Creating Playtests

This guide covers everything you need to know about creating playtests, from choosing the right duration and player count to scheduling sessions and targeting specific playtesters.

Playtest Types

Singleplayer

A single playtester plays your game solo and records their session with voice commentary. This is the default and most common playtest type.

Multiplayer

Multiplayer playtests support up to 8 players per session. You specify how many players are needed, and only playtesters who have enough friends available will see the playtest. One video recording is produced per slot.

Each additional player adds a surcharge to the base price.

Durations & Pricing

Duration	Singleplayer Cost	Per Extra Player
30 minutes	$15	+$10
1 hour	$20	+$15
2 hours	$35	+$25
3 hours	$50	+$40

The playtester’s video must be at least as long as the selected duration.

Scheduling

When creating a playtest, you choose when it should happen:

Within 24 hours (default)

The playtester claims the slot and has 24 hours (or 72 hours for multiplayer) to complete and submit their video. This is the default behaviour and works well for most playtests.

At a scheduled time

If you want multiple playtesters to play at the same time — for example, to test a multiplayer lobby or to compare simultaneous first impressions — you can schedule the playtest for a specific date and time.

How scheduled playtests work:

• You select a date and time at least 12 hours in the future (up to 90 days out)
• The time is set in your timezone (configured in your profile settings)
• Playtesters see the scheduled time converted to their timezone
• When a playtester claims a scheduled slot, they see a confirmation modal explaining they must play at the exact scheduled time
• The submission deadline is the scheduled time + 24 hours (or +72 hours for multiplayer) — not from when they claimed
• Playtesters cannot submit their video before the scheduled time
• Any unclaimed slots are automatically closed when the scheduled time passes

Reminders: Playtesters who have claimed a scheduled playtest receive automatic reminders at 24 hours, 12 hours, and 1 hour before the scheduled time.

Tip: Scheduled playtests work for both singleplayer and multiplayer. Even for singleplayer, scheduling is useful if you want all playtesters to experience the same build state or server conditions.

Visibility

	Public	Private
Who sees it	Genre-matched playtesters	Genre-matched playtesters
Privacy	Video may be published on YouTube	Completely confidential
Video retention	Permanent (YouTube)	90 days (accepted), 30 days (rejected)

Your first playtest can be a free 30-minute public playtest — no credit card required.

Playtester Targeting

By default, your playtest is shown to all genre-matched playtesters. You can narrow this with targeting:

• All playtesters — shown to anyone whose tags match your game (default)
• New playtesters only — only shown to playtesters who have never done a playtest for you before
• Past playtesters only — only shown to playtesters who have previously completed a playtest for you
  • Any past playtester — all previous playtesters
  • A specific playtester — target one person (by selecting from your past playtesters or looking up a YouTube video)

Text Fields & Playtester Visibility

There are several text fields across games and playtests. Each has a different purpose and visibility — some are shown to playtesters before they claim a slot, and some are only revealed after.

Game-level fields

These are set when you create or edit a game and apply to all playtests for that game.

Field	Purpose	Visible before claiming	Visible after claiming
Description	General info about your game — genre, theme, what makes it interesting. Helps playtesters decide whether to claim.	Yes	Yes
Instructions	How to play and test your game — controls, what build to use, setup steps. Hidden before claiming so playtesters commit first.	No	Yes

Playtest-level fields

These are set when you create a playtest request and apply to that specific playtest only.

Field	Purpose	Visible before claiming	Visible after claiming
Notes for testers	Per-playtest instructions — what to focus on, what’s changed since last time, specific areas to test.	No	Yes
Keys for testers	Game keys (e.g. Steam keys) to distribute. Each playtester receives one key individually.	No	Yes (one key per playtester)

Why some fields are hidden before claiming

This is intentional. The game description is shown in the available playtests list so playtesters can decide whether to claim. But instructions, notes, and keys are only revealed after claiming, so that:

• Game keys aren’t exposed to playtesters who never intend to play
• Detailed testing instructions aren’t visible to competitors browsing public playtests
• Playtesters commit to the playtest before seeing the full details

How keys are distributed

When you provide game keys, they are distributed one per slot when the playtest is activated. Each playtester sees only their own key in the “Developer Notes” section after claiming. The original list of keys is cleared from the playtest request after distribution.

What playtesters see in practice

Before claiming (available playtests list):

• Game name, description, cover image, devices, platforms, genre tags
• Playtest duration, payout amount, visibility (public/private)

After claiming (my playtests / submit page):

• Everything above, plus:
• Game instructions
• Developer notes (notes for testers + any assigned game key)
• Build URL for downloading the game

What Happens After Ordering

1. Payment — choose to pay via credit card (Stripe) or cryptocurrency, or use pre-purchased account credit

2. Slots created — individual slots are opened for playtesters to claim

3. Matching — playtesters whose genre preferences overlap with your game’s tags will see the playtest in their dashboard

4. Notifications — matching playtesters receive an email when new playtests are available

5. Claiming — a playtester claims a slot and begins playing

6. Submission — the playtester uploads their video recording with voice commentary

7. Review — you receive a notification to review the submission. You have 7 days before it’s auto-accepted

Setting Your Timezone

Your timezone is used when scheduling playtests. Set it during onboarding or update it anytime in Settings → Profile → Timezone. It defaults to your browser’s timezone.