Let's get real, Beta players - know your role

A brief background on myself before I jump into the main point of this thread. I have never played a fantasy ARPG. Never. PoE is my first, no double entendres intended. And guess what? I REALLY ENJOY THIS GAME. I'm no veteran of ARPGs or a person who can spend copious amounts of time playing video games, but I get by.

So onto the main point. I'll start off with a definition that sums up the role of a beta tester.

"

From www.wisegeek.com:

A beta tester is someone who tests a product before it is released. Product testers help companies identify weak points in their products which could cause consumer frustration, and they also identify specific issues which need to be corrected before a product can be released. Typically, beta testers test several incarnations of a product, until it is deemed ready for release. Most commonly, beta testers work with electronics and software.

Sounds about right, right? We are all beta testers, and closed beta players at that. It shows that we care about this game and that we are in closed beta to help shape the game for its final release.

Yet... the amount of whining, complaining, and even swearing coming from us, the supposed beta testers, is astonishing. No, more like flabbergasting.

People, understand your role. You are not playing a finished game. Depending on the amount of progress done and the changes needed to be made, the open beta test (live launch) can be delayed. In beta, you have to EXPECT CHANGES. Hell, even the loading screen in the PoE client says, "There will be bugs." This game is FAR from finished, and more updates, changes, and debugging will happen. As a beta tester, you have to expect it and roll with it. Whining about this or that or downplaying the developers or whatnot is absolutely the WRONG APPROACH. We should not feel entitled to anything (other than what we pay) because we are testing for an unfinished product.

If you have problems with the updates, make constructive criticisms and suggestions, not threats or complaints or one-liners or swear-words.

If you read through this, kudos to you. I just thought that this should be something that every beta tester here should know, but I apparently was mistaken.

You can find my views on the recent (and controversial) 9.11 patch update in my post history.

Fight the good fight, and pave your own path out of exile my fellow Wraeclastians!

Well said, I agree 100% with you!

"

Islidox wrote:

"

From www.wisegeek.com:

A beta tester is someone who tests a product before it is released. Product testers help companies identify weak points in their products which could cause consumer frustration, and they also identify specific issues which need to be corrected before a product can be released. Typically, beta testers test several incarnations of a product, until it is deemed ready for release. Most commonly, beta testers work with electronics and software.

Yet... the amount of whining, complaining, and even swearing coming from us, the supposed beta testers, is astonishing. No, more like flabbergasting.

What does this consumer frustration we're here to identify cause?

*Whining.
*Complaining.
*Swearing.

Sounds about right, right?

So I guess the product is causing some of that with the new patch.

It's testers giving feedback, in order to change what they don't like. There is little point in mentioning what you do like about the game, unless it is up for change.

Anyway, I guess this thread actually belongs in off-topic.

@jawsofhana: You missed the point.

Disapproval of changes made should be expressed. That's what we, the beta testers, should express and I heartily agree.

I'm talking about the tone that some beta testers are using in expressing their disapproval is downright wrong. One, reading and listening to complaining and whining becomes an exercise in patience. Two, nothing comes out of complaining or whining without explaining to the developers WHAT they did wrong and HOW they can fix it.

It's called constructive criticism, and it is the best kind of feedback that we, the beta testers, can provide to the developers. From what I've seen, they care, they interact, and the whole "ethical microtransactions" really struck a chord with me. That's why I signed on and paid a bit out of my pocket. I was enamored with the gameplay and the philosophy behind this game as I was sick of Pay2Win games.

Regardless, nothing good gets accomplished when the feedback we provide consists nothing constructive and in form of complaints and whining, and don't even mention the swearing. I don't expect everyone to be an adult and I don't expect everyone to deliver heavy analysis that some members are known for, but I certainly expect people to understand their role as a beta tester.

On a separate note, I thought this topic to be most relevant in this section as it concerns beta testers as whole.

As someone who had his biggest thread moved to off-topic because it went...off-topic, I'm surprisingly sensitive to things being moved there. Does this post deserve to share the same space as discussions of other games, music, tv shows, and ponies?

No, it does not.

I think the OP has stated what GGG would love to say but are of course too nice and entirely too diplomatic to even approach.

That said, feedback can be heated, contentious and, shit, it might even have swearing.

As long as the end-goal is the improvement of the game, I'm on-board for any and all criticism.

And I think the PoE community should pat itself on the back in this regard, because that's mostly what I see happening here. And I promise it's not because we mods are frantically deleting troll posts and spam.

Honest.

OP makes a salient point, but it feels a bit like spanking a child because he or she spoke back to their parents. That's what we're here to do. Sometimes we do it a bit cheekily, a bit rudely. Sometimes a gentle reminder that we don't own this game is good.

I expect Another Game Company, were it a parent, might be the sort to employ careless physical punishment, not GGG. Everyone should wish they had parents like GGG: they let us swear (within context and limits), speak our mind, encourage us to have different opinions and, most of all, still spoil us rotten.

When dissatisfied, people complain. It's in their nature.
You're asking for professionalism in an environment where half the people are not old enough to be expected to grasp the meaning of the word.

I commend you for your efforts to improve the quality of feedback, but you'll have to accept this as a part of the internet.

As a final note, I think you would do well to consider writing smaller posts if your target audience is of the impulsive type. Those who care to read your post are the least likely to benefit from the message you want to convey.

Ain't that the sad truth? But yes, you're probably right.

The main reason I put this thread up was the because due to the recent 9.11 patch, the amount of vehemence and vitriol and anger in the responses really surprised me. I'm a gamer at heart as well, but I don't take it that far, and certainly not as a beta tester... but like you said, I can't expect professionalism when most people aren't old enough to remain objective enough before flying off their seats.

I thought I'd try and knock some sense into people. :P

"

renatobaal wrote:

When dissatisfied, people complain. It's in their nature.
You're asking for professionalism in an environment where half the people are not old enough to be expected to grasp the meaning of the word.

I commend you for your efforts to improve the quality of feedback, but you'll have to accept this as a part of the internet.

As a final note, I think you would do well to consider writing smaller posts if your target audience is of the impulsive type. Those who care to read your post are the least likely to benefit from the message you want to convey.

Professionalism may be a stretch, but I don't suppose it would be too much to ask the referred beta testers to be a little less... well, ungrateful.
I can understand dissatisfaction as much as the next guy, and I can understand that this is the internet, where free speech is supposed to be as far as the eye can see. I can understand that some changes may even anger the audience. A certain update in A Valley Without Wind didn't quite agree with me, and I was quite angry as well, but I wasn't so hostile to the devs for changing the game. Internet or not, I think that we as the users of it should do our best to be at our best, regardless of how we tackle the situation, regardless about what we're disputing, and regardless of whether we're satisfied or not.
It's an unrealistic wish, I know, and the chances of it happening are close to nil, but still. Islidox has a point, even if he was only talking about this beta specifically.

Ive been gone for over 5 months due to my job, finally get time to come back and start streaming and testing, and people STILL haven't gotten it through there heads this is a beta test? Wow, GGG your patience is close to god like if you ask me... I can't believe a post like this still needs to be made, and on that point I'm done lol, I agree 110% with OP, well said :)

None of what the OP says is surprising to me. What is surprising to me is that there are "Beta testers" who refuse to play because there will be a character wipe before OB.

Sure, some have "paid" for the privilege of playing in the Beta, and I can understand (if not agree with) the notion that that might somehow be different from having been selected at random or otherwise invited.

But, really... Not playing because you are too attached to your accumulating gear? It boggles the mind... =0[.]o=