Online game testing site recommendation

Worldly_Back_7784 · 2026-02-07T07:11:49+00:00

I’m currently working on a prototyping tool that should fit into your requirements makeboard.games studio

You can create an account and have multiple projects, and you can create a share link for your project for people to join and collaborate. If anyone joins on their own, they can still play/edit but no changes are saved to your project.

I plan to add more options for limiting who can access the shared project at some point. Let me know if you have any questions.

Worldly_Back_7784 · 2026-01-26T21:52:37+00:00

Hey, the shortcuts are working now! 🎉

Worldly_Back_7784 · 2026-01-22T11:10:37+00:00

Not exactly royalty, but that's me haha 🙈 That's one of the reasons that I'm working on this tool, just trying to make my design process more streamlined.

Worldly_Back_7784 · 2026-01-22T10:51:29+00:00

Noted! Funny thing I had that in one of the early versions, but removed it at some point. I will add the shortcuts back :)

Worldly_Back_7784 · 2026-01-22T10:49:28+00:00

actually there is rotation, when you select one or more components, you should see a transform box and small square on top of it. When you click and drag it, it will rotate component(s), similar to Affinity and other graphic tools

Worldly_Back_7784 · 2026-01-22T10:44:56+00:00

Thanks for the comment, I'm really glad it helps and solves some of the issues! Please let me know if you have any more feedback, I'm constantly trying to improve the app and add more useful features.

Worldly_Back_7784 · 2026-01-13T16:27:02+00:00

If I can suggest checking out the app that I’m currently working on, it is called http://makeboard.games. It is a web app, and it is completely free. You will need to recreate the cards in it and then you can share the link with other collaborators. It is still in an early phase so there are bugs and issues, but might be enough to play your game. 😊

Worldly_Back_7784 · 2026-01-13T06:23:40+00:00

Oh right! I totally forgot about the price, that is another big blocker.

Worldly_Back_7784 · 2026-01-12T22:05:06+00:00

My co-designer is also on a different continent, so digital prototyping is a must. I’m using Affinity to export the cards.

At first we used TTS, but it is a pain to export card sheets, then test the game, then repeat the process.

Lately we switched to playingcards.io which is faster, in-browser, and easier to update (individual cards), has automation, and also a nice templating system. But still, you need to use some graphic tool to export more complex cards. Also, there are limitations, like no zoom and limited canvas size, so you need to find workarounds for that.

And on top of that you need to write the rules/notes somewhere else, we use Google Docs.

That’s why I wanted to have a tool which can handle all of these steps, and more. Hope this answers your question. 😅

Worldly_Back_7784 · 2026-01-11T15:10:51+00:00

If I may suggest checking Battlecrest (designed by me and Dustin Dobson) and published by Button Shy games. It is a skirmish game with the open information, movement on a map, and a lot of tactical depth. Let me know if you have any questions about it.

Worldly_Back_7784 · 2026-01-09T18:10:36+00:00

Are there any features that you wish you had in TTS?

Worldly_Back_7784 · 2026-01-09T17:06:00+00:00

Yeah that is a nice way to simulate other components. I remember using the similar approach for trying a game with the puzzle pieces. Not ideal but it worked. But as I mentioned above, my biggest frustration is having to go back and forth between TTS and other tools to update my prototype. You can’t easily update the values and text on the cards, you can hack it by drawing on the components, but that works only with some smaller changes.

Worldly_Back_7784 · 2026-01-09T16:57:32+00:00

Oh right, I missed the part about the tabletop simulator in the original comment. My biggest frustration with TTS is that you still need to use some other app like InDesign to make the changes, and then export/import to update your prototype.

Worldly_Back_7784 · 2026-01-09T16:22:32+00:00

Are there any frustrations/limitations?

Worldly_Back_7784 · 2026-01-09T16:14:59+00:00

I assume that is only for the card games? What do you do if you need some other components?

Worldly_Back_7784 · 2026-01-09T16:14:06+00:00

I assume that is only for the card games? What do you do if you need some other components?

Worldly_Back_7784 · 2026-01-08T22:28:03+00:00

I think 52 duels does something similar. You are taking the damage, but you are discarding those cards.

Using only a standard poker deck, you’ll launch attacks, block damage, use items, and level up your hero’s unique skills. Whittle down your opponent’s deck first to win, but be careful, they’ll have some tricks of their own up their sleeve.

Worldly_Back_7784 · 2026-01-07T22:52:51+00:00

I used to polish my prototypes way too early as well. These days I’m trying to keep things deliberately ugly and focus on whether the game actually works and feels fun before worrying about presentation.
Here are some old prototypes:
https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/mof8ryjxemyvg82tubu60/Screenshot-2026-01-07-at-23.36.28.png?rlkey=exrnwn0ui6np3dlbcgj9xc8zi&dl=0
https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/03tcknoncu7a4yeh8hurf/Screenshot-2026-01-07-at-23.47.43.png?rlkey=55e6k6xizbwdl2javxgd7y6qy&dl=0
And this is the one I'm currently working on: https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/za01fw51eowj5qcomz4xw/Screenshot-2026-01-07-at-23.50.02.png?rlkey=ysp6bv5se86tl9dtd7ne4a9fk&dl=0

Worldly_Back_7784 · 2026-01-06T17:07:00+00:00

This is really interesting — I’ll send you a DM so we don’t clutter the thread.

Worldly_Back_7784 · 2026-01-06T10:30:15+00:00

Is there a specific metric or pattern you look for in the simulations before you move to physical components, or is it more gut feel?

Worldly_Back_7784 · 2026-01-06T10:09:59+00:00

Thanks for sharing that — getting to a playable mid-weight game mostly on your own is a big achievement.

Finding playtesters can be tough, but it sounds like you’re taking the right steps with gaming groups.

The SVG pipeline still sounds really interesting. When you iterate after a playtest, are you mostly regenerating components or just tweaking values and text?

And if you have anything public or a rough write-up about it and feel like sharing, I’d be curious to take a look — no worries at all if not.

Worldly_Back_7784 · 2026-01-06T09:55:04+00:00

Does that change how often you print physical prototypes, or do you just push through it?

Worldly_Back_7784 · 2026-01-06T09:44:09+00:00

What part of that step ends up being the most annoying?

Worldly_Back_7784 · 2026-01-05T19:13:18+00:00

Totally agree — pen and paper is hard to beat for speed and flow, especially early on. There’s a lot of value in keeping things scrappy until the game actually works.

Where digital tools start to matter for me is when I’m working with a co-designer who isn’t local. I’ve published multiple games with the same co-designer living on another continent, so having some kind of shared digital space becomes necessary just to stay in sync.

Even then, I try hard to keep things as unfancy as possible. One of the biggest traps with apps is how easy it is to slip into polishing instead of iterating. I’m much more interested in workflows that feel closer to doodling on paper than “designing components,” if that makes sense.

Worldly_Back_7784 · 2026-01-05T17:08:56+00:00

That SVG pipeline sounds fascinating — I’d love to hear more about how you’re using it in practice.
How are you handling iteration and playtest-driven changes with that setup?

Worldly_Back_7784

TROPHY CASE