Usability tests should be conducted for any product and the primary goal is “to improve the usability of the product that is being tested” (Dumas & Redish 1999, p.22). In the case of games, user testing is also known as playtesting. It allows the developers to identify usability problems and to analyse their cause with the users. Zimmerman (2003) explained that this process involves the developer playing his own game and organising other groups of people matching his target audience to play with the game. These groups of people are asked questions in regards to the prototype and their interaction with the prototype are observed and recorded.

The valuable feedback obtained from these play tests would heavily influence the developer’s decisions when making refinements to the design and the new version will be the subject of a new series of tests. This provides support for determining the effectiveness of the processes and the quality of the product (Wikipedia, 2006). It is important to note that the prototype has to be improved only between each phase as a result of an analysis of the issues with the users and changes are not to be made during play testing (Nielsen, 1993).

The user testing methods chosen were surveys, indepth interviews and observation. I would need to gather feedback about the following:

1) Gender and Age of participant

2) Whether these participants like to play games and how often do they play

3) What they liked about the prototype

4) What they disliked about the prototype

5) What improvements should be made

6) Uncover any problems with the low fi prototype that I did not foresee

Photographs would be taken of the participants. Observations would be mainly based on how the participants interact with the prototype, their reactions while playing the game and body language.

This was only the basic aims of the research and it has been expanded even further.

The primary aim of this research was to find out what people think of the low-fi prototype “Labyrinth”. The following list is a breakdown of information required regarding the prototype. It is divided into 3 sections; user, usability and user experience. This research is aimed at finding out what the participants feel about the prototype and any other information that would be useful when refining the prototype in the later stages. The table below highlights the basic information needed by the development team. There might be unforeseen problems or issues raised after the first round of testing so this list of required information could be expanded further as the team progresses into further stages in the design research process.

User
1) Do they play games?
2) How often do they play?
3) What kind of games do they usually play?
4) What do they look for in games?

Usability
1) What do they think of the underlying concept of the game?
2) Do they like the look of the game?
3) Is the game too difficult?
4) Are the instructions clear and easy to understand?
5) Is the music or sound effects at an acceptable level?

Experience
1) Is the game fun?
2) How did they feel while playing the game? Stressed? Annoyed? Excited?
3) How did they feel when they touched the walls of the maze and why?
4) What did they liked and disliked about the game?