Alternate Dimension Portal/ Test Plans

Fresh Force
Alternate Dimension Portal/ Test Plans
Full Sail University/ Usability
2/27/2015
Prepared by:
Tracy Walker
Corey Willis
Steven Oreskovich Jr.
Ryan Horbal

Executive Summary
The objective of the test was to find casual non-hardcore gamers of varying ages and have
them playtest Alternate Dimension Portal to find errors and provide feedback regarding
the game. We found 6 participants to perform the test and answer questions. Their age
ranges varied with the youngest being 18 years old and the oldest being 38 years old, with
males and females included. Using these particular participants allowed us to find certain
barriers that the game might have and provide the project team with a way to answer the
questions they have and to show them any issues that are occurring in their game.
During this testing procedure we had each participant test out every level that currently
exists within Alternate Dimension Portal. From there we recorded all information and data
that we could acquire from each of the tests. During the tests if a test participant took
longer than 10 to 15 minutes on one level, due to a bug, we would instruct them to move on
and we would record all the information and unknown bugs that were found in the level up
to that point.
The analysis of each participant pointed out several heuristics that the game had issues
with. During these playtests, we were able to notice a certain trend in bugs or progress
blockers that our testers encountered. By analyzing the commonalities, we were able to
discover some of the common roadblocks that players would encounter, and determine
what key heuristics they were missing. As a result, this allowed us to pinpoint the core
problems, and suggest solutions that would rectify these issues.

Testing Methodology
The testing for Alternate Dimension Portal took place over a period of four days. February
24, 2015 - February 27, 2015. During this testing, six participants, with varying gaming
backgrounds, tested the game while a student of team “Fresh Force” from the Game
Usability class at Full Sail University recorded the results of each test. Each student was
given an early prototype executable file to use in order to give the tests to the participants.
When the play test first started the participants were asked to answer four questions based
on what they experienced through the opening of the executable and the layout and
interface of the main menu. Once the play test was over the participants were once again
asked to answer a series of eight questions based on their overall experience of the game.
The students of team “Fresh Force” each recorded information when they were hosting the
play tests. Each student recorded the amount of lives needed to complete a level, the time
needed to complete the level, and the number of times that each level was restarted before
the play tester was able to complete each level. At the end of the playtest session the four
members of team “Fresh Force” collated all of the information and added it into a single
table and created an average column for each of the sections. The team members also
recorded any and all bugs that each of the play testers encountered throughout the entirety
of the testing session.

Integrated Test Participants Demographics
Table 1: Participants
Participant
1
Participant
2
Participant
3
Participant
4
Participant
5
Participant 6
Gender Male Male Male Male Female Female
Age 38 18 24 22 21 33
Gaming
Experience
Casual Casual Casual Casual Non -
Gamer
Casual
Favorite
Game/s
Last of Us
and
Tomb
Raider
Grand
Theft
Auto 5
and
The Crew
Mass
Effect and
Skyrim
Bioshock
and Zelda:
OoT
Disney
Tsum
Tsum App
Final
Fantasy XI
and
Borderlands
Total Time
Played
100
minutes
67
minutes
32
minutes
37
minutes
79
minutes
53
minutes

Impression Questions
*The numbers that are listed under each question represent the participant that answered the question.
Q: How well does the navigation of the screen give the player direction?
1. It does not give a “how to play” menu. No tutorial. Only a start, credits, exit nothing
else. Full Name is not apparent
2. The simplicity of the layout makes it easy to understand what you are doing.
3. I think the menu screen displays clearly that the game is a ‘puzzle platformer’
because the assets from in game are displayed clearly.
4. It looks like a side scroller platformer. It also looks like it has to do with teleporting
or time travel due to the portal on screen.
5. The Direction is simple and to the point.
6. The menu navigation is “pretty basic” and is easy to read and understand.
Q: How do you feel about the layouts that were used for the introduction and title
screen?
1. I feel they tried to go with horror and funny. Not in a direction of the game. Does not
display what genre it can be. Font off balance.
2. They all seem very well made.
3. I feel that the text options are laid out well and spaced evenly without obstructing
anything in the background.
4. They are simple and easy to navigate. It looks like it shows a lot about the game
without giving anything crucial away.
5. The layout is easy to understand.
6. They look “comic book like” but are easy to read and they look good.
Q: At first glance, what other games does this remind you of, and how does it seem
similar?
1. Not sure hard to tell what I am looking at. Beds up at the top and crates at bottom.
Not sure of a title that can come to mind.

