Player interviews & moderated playtests through PlaytestCloud are conducted through our in-house video call system. It is fairly similar to most video calling services out there with a few added features. The players experience will be slightly different to your own experience as an interviewer. Therefore, we created this article to help you understand the players perspective and allow you to quickly troubleshoot any issues they might encounter during the interview allowing you to spend more time on the important questions.
Sections in this article:
Before the Interview/Moderated Playtest
Player interviews & moderated playtests through PlaytestCloud are conducted through our in-house video call system. It is fairly similar to most video calling services out there with a few added features.
Once you place an order for the playest suitable players will receive email invitiations asking them to sign up to slots. After the player has signed up to a slot they will receive a confirmation email with details of the playtest.
Players will receive a reminder email 10 minutes before the interview/moderated playtest start time with the invite link that will allow them to join the Interview or Moderated Playtest.
Important: All players including your own players, accept an NDA before joining the interview. Any information shared during the interview is confidential.
After accepting the NDA players will be onboarded to the playtest. For interview playtests, the player will not be asked to install any game before the interview. In moderated playtests, they will also be asked to download the game at this stage.
Once players have completed the onboarding they will see the screen below with a yellow Join Interview button.
Joining the Interview/Moderated Playtest as a player
Players will enter a video call lobby upon joining the interview. They will wait here until admitted by an interviewer. If the player leaves and rejoins the interview, they will join the lobby again and will need to be readmitted to the interview - they will not automatically rejoin the interview.
The players UI options
After being admitted to the interview/moderated playtest, players will see the following options from left to right in the action bar at the bottom of the screen:
Switch on/off microphone button
Switch on/off camera button
Start/stop screen sharing button
A red End button to leave the call
The different camera feeds from the player perspective
Which camera feed is in the center for the player?
In the center of the players screen they will always see the interviewers camera feed. If you (the interviewer) are sharing your screen, they will see what you're sharing in the center instead.
If the interviewer has their camera feed turned off, the player will see the interviewers camera feed represented by the PlaytestCloud researcher icon against a blue background:
Which camera feeds are on the top right for the player?
The player will see their own camera feed in the top right.
If the player has turned off their camera, they will see their camera feed represented by the PlaytestCloud monster icon against a yellow background:
Screen share as a player
For interview playtests, the player will not be asked to install any game before the interview. In moderated playtests, they will be asked to download the game you shared before joining.
If you want to watch the player play the game ask the player to start screen sharing by clicking the screen share button next to the red End button at the bottom of their screen. You can also ask the player to share their device audio along with their screen.
Once the player clicks the screen share button they will be shown the following screen:
To begin screen sharing players need to click the Start Broadcast button. Once the player clicks this button a three second countdown will begin on the players screen and the Screen Broadcast icon a will change from white to red. At the end of this countdown you will be able to see the players screen.
After the player begins screen sharing, they should tap on any open space on the screen to open the screen sharing options menu. From there, they can access the interview UI, share their device audio, and switch to the game (if it's a moderated playtest).
Share Device Audio: Ask the player to enable this option if hearing the in-game audio is important for your interview/moderated playtest. If using this option ask the player to make sure their device is not on silent mode.
Switch to Game: This button is only shown for moderated playtests where you shared a game while setting up the playtest. Clicking on this automatically redirects the player to your game/prototype.
Stop Screen Sharing for Players: The button located in the action bar to the left of the red End button, similar to the one in the interviewer's interface, is how the player can start/stop screen sharing. You will be able to see their entire screen when this option is enabled.
Playing the game/prototype
For moderated playtests, once players are on the screen sharing options menu, they simply need to click the Switch to game button.
This will automatically redirect them to your game/prototype, where they can then begin playing.
While playing, the game/prototype will occupy the entire screen, so the player won't see the interviewer's camera or the interview UI. The interviewer, however, will be able to see the player's camera feed (if enabled) and also the screen shared video of the game/prototype.
Returning to the PlaytestCloud App
To go back to the PlaytestCloud App after playing the game or prototype, players will need to switch applications. Usually, this can be done by swiping up from the bottom of the screen on Android and iPhone to view all open apps. However, the method might vary depending on the player's phone settings.