How to playtest a game with your family (without hurt feelings)
Every game gets better by being played. Professional designers playtest their games dozens or even hundreds of times. Family members make great playtesters: they’re available, they’re honest (sometimes too honest), and kids especially will tell you the moment they’re bored.
The tricky part is keeping it fun and making sure nobody, designer or tester, ends up upset.
Before you play
Say what you’re testing. “I want to know if the game is too long” gets better feedback than “What do you think?”
Remind everyone it’s unfinished. Say it out loud: “This is a test version. It’s supposed to have problems. Finding them is the whole point.”
If your child is the designer, prepare them. Feedback can feel like criticism. Agree beforehand that testers are helping, and that the designer decides what to change.
During the game
Watch more than you talk. The designer’s job during a playtest is to observe. Notice:
- Where people hesitate or look confused
- When they start checking phones or fidgeting
- What makes them laugh or cheer
- Rules they get wrong (that usually means the rule is unclear, not that the player is wrong)
Don’t explain your way out of problems. If a tester is confused, resist jumping in with “No, what I meant was…”. Write it down. In the real world, the designer won’t be there to explain.
Keep notes. A sticky note pad next to the board works great. Kids can be the official note-taker for a game someone else designed.
After the game
Ask questions in this order:
- “What was your favourite moment?” Start positive. It also tells you what to protect when you make changes.
- “Was there a moment you were bored or confused?” Specific moments are more useful than opinions.
- “If you could change one rule, what would it be?” Kids love this question and often have brilliant answers.
How to give feedback to a young designer
When your child has made the game, you’re the playtester. A few things help:
- Describe what happened, not whether it’s good. “I had nothing to do for three turns” is useful. “This part is boring” hurts.
- Ask, don’t fix. “What could make waiting more fun?” lets them solve it.
- Notice the good stuff out loud. “I loved when the dragon card came out!”
- Play again after they change something. Nothing shows you took their work seriously like coming back for round two.
The golden rule
Change one thing at a time. If you change five rules between tests, you won’t know which one made the game better or worse.
New to designing? Start with how to make a board game with your kids in one afternoon.