Playtest Validation

Playtest Validation

When Playtest Is NOT Required

Skip playtest for:

• Test infrastructure bugfixes (unit tests, E2E tests, build fixes)
• Non-gameplay tasks (CI/​CD, tooling, documentation)
• Backend-only changes without visual impact

Playtest IS required for:

• Gameplay mechanics (movement, shooting, physics)
• Visual features (shaders, materials, effects)
• UI/​UX changes (HUD, menus, interactions)
• Character/​weapon behavior
• Multiplayer features

Playtest Initiation

Triggers (any of these):

• .claude/​session/​retrospective.txt contains "[ ] Request playtest"
• prd.json.session.currentTask.status = "playtest_phase"
• PM sends playtest_session_request message

When ANY trigger is true, initiate playtest flow:

⚠️ CRITICAL RULES:

1. Playwright MCP REQUIRED - NO manual testing alternatives
2. Screenshot Evidence - At least 3: start, during, end
3. Vision MCP Analysis - Game state detection, GDD compliance validation
4. Send playtest_report - MUST be sent to PM FIRST

Non-negotiable evidence in playtest_report:

• Screenshots saved to .claude/​session/​screenshots/​playtest-{taskId}-*.png
• Vision MCP game state analysis performed
• At least one continuous movement test (WASD pattern with key down/​up)
• GDD compliance validation completed
• playtest_report message sent to PM

If Playwright MCP unavailable:

• Send question to PM immediately: "Playwright MCP unavailable - cannot playtest"
• DO NOT attempt manual testing workaround

Playtest Process

Step 1: Setup

# Start the dev server
Bash("npm run dev:all:sh")

# Wait for "Vite ready" and "Colyseus server listening" in output

Step 2: Launch Game via Playwright

// Navigate to game (detect port first: netstat -an | grep LISTEN | grep -E ":(3000|3001|5173|8080)")
await page.goto('http://localhost:3000');
await page.waitForLoadState('networkidle');

// Capture initial state
await page.screenshot({ path: 'screenshots/​playtest-start.png' });

Step 3: Test Core Mechanics

For each mechanic in GDD:

// Test movement
await page.keyboard.down('KeyW');
await page.waitForTimeout(1000);
await page.keyboard.up('KeyW');

// Test interaction
await page.click('[data-testid="interact-button"]');

// Test combat
await page.click('[data-testid="attack-button"]');

// Capture state
await page.screenshot({ path: 'screenshots/​mechanic-tested.png' });

Step 4: Validate vs GDD

For each GDD requirement:

• Implemented? (yes/​no/​partial)
• Matches design? (yes/​no/​deviates)
• Fun factor? (scale 1-5)
• Issues found?

Step 5: Document Findings

Create playtest report:

{
  "taskId": "feat-001",
  "playtestedAt": "2025-01-21T12:00:00Z",
  "gddCompliance": {
    "mechanic-name": {
      "status": "matches|deviates|missing",
      "notes": "Description"
    }
  },
  "deviations": [
    {
      "feature": "Mechanic name",
      "expected": "GDD description",
      "actual": "What happens in game",
      "severity": "low|medium|high",
      "screenshot": "path/​to/​evidence"
    }
  ],
  "issues": [
    {
      "type": "bug|missing|polish",
      "description": "Issue description",
      "severity": "low|medium|high|critical",
      "steps": "How to reproduce"
    }
  ],
  "screenshots": ["path/​to/​screenshot1.png", "path/​to/​screenshot2.png"],
  "overall": {
    "status": "pass|fail|partial",
    "funFactor": 4,
    "notes": "Overall assessment"
  }
}

Playwright MCP Usage

Starting the Game

Bash("npm run dev:all:sh")

// Navigate and wait for load
await page.goto('http://localhost:3000');
await page.waitForLoadState('networkidle');

Testing Controls

// Keyboard input
await page.keyboard.press('KeyW');
await page.keyboard.up('KeyW');

// Mouse input
await page.mouse.click(x, y);
await page.mouse.down();
await page.mouse.up();