2. The game reminds me of a 2d version of Portal. This is because of the way that the
portal on the main menu is similar to the portals used in the Portal series.
3. The game reminds me of portal, due to its platforming nature and the usage of
portals.
4. The game kind of reminds me of Portal style.
5. It kind of reminds me of the escape game.
6. It reminds me of an underground area in Mario Brothers and Castlevania for NES.
Q: By looking at the title screen, what type of game do you think this is and what do
you think the objective is?
1. The name does not tell me what type of game it is. Is this a fighting game? It is hard
to tell with the letters if it is a sci-fi or some form of a comedy game.
2. I think you have to find your way around to the portal to advance any.
3. I believe it is a ‘puzzle platformer’ based on the platforms and the presence of a
portal.
4. Side scroller platformer and to somehow reach the portals to go to a different time.
5. Fighting game. I think the objective is to get to one part of a universe to another.
6. When I first look at it looks to be a puzzle type game but I do not know if it is a
comedy type or a sci-fi type game.

Data Collection
DNF: Did not finish
Table 2: Time needed to complete levels:
Levels Participant
1
Participant
2
Participant
3
Participant
4
Participant
5
Participant
6
Average
1 6:30 3:33 1:18 2:22 8:56 4:18 4:29
2 4:55 2:58 2:21 4:29 4:45 7:17 4:27
3 7:10 2:41 2:26 2:52 9:48 1:16 4:22
4 11:00 DNF 6:21 7:01 14:45 9:15 9:40
5 14:00 DNF DNF DNF DNF DNF 14:00
6 7:00 3:25 DNF 11:27 18:12 6:53 9:23
7 5:39 5:05 5:58 DNF 7:52 2:26 5:24
8 13:45 4:47 6:48 DNF 14:19 12:29 10:25
Table 3: Lives needed to complete levels:
Levels Participant
1
Participant
2
Participant
3
Participant
4
Participant
5
Participant
6
Average
1 0 3 2 1 5 2 2.17
2 0 0 0 4 3 1 1.33
3 2 2 2 3 7 0 2.67
4 2 7 3 7 15 4 6.33
5 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
6 9 7 8 11 18 5 9.67
7 2 5 6 6 11 3 5.5
8 2 4 0 3 6 5 3.33

Table 4: Restarts needed to complete levels:
Levels Participant
1
Participant
2
Participant
3
Participant
4
Participant
5
Participant
6
Average
1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
2 0 1 0 0 1 1 .5
3 2 0 0 0 0 0 2
4 4 4 0 1 3 5 3.17
5 6 7 DNF DNF DNF DNF 6.5
6 3 0 DNF 3 5 1 2.4
7 5 0 3 DNF 4 2 2.8
8 2 0 4 DNF 2 3 2.2

Exploratory Questions
*The numbers that are listed under each question represent the participant that answered the question.
Q: How do feel about the introduction to the instructions in level 1?
1. There was none. I do not see them. Did not pay attention to them until the question
was asked.
2. They informed me well but I had to get used to them since I was use to using W, S, A,
D.
3. I think the controls are clearly shown on the first level screen and in a location that
explains what they’re capable of.
4. It was informative but I felt it didn’t completely lay out exactly what each control
did.
5. I would have rather wanted to see an instruction tab on the home screen rather than
my first level playing the game.
6. I liked that there was a visual representation of the letters and the arrows. They
were in useful positions.
Q: How do you feel about the way that the portals into other dimensions change the
way that players experience the game?
1. Still stuck in a land of confusion. A lot of learning of the game. (Second time) It
throws the mood off from playing. (Third time) Too much. Distracting do not see
the point since it is a puzzle.
2. I think it made me and any other player think ahead to where the other boxes would
fall and where you need them to fall.
3. I enjoy that they add a layer of critical thinking and really add the ‘puzzles’ causing
you to be conscious of what you’re doing in the alternate dimension.
4. I like the portals moving between dimensions and the fact that they also have a
direct effect on what is happening in the other dimension.
5. I like the portals that switch to other dimensions. They are the key aspect of the way
the game is played.

