Methods to Make Your Video Game Align With Compliance Standards
If you have ever played a video game and felt hooked, you must be aware of the instant dopamine boost it gives the player. No wonder online games have been rising in popularity since they came into existence. It attracted the attention of game developers and resulted in a string of ongoing gaming software across the globe.
Games call for an intuitive and appealing user interface like every other software product. That’s where gaming app testing comes into the picture. While online games are a massive hit among players, they have become a significant source of income for creators. For any online game to generate a whopping revenue, it has to live up to a certain standard.
Game testing enables the end product to comply with stability and performance expectations, industry standards, and manufacturer’s guidelines. With an increasing demand for immersive and personalized games, flawless performance has become the bare minimum.
However, aligning with compliance standards is easier said than done. For starters, your game-testing platform has to be top-notch. This post will look at the top methods to make your video game in line with compliance standards. Let’s dive into the details.
Top Methods to Make a Compliant Video Game
When an application reaches its Alpha milestone, it’s time to test again for compliance before submission. In this section, we will look at some methods that not only improve the reliability and efficiency of a game but also comply with the manufacturer’s rules. Let’s take a look.
Carefully Squint Through The Documentation
You must have come across plenty of projects without any documentation. But when it comes to gaming, manufacturers usually provide a detailed set of requirements in a lengthy document. Not only should you read it, but you should squint your eyes through every single detail to keep your process foolproof. The documentation has all the information about quests, levels, and everything related to the game. It helps you manage expectations and track every parameter with ease.
Even when you complete testing, this documentation will serve as a checklist to which you can compare your progress. Sometimes the quality assurance team can miss out on files that need an update. Game documentation and behavior can also contradict, meaning you might have to test again using a brand-new build.
Promptly Report Bugs
Reporting a bug should be your first instinct when you confirm a bug. Even if it takes extra time, don’t procrastinate finding the cause and entering it into the database. Overlooked bugs have a tendency to slip out of the tester’s mind. Keep them recorded as soon as possible to prevent them from reappearing post-release.
Use Various Peripheral Devices
There have been instances when a game didn’t work on a particular device but turned out fine on almost all other devices. In these types of cases, there are chances that the particular device the tester used at first was broken. It’s a good reason why you should test gaming apps on various peripheral devices. Never report the occurrence of a bug that is not even a bug in the first place.
Record The Process and Check Patterns
When you have a recording of the process that discovered the bugs, you can replicate it and check for patterns. To some extent, it also helps narrow down possibilities that lead to the reason behind the occurrence of a bug. There might be some redundant steps that you can even skip, which is another reason why a recording is so crucial. Moreover, since you already have to include them in bug reports, why not just collect screenshots and recordings anyway!
Check for Compatibility
You should always check the optimization of the user interface for different screen sizes and devices like smartphones, tablets, and desktops. This method also checks the game’s compatibility on multiple platforms. With compatibility testing, you can also detect and troubleshoot issues with hardware, software, and graphics. As a result, it leads to an optimal gaming experience for the end user.
Check Multiplayer Performance
Multiplayer performance is a crucial aspect you must verify since a multitude of gamers will be interacting in real-time within the game. Optimum multiplayer performance is integral to compliance since the players should protect against risks during interactivity.
Check Interface
A game’s interface is what the players deal with throughout the time they’re interacting with it—test whether the text and graphics are evident on all screen sizes. The images and videos should be appealing and crystal clear. Gaming controls should be smooth.
Additional Tips to AMP Up Your Compliance Game
All it takes is one error in a game to have an unfavorable impact on players. Some common defects include system crashes, freezing, and progression blocks. There are plenty of mediocre games out there. But if you want yours to set itself apart from the competition and rise to the level of PubG, flawless functionality and 100% compliance are the way to go.
Monitor factors such as the performance of transactions advertising campaigns and network latency
Use recorded test sessions to carry out UX testing
The critical KPIs you need to track to pass the compliance test include the following:
Crashes
Launch time
Mean opinion score of audio and video
Time to interaction
Memory usage
Frame rate
Battery usage
Conclusion
The ultimate goal of creating any game is to offer players a seamless experience. Adhering to compliance standards is an essential step to achieving this goal. Companies nowadays are using platforms that support Machine Learning models to resolve performance issues and identify malfunctions.
As a result, you’ll get a stable product before the first submissions, which can turn out to be cost-effective. Passing complaints also eliminates legal ramifications and prevents game rejections.
No manufacturer aspires to tarnish its reputation due to low-quality gaming products. That is why they come up with a set of stringent compliance rules along with basic quality standards. As QA professionals, it is our job to align with them. An experienced team needs to make sure to tick off all the boxes in the above checklist.
Source: https://gamegavel.com/methods-to-make-your-video-game-align-with-compliance-standards/