Playtesting?
 

Hello,

I wanted to ask when playtesting would begin for the new edition, and what is the process for becoming a playtester for the new edition. As a fan of HG since the beginning, I really want to do my part to help the new edition be as good as it possibly can be. Please let me know if there is any way I can contribute to this. Thanks.

Re: Playtesting?
 

Check out the Pyramid article here. All the playtesting information is there. And, more than likley, you will have to have a Pyramid subscription to be involved in a playtest.

Re: Playtesting?
 

So standard set up for play testing then. You have to pay for the privilege to donate time and effort to make the game better, thus improving their sales.

That's something about SJG that I've never liked.

Re: Playtesting?
 

Wow.

I look at it more that they’re interested in people who are willing to help support the company instead of just some Joe-random off the street. Seriously, it’s $20 a year for a Pyramid subscription. And it’s not that you’re donating time and effort: they do compensate you for your time with a comp copy of the book.

I think (and this is just speculation) that the reason they limit it to Pyramid subscribers is to limit the number of people who are just looking for a “free” copy of the book.

Re: Playtesting?
 

You could, I don't know, actually read the webzine?

Re: Playtesting?
 

To be very clear: not every playtester is guaranteed a comp copy. There are usually many more playtesters than comps available, and some combination of the author, editor, lead playtester, and Kromm often end up having to make hard decisions about which playtesters get comps and which don't.

As for the other criticism: if you want to consider the cost of a Pyramid subscription as an entry fee for playtesting, that's your privilege, but SJG has always thought of access to playtesting as an added benefit of the Pyramid subscription, not the main attraction. People who subscribe to Pyramid solely for the playtests are cheating themselves out of a great weekly webzine.

Re: Playtesting?
 

The playtesting procedure hasn't yet been announced, but I would be surprised if it were very different from a standard Pyramid playtest as described above.

Re: Playtesting?
 

Well, is there a way to submit my e-mail to SJGames, so that when the playtest is announced, so I can get in on it right away? I don't mind paying for Pyramid then, when the playtest is announced, if that needs to happen.

Re: Playtesting?
 

Not under the current procedure. They start looking for playtesters when a playtest is announced, not before.

Re: Playtesting?
 

Yes. Subscribe to Pyramid.

Re: Playtesting?
 

I actually knew that, I just didn't think to include it. My apologies.

Quoted for truth.
I have a Pyramid subscription for a lot of reasons. Only one of them is the possiblity that I could be involved in another play-test. However, with the Heavy Gear playtest potentially coming up soon, I made sure to re-up with time to spare.

Re: Playtesting?
 

Well, for me, I'm willing to pay for Pyramid to be part of the playtest, but that's mainly because I love Heavy Gear, and have been waiting for the story to continue...however, I can understand lordmalachdrim's point...in particular, because I'd be getting Pyramid solely for this purpose...I don't play any other Steve Jackson games, so the additional content of the webzine sadly goes to waste for me. I'm sure it's good stuff, and for people who play lots of Steve Jackson games a good value...just for me, I'm only getting it for one purpose.

I signed up for Pyramid though, so hopefully I'll be able to get into the playtest when it's announced. ^_^

Re: Playtesting?
 

There are articles for non-SJG games pretty often, and your subscription gives you access to the complete Pyramid archives, so it's not quite as bad a deal as you seem to think.

Re: Playtesting?
 

I had a pyramid subscription and never really found it to be worth it. I'll admit the price is decent and the ability to go over all the old articles was nice too, but I didn't find it very useful for the games I run. (Mostly HackMaster, Palladium, Alternity, Heavy Gear, and Shadowrun)

Which makes signing up for the mag basically a fee to play test. Others will pay the fee, and to them I have nothing but thanks for making the game better.

Me, though I'd love to play test it, it would mean paying for Pyramid, dropping one of my games that are going well, putting a lot of time in to give it a real work out. And in the end I probably will have to wait a few months after it comes out to pick it up since money's tight as is and the 20% price hike by most rpg manufactures is not helping.

Re: Playtesting?
 

As someone who's not really in the game business but have been a gamer for a few decades I have spoken to plenty of guys from different companies who have regretted not having some sort of filter to seperate people who want to really want to playtest from those had good intentions to playtest but just never got around to it. The recent tightening of the economic purse strings everywhere coupled with the inflation that's been going on for the last couple years is going to mean it's even more important than ever to keep the 'undesirables' out of the playtest pool because dedicating resources to them is just a waste.

If that means that some very good candidates for playtesting are excluded it's a pity to be sure but with any risk/gain relationship the businessman has to make that calculated decision of what is the optimal course.