6. Its cool how you can do something in one dimensions and it affects the other
dimensions. I also liked that you can go back and forth between them multiple
times.
Q: What is your opinion on the character’s ability to jump through the bottom of
some of the platforms while being unable to jump through others?
1. Pretty upset about it. Hard to tell the materials of when you can or cannot jump.
Very frustrating.
2. I think it showed an extra level of difficulty on some levels but made other easy.
3. I think it should be one or the other; unless it is clearly labeled.
4. I didn’t feel like it affected me at all.
5. I think there should be instructions explain that this thickness of platform is capable
of jumping thru but this thickness isn’t. To me it just seems as this level has a glitch.
6. It was frustrating not knowing which platform I could jump down through and
which ones I could not jump through.
Q: What are your thoughts about the way that the boxes and other objects were
connected to each other throughout the different dimensions in the level?
1. Just now noticed it in level 3, did not know that it was actually happening. Cool
concept. Art really needs to be worked on.
2. It added an extra level of difficulty to the game.
3. I think that it sets a consistent theme/objective for the game.
4. I liked how that added to the puzzle aspect of the game and made it a more
complicated puzzle.
5. I didn’t really see how the color on the boxes had an importance, unless there was a
rule explaining I was really unsure.
6. I likes that what you do in one dimension directly affects the other.
Q: In what ways do the limited lives affect your play experience?
1. Do not know how to respond to that. Wish there was a save button but not having a
lot to the game it really does not matter

2. A bug made it to where I had infinite lives so no matter how many times I died I was
able to reset.
3. It causes me to pay more attention to what I’m doing during each level.
4. I feel like you lose lives to easily and it becomes unforgiving.
5. It doesn’t give me the chance to explore and have a feel for how the game works.
6. It didn’t.
Q: What do you think about the way the designers informed players of the different
functions of pressure plates?
1. There are none. Not sure about the functions at all just figured out that the boxes
needed to go on them. They work by bits and pieces.
2. I think they made it to where you had to think ahead with what you were doing and
going to do especially on the levels where there were multiple plates.
3. I think that the button that activates the platform should be more distinguishable
from each other. I kept confusing them for each other.
4. I didn’t feel like I was informed but had to solve it out on my own.
5. There was no information on how the pressure plates functioned. I was confused
and then I eventually figured it out.
6. I was never informed on the pressure plates. I learned by experimenting.
Q: How do you feel about the controls for the game?
1. There is not much to the controls of the game. A lot of uncertainty to movements.
Artwork throws it off.
2. I feel that they suit the game but are not what some players are use to.
3. The controls could be tighter; the character felt ‘floaty’ and made it difficult to
execute certain jumps.
4. The controls are good. They easily are used in a way that you wont forget.
5. The controls are simple and easy to use. I like them.

6. The controls are the standard controls for PC games so there was no learning curve
needed to play the game. Because of playing Final Fantasy I wanted to constantly
use the directional keys to change the camera angle.
Q: What do you think about the lighting in the different levels?
1. Some levels are too dark. First two levels were all right. Too much uncertainty.
2. I think that there were levels where the lighting was good but other levels needed
improvement such as level seven.
3. The lighting was very dim in some of the levels. If the platforms and objects had
more contrast against the background then the dim lighting would not be an issue.
4. Some of the levels were on the dark side which made it difficult to play. I was unable
to see what was happening at different points.
5. The lighting decreased as the levels went on. It needs to be a little brighter in some
areas of the game, especially to see where the platforms are.
6. The lighting of some of the levels made it hard for some of the platforms to be seen.
Directive Questions
No Data Supplied

Issues
Issue: Third platform is preventing player from passing through..
Type: Game Play
Severity: Medium
Solution: This bug often prevented a player from passing through the third platform when
jumping off of the rock located beneath it. Players can move to the very edge of the rock
and jump up and over, but this is not obvious. Participant 3 was unable to get past this
section without becoming fairly frustrated. Participant 5 tried to push the blue box to the
edge of the rock platform, and jump up using that. If the intention is for the player to not be
able to pass through the corner of the platform, then an additional rock should be added to
help enforce this point. However, if they should be able to jump up from the rock, then it
may help to extend the 2nd platform that the player is standing upon, and give the player
more room to make the jump.

