I am going to shoot you !!

Luniticisi · Sep 5, 2013

I was just wondering how the alpha and beta testers were going to play the game ..when it comes to A&B testing .. I fully intend to test the bounty system .. the anti- griefing mechanics to the maximum level I can ... I have no intention of playing the game this way but during testing ... anything goes!

I want to break the game as much as possible, cheat as much as I can .. so the final release is free of exploits and game breaking events ..

I really can't wait for FD to tell the A&B's what they want to be tested (which I will do with gusto!)

If I shoot you in the Beta's, seriously unfairly ... I am just testing .. someone needs to !

Wulf · Sep 5, 2013

If this is secret pirate training, not going to be impressed.

Luniticisi · Sep 5, 2013

I have no intention of being a pirate ... but I want to see the bounty system in action ... that must be a major aspect that HAS to work .. so why not test it ... I will sit outside of a space station and blast anything that emerges ... Like I said .. Come the full game I will be under the radar, hidden .. not being stupid ... but in the A&B's .. I will be 'Orrible ....

We need to test the game ... and I am choosing 'Orrible !

Flavio · Sep 5, 2013

I think that you are right to try and die in as many ways as possible within ironman mode to see if there is a loophole in which you can remain in ironman mode and when I say you die, I mean anyone but me

Also it is always a good idea to check out the collision detection system as some games have glitches where some items can be passed straight through which is not wanted and so will bump into lots of things including other ships from various angles.

Luniticisi · Sep 5, 2013

Maybe I can get a big enough bounty on my head that I kill myself and make a fortune !

Luniticisi · Sep 5, 2013

I will try everything I think could be exploited ...

Andrew Sayers · Sep 5, 2013

I'm definitely planning to test the piracy system. I was thinking yesterday about systems designed to even up combat. If Wulf and I unofficially team up against Luniticisi, but deliberately fire a single shot at each other first, then technically he and I would have been shot by more people than Luniticisi. Would the NPC police accept that as evidence we were just defending ourselves?

Then again, I'm not just planning to test combat. If the game starts in 3300, I will be very interested to see what day comes after February 28th that year.

SnowGhost · Sep 5, 2013

On the Subject of testing, there aren't that many testers, and there is a huge Galaxy. I'm assuming that for the test's that we'll be restricted to a small subset of the known Galaxy.

And probably also restricted to being only in the 'all' group. Otherwise we just won't meet people to kill.

And of course in testing, everyone should try everything we can.

Gimi · Sep 5, 2013

Luniticisi said:
I was just wondering how the alpha and beta testers were going to play the game ..when it comes to A&B testing .. I fully intend to test the bounty system .. the anti- griefing mechanics to the maximum level I can ... I have no intention of playing the game this way but during testing ... anything goes!

I want to break the game as much as possible, cheat as much as I can .. so the final release is free of exploits and game breaking events ..

I really can't wait for FD to tell the A&B's what they want to be tested (which I will do with gusto!)

If I shoot you in the Beta's, seriously unfairly ... I am just testing .. someone needs to !

Well, that depends on what Frontier wants us to test.
If they want us to do stability testing, I'll do all sort of wacky things to try to crash the game.
If they want us to test game balance, I'll try to exploit the game in any way I can to get a fair or unfair advantage.
If they want us to test specific functionality, such as the bounty system, I'll try to kill anything in sight, and I'll let myself be killed by others to see how it works out.
If it's just general testing and say what you think, then I'll try to play the game as I intend to play the final release, and then give them feedback.

I do hope that Frontier have some sort of plan for us when we get to that point though.

jabokai · Sep 5, 2013

Yeah, there will most likely be a bunch of unit testing, rather then "here's the whole game, go play and test". Lots of character wipes, pre-built characters with various ships/money, various things turned on/off, etc.