// Touch simulation
await page.touchscreen.tap(x, y);

Continuous Movement (Critical for Games)

// For game character movement, use key down/​up patterns
// Single press() only simulates a quick tap

// Forward movement
await page.keyboard.down('KeyW');
await page.waitForTimeout(1000); // Move for 1 second
await page.keyboard.up('KeyW');

// Diagonal movement with sprint
await page.keyboard.down('KeyW');
await page.keyboard.down('KeyD');
await page.keyboard.down('ShiftLeft');
await page.waitForTimeout(2000);
await page.keyboard.up('ShiftLeft');
await page.keyboard.up('KeyD');
await page.keyboard.up('KeyW');

// Combo sequence
async function executeCombo(page, sequence) {
  for (const action of sequence) {
    await page.keyboard.down(action.key);
    await page.waitForTimeout(action.hold);
    await page.keyboard.up(action.key);
    await page.waitForTimeout(50); // Combo window
  }
}

// Three-hit melee combo
await executeCombo(page, [
  { key: 'KeyJ', hold: 100 },
  { key: 'KeyJ', hold: 100 },
  { key: 'KeyK', hold: 200 },
]);

Game State Detection (Vision MCP)

Use Vision MCP to analyze screenshots and determine current game state:

// Detect game state from screenshot
async function detectGameState(screenshotPath) {
  const analysis = await visionAnalyze(screenshotPath, {
    prompt: `Analyze this game screenshot and determine:
    1. Is this a menu screen, gameplay, game over, victory, or loading?
    2. What UI elements are visible? (HUD, health bar, minimap, inventory)
    3. Is the player character visible?
    4. Are there any error messages?

    Respond in JSON:
    {
      "state": "menu|playing|gameover|win|loading|error",
      "uiElements": ["hud", "healthBar", ...],
      "playerVisible": true|false,
      "details": "description"
    }`,
  });

  return JSON.parse(analysis);
}

// Usage during playtest
await page.screenshot({ path: 'playtest/​state-1.png' });
const state = await detectGameState('playtest/​state-1.png');
console.log('Current state:', state.state);

Visual GDD Compliance Validation

// Compare implementation against GDD visual requirements
async function validateVisualGDD(screenshotPath, gddRequirement) {
  const analysis = await visionAnalyze(screenshotPath, {
    prompt: `According to this GDD requirement:
    "${gddRequirement}"

    Does the screenshot match? Check:
    1. Required elements are present
    2. Visual style is correct
    3. Colors/​theme match specification
    4. Layout is as described

    Return {
      "matches": true|false,
      "deviations": [
        { "element": "name", "expected": "spec", "actual": "observed" }
      ],
      "severity": "low|medium|high"
    }`,
  });

  return JSON.parse(analysis);
}

// Example: Validate character appearance
const characterGDD = 'A knight in silver armor with blue cape, holding sword';
const result = await validateVisualGDD('playtest/​character.png', characterGDD);

Screenshot Comparison Analysis

// Compare current state with baseline or previous state
async function comparePlaytestStates(beforePath, afterPath) {
  const comparison = await visionAnalyze([beforePath, afterPath], {
    prompt: `Compare these two gameplay screenshots.
    Image 1 is BEFORE the action.
    Image 2 is AFTER the action.

    What changed?
    1. Did player position change?
    2. Did UI elements change (health, score, ammo)?
    3. Are there new visual effects?
    4. Any bugs or glitches visible?

    Return {
      "playerMoved": true|false,
      "uiChanges": ["health decreased", "score increased", ...],
      "newEffects": ["explosion", "particle", ...],
      "issues": ["list of visual problems"]
    }`,
  });

  return JSON.parse(comparison);
}

Monitoring State

// Get console messages
page.on('console', (msg) => {
  console.log(msg.text());
});

// Get page content
const content = await page.content();

Capturing Evidence

// Screenshot
await page.screenshot({
  path: 'screenshots/​evidence.png',
  fullPage: true,
});

// PDF
await page.pdf({
  path: 'report.pdf',
});

// Video (if supported)
// Start recording before gameplay

Validation Categories

Functional Validation

Does the feature work as intended?