Issue: Red Box on Level 5 will not fall, preventing players from progressing.
Type: QA
Severity: Critical
Reproduction: This bug seemed to occur more often when the player had died or reset
multiple times in previous levels, and occurred repeatedly across Participant 3, 4, and 5’s
tests, barring all progress. The bug becomes noticeable when the player first encounters
the red box in level 5, and it should be noted that the first red box is exceedingly difficult to
push (takes a long time to push) before this bug manifests.

Issue: Player falls through map when trying to jump onto ledge during level 4.
Type: QA
Severity: Critical
Reproduction: The fastest way to reproduce this issue is to start out a new game on level
4. Once on level 4 you need to go to the alternate dimension and make your way to the top.
After you reach the top you need to move the green box so that the corresponding box in
the original dimension drops. Once back in the original dimension, when trying to jump
from the box to the ledge above the player will occasionally fall through the bottom of the
map.

Issue: On level four players can no longer jump through green box.
Type: QA
Severity: Medium
Reproduction: To reproduce this issue you need to make the green crate in level 4’s
original dimension fall on the lower platform. Once you have made the crate fall you need
to go back to the original dimension and try to get your player to jump onto the ledge
above. If the player fails and lands on the edge on the crate there is a chance that the model
will fall through the box and will no longer be able to interact with the crate.

Issue: No change of the dimension in Level 2
Type: QA
Severity: Critical
Reproduction: When the player goes into the alternate dimension and then jumps into the
portal to go back to the original, the dimension does not change views. You can see your
character in the mini-map in the bottom right hand corner and he can still move but you
need to have him jump back into the portal to see him back on the main screen. If you walk
into the portal this does not happen.

Issue: Player gets “stuck” in the wall in Level 4
Type: QA
Severity: Low
Reproduction: In level 4 get to the platform where the exit door is located. Walk from the
door to the left to the end of the platform. You will get to a point where your player will get
stuck and keep making the walking sound while the character remains in a “ball” shape.

Issue: Level 7 the player dropped in the water below where he was supposed to die and
was still alive and jumping/ also notice that the lighting had changed and dimmed over
time
Type: QA
Severity: Medium
Reproduction: To reproduce this error the player reset the character several times. When
the player jumped on the platforms and fell into the water the player was still able to jump
and move. Also, the lighting dimmed over time. This picture shows it dimmed as well.

Issue: Player pushed the box slowing towards the wall in level 8 and box stays in the wall
or hover above the steam. Player drops and gets stuck
Type: QA
Severity: Critical
Reproduction: When the player is in the first dimension in level 8 on first screen, move
the player to the blue box. Slowly push the box towards the wall and you will see the error
occur.

Analyses of collected metrics
Each of the play testing sessions took approximately one hour and during the sessions all of
the participants had nearly the same occurrences on level progression. During the testing
we noticed that the first two levels of the game were easier than the rest of the game’s
levels. However as time went on we all started to notice that the test participants each were
having the most difficult time during levels four to six. After level six the only real
difficulties that we noticed the participants facing were all related to bugs. As a result we
noticed that the levels were not scaling evenly throughout the entirety of the game.
There were several different participants who were having issues with the lighting on
several of the levels. There was a comment stated by participant 1 regarding Level 3, here
is his quote: “Level 3 hard to see the visuals. Can't see myself. Level Confusing. Looks like
items I can jump on platforms but I can not tell.“ Participant 5 also stated that “The pillar
[activation icons] were hard to see.” Other issues that participants had were understanding
the objectives of the game and how they would like to see better information about how to
play the game. Quotes regarding this is “There is too much uncertainty to the game and
objectives to be apparent to character controls and what I am supposed to do.”
There are certain heuristics that we noticed between the participants as well as the team.
Looking at the first level there are directions on what keys are used to navigate. There are
arrows pointing down at the box, which has been causing confusion for the players. This
heuristics corresponds with user control and freedom because it shows an arrow pointing
downwards, which is resulting in the player jumping down on the box rather than having
them push the box sideways to the plates. Participant 5 stated that “The arrow is pointing
down, so I feel like it’s telling me to jump on the box.”
Visibility of system status is another heuristic that can provide Alternate Dimension Portal
a boost in understanding the gameplay. Both the team and participants took longer than
was needed before they were able to notice the mini-map. The arrow that was pointing to
the mini-map on level one did not properly show the player that there was a mini-map in
the corner of the screen that the player is supposed to take advantage of.

