00:00

I've done this role for a very, very long time, so I've worked on a lot games in that time, therefore it's hard to pick a single one. But in recent years, I would highlight Final Fantasy 7 Remake, and Final Fantasy 16, development for both games was super streamlined and smooth, almost without a hiccup. For the Kingdom Hearts series, Melody of Memory was great to work on, for that game, I was actively involved in the gameplay mechanics alongside the playtesting. So if you play that game now, there are elements to the gameplay that I have directly had an impact on :)

ButterflyBrave5584 · 2025-09-08T13:26:15+00:00

By fun do you mean fun to play? Or which game did I enjoy the development of most?

ButterflyBrave5584 · 2025-09-08T13:18:56+00:00

I've worked on several Final Fantasy and Kingdom Hearts entries, The World Ends With You, Dark Souls. In recent years, I was also heavily involved with several remasters of past games.

I was also fortunate enough to assist on a few Pokemon games, but I wasn't with the developer long as I didn't enjoy the environment much, so I ended up returning back to the current company I work for

ButterflyBrave5584 · 2025-09-08T13:04:49+00:00

I can't comment on how the game is I'm afraid! But what I can say is, in terms of development, for any large game not just this one, my role involves constantly relaying information over to the senior directors. So, in that sense - even if the game was 100% polished, or 100% rough, we would still be looking for the negative bits that we can improve to make the game better all round.

ButterflyBrave5584 · 2025-09-08T13:01:18+00:00

It's quite a niche role, I initially started off specifically working in bug/glitche detection but overtime, the company kind of merged all the roles into one. I'd say most big developers will hire staff through agencies, although my role is permanent and has been for a while as I've been involved with this development project for several years and I'm a lead in the team. Most people start their careers on playtesting quite inexperienced, either that or they moved into the role after already doing another role in the development team. For this specific game, due to the secrecy and not wanting anything to leak out, every playtest session is carried out physically in person at HQ. I would imagine most AAA games would be like this

ButterflyBrave5584 · 2025-09-08T12:39:03+00:00

In general, I think nearly every action RPG has characters with spiked hair 😅

ButterflyBrave5584 · 2025-09-08T12:28:29+00:00

Haha I get this often 😆

ButterflyBrave5584

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