• Mechanic functions correctly
• Inputs register properly
• Outputs are correct
• Edge cases handled

Design Validation

Does it match the GDD?

• Mechanics match description
• Visuals match art style
• Audio matches sound design
• UX matches specifications

Experience Validation

Is it fun?

• Game feels good
• Feedback is satisfying
• Challenge is appropriate
• Flow is engaging

Common Issues to Check

Playtest Report Template

# Playtest Report - [Task Name]

**Date:** YYYY-MM-DD
**Tester:** Game Designer Agent
**GDD Version:** X.X.X

## Summary

[Overall assessment]

## GDD Compliance

| Mechanic | Status   | Notes     |
| -------- | -------- | --------- |
| [Name]   | ✅/❌/⚠️ | [Details] |

## Deviations Found

| Feature | Expected | Actual   | Severity       |
| ------- | -------- | -------- | -------------- |
| [Name]  | [GDD]    | [Actual] | [High/​Med/​Low] |

## Issues Found

| ID  | Type   | Description   | Severity | Status |
| --- | ------ | ------------- | -------- | ------ |
| 1   | [Type] | [Description] | [Level]  | [Open] |

## Recommendations

1. [Improvement 1]
2. [Improvement 2]
3. [Improvement 3]

## Screenshots

![Screenshot 1](path/​to/​ss1.png)
![Screenshot 2](path/​to/​ss2.png)

Sending Playtest Report

After completing playtest, use Write tool to send message to PM's inbox:

// Use Write tool to send message:
Write(
  '.claude/​session/​messages/​pm/​msg-playtest-{timestamp}.json',
  JSON.stringify({
    id: 'msg-playtest-{timestamp}',
    from: 'gamedesigner',
    to: 'pm',
    type: 'playtest_report',
    priority: 'high',
    payload: {
      // Include all findings from playtest
    },
    timestamp: '{UTC-timestamp}',
    status: 'pending',
  })
);

Retrospective Participation

When retrospective initiated:

1. Play the game - Full playthrough if possible
2. Test each mechanic - Systematic validation
3. Capture evidence - Screenshots of key moments
4. Compare vs GDD - Note all deviations
5. Document findings - Comprehensive report
6. Send report - To PM via message
7. Write to retrospective.txt - Team contribution

Playtest Checklist

Before completing playtest:

• All core mechanics tested
• Edge cases explored
• Screenshots captured (before/​after for key actions)
• Game state detection verified via Vision MCP
• Visual GDD compliance validated via Vision MCP
• Console checked for errors
• Performance monitored
• GDD compliance validated
• Findings documented
• Report sent to PM

---

Visual Quality Assessment Criteria (Added: ui-001 Playtest)

Learned from ui-001 playtest: Functionally complete UI can still be visually inadequate for shipping.

Visual Quality Assessment Matrix

Visual Quality Levels

When to Issue CONDITIONAL_PASS

Use CONDITIONAL_PASS when:

• All functional requirements work correctly
• Core mechanics are playable
• Visual design is functional but lacks polish
• UI looks prototype-like, not production-ready

Mandatory Actions on CONDITIONAL_PASS:

1. Document specific visual gaps in report
2. Create dedicated visual redesign task (TIER_0_BLOCKER if UI is primary feature)
3. Create specification document for redesign
4. Block original task completion until visual redesign done

Example:

{
  "result": "CONDITIONAL_PASS",
  "functionalStatus": "PASS",
  "visualStatus": "NEEDS_REDESIGN",
  "gaps": [
    "No 16:9 aspect ratio enforcement",
    "Basic Tailwind styling instead of custom design",
    "Generic fonts instead of gaming typography",
    "No custom easing curves for animations"
  ],
  "recommendation": "BLOCK until visual design addressed",
  "newTask": {
    "id": "ui-002",
    "title": "Professional UI/​UX Redesign",
    "priority": "TIER_0_BLOCKER"
  }
}