Recommendations
Alternate Dimension Portal has great potential in the game. There are several bugs in each
level that need to be worked out which this test provided those answers for the designers.
Below is a list of more recommendations taken by both the testing team and the testing
participants themselves.
● There were certain participants that were very confused in the gameplay and it
took awhile for them to understand the concept behind the portals and the boxes.
We feel that providing better direction in the beginning of the game and distinctly
labeling the objectives will help the gameplay be successful.
● We also think that there should be information on how many keys you have
collected or need to collect besides just having them say “1/1” when you pick up the
key. A list of collectible items could be shown via silhouette in the upper right
corner. These silhouettes would fill in once the item has been collected, showing the
player what they have collected, and what they still need.
● Players are having trouble noticing the connection between the colored boxes in
both dimensions. The boxes could be made more apparent by coloring larger
portions of the box, or adding symbols to the boxes that make it more obvious. This
would also help players actually see what’s happening to the box in the small mini-
map.
● In regards to showing the player that the boxes can be pushed, the development
team might want to add an image on the wall, similar to the ones used to show how
A, S, D, and space work. The image could be simple, and show a stick figure pushing
a box, with an arrow pointing in the direction that the box is being pushed.
● The mini-map should stand out a bit more they could do this by adding an outline
around it or something that will grab the attention to the player to look at while in
the other dimensions. We also had some participants say that the mini map should
larger in order to make it easier to see what you needed to do in the other
dimension.
● When the timer in the alternate dimensions reaches 10 seconds and turns red, it
would be helpful to have the screen flash red to make it more noticeable. We had a
few participants that would get very involved in figuring out the puzzle that they
would not pay any attention to the timer and would get frustrated when the timer
killed them. This could also be done by speeding up the flashes, and the tempo of the
sound that plays as the timer gets closer to 0.

Post Mortem
What we did correctly?
All participants were of a large range of age groups and consisted of non-gamers to casual
gamers. This provided great feedback for the game designers to analyze. Each team
member did a thorough playtest with each of the participants and received great feedback
regarding the game. Once all of the tests were completed we collaborated all of our findings
and found several issues that were all the same and experienced by several of the
participants. We also made sure that we were all able to incorporate all of the information
that we gathered while keeping the document properly organized.
What we did incorrectly?
When going over everything that could have been done incorrectly there was very little
that any of the members could think of. The biggest thing that any of us noticed ourselves
doing wrong was the fact that we probably gave the playtest participants some clues to the
gameplay experience. Even though during most of our playtests we remained quiet and left
the participants alone in order to give the participant time to figure out the game on their
own.
What would your team do different the next test session?
We all believe that we managed to complete our work in a professional manner with next
to no errors being made by any of the team members when completing the actual test
sessions. The one aspect that we believe that we could have improved upon is the
communication between our team and the development team.

References
Nielsen, J. (1995, January 1). 10 Heuristics for User Interface Design: Article by Jakob
Nielsen. Retrieved from http://www.nngroup.com/articles/ten-usability-heuristics/
U.S Department of Health & Human Services. (n.d.). Home | Usability.gov. Retrieved from
http://www.usability.gov/
Team Bravo. (2015). Alternate Dimension Portal (no version number) [PC]. Full Sail
University

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