Erimus Kamzel · Sep 5, 2013

I think I'll be testing out how the grouping system will work and how easy or hard it is to find loopholes and exploits. If we don;t have a choice to play without subgroups I at least want to see whether peoples concerns of how they'll be used holds any water. Other than that I'll be looking at the bounty hunter system as its something I may try in the live game at some point

JohnWhitehouse · Sep 5, 2013

I've never Beta tested before so I going to do some research into Beta testing. I thought about this sometime ago but I didn't put it in my TiddlyWiki and promptly forgot!!! I do test I'm a developer but Beta testing a game I can imagine is very different.

I would think we'll get some pointers coming through as we get closer to Alpha/Beta testing.

izzy · Sep 5, 2013

I will test what FD wants us to test ... I'll do it in ironman mode, to see how difficult is this mode because I really want to play it

Aewarin Jameson · Sep 5, 2013

Luniticisi said:
I fully intend to test the bounty system .. the anti- griefing mechanics to the maximum level I can ... I have no intention of playing the game this way but during testing ... anything goes!

There will be objectives and scenarios I suspect from FD, but outside of them yes indeed - live it up

Penthux · Sep 5, 2013

EVERYTHING needs testing in alpha. That includes everything the software is designed to do and everything else that the software is NOT designed to do. It's a very responsible and tough task, when done properly.

Alpha testing is there to iron out and fix any bugs and prepare the software for beta testing. Beta testing is there to ensure the software is ready for public release. If there are any bugs found in the beta then the alpha testers did not do their job right. God forbid that there should be any bugs found after beta testing.

For those of you who will be using alpha and beta testing to "play" the game, other than to confirm the software is working as designed, are wasting their time and Frontier's time. Alpha testing has a specific purpose and so does beta testing. Use the opportunity to the fullest and ensure you do your jobs perfectly.

_Jael · Sep 5, 2013

There will be bugs in the beta. It doesn't mean that alphas didn't do their jobs. There will be bugs in the release too.

Also, whilst alpha and beta testing is very important, don't forget that no one is getting paid dor it. We paid FOR it. So whilst our input will be invaluable it will be allowed to have fun too. It's not a job.

Snakebyte · Sep 5, 2013

Penthux said:
For those of you who will be using alpha and beta testing to "play" the game, other than to confirm the software is working as designed, are wasting their time and Frontier's time. Alpha testing has a specific purpose and so does beta testing. Use the opportunity to the fullest and ensure you do your jobs perfectly.

Wasting my time time on the beta just "playing" ?
I will just "play", but I'll be happy to help out reporting any odd finds, submit screenshots or whatever. But I'll be honest. Elite is all leisure to me, I have a job of my own.

Wasting Frontier's time by it? Do elaborate.

Penthux · Sep 6, 2013

_Jael said:
There will be bugs in the beta. It doesn't mean that alphas didn't do their jobs. There will be bugs in the release too.

Also, whilst alpha and beta testing is very important, don't forget that no one is getting paid dor it. We paid FOR it. So whilst our input will be invaluable it will be allowed to have fun too. It's not a job.

Picky, picky. Ok.

Let's forget about alpha and beta because if you're so sure there's going to be bugs in the final release what's the point of alpha and beta testing?

If you don't see alpha and beta testing as a "job" then you're not approaching this opportunity in the best way you could. It's a role, task, labour of love, whatever you want to call it. Nobody gets paid but is that the only reason we carry out any work? No, of course not.

Penthux · Sep 6, 2013

Snakebyte said:
Wasting my time time on the beta just "playing" ?
I will just "play", but I'll be happy to help out reporting any odd finds, submit screenshots or whatever. But I'll be honest. Elite is all leisure to me, I have a job of my own.

Wasting Frontier's time by it? Do elaborate.

If people in alpha and beta went exploring and did little else, and Frontier asked, "What errors or bugs did you find, if any?" and the reply came, "Oh, I didn't find any glitches but that was mainly because I was having too much fun flying my ship and being the first to explore new star systems. Sorry!

" - wouldn't you consider that a wasted opportunity and a waste of Frontier's time and effort in giving you that opportunity?

I certainly would. Is that a little clearer? :smilie:

Maxeren · Sep 6, 2013

I personally will try and stress the weapon systems as much as possible, we also have to check that their collision detection systems work.. don't we..?