Starting in January, we will be needing a group of people to beta test Conquer Kings. Responsibilities will include looking for issues within the game and reporting them for correction through the ticket management system. The scope of the issues will cover the entire game (gameplay, crashes, miscalculations, cosmetics, minor adjustment suggestions, etc). When a bug is discovered, a beta tester will try to determine the steps needed to replicate the issue, submit a ticket for correction, and test the correction once it has been made. The role of a beta tester is a chronic one that will extend past the initial release of the game. The initial release, as well as every update following, will go through two testing stages to ensure the game is released as high quality as our team can make it. You can find the production flow below.
The first step is, of course, development. In this stage, we will develop new features, improve on old features, and work on reported tickets. If a player has submitted a ticket, they will be able to track its status in the portal. The possible statuses are as follows:
- Recieved – Your ticket has been received by our system.
- In Review – Your ticket is being reviewed and considered for development.
- Approved – Your ticket has been approved and is awaiting development.
- Rejected – Your ticket has been rejected and will not be developed.
- Duplicate – Your ticket is a duplicate of another request.
- In Progress – Your ticket is currently being worked on.
- Need Testing – Generally for beta user tickets. Your ticket will be tested in the alpha stage but needs to be tested by you in the beta stage for confirmation.
- Complete – Your ticket has been completed and will be included in the next update.
- Canceled – Your ticket has been canceled by you or a team member.
- Pending – Your ticket is not currently being worked on, but is pending for other reasons. (Waiting on 3rd party, more research needed, etc)
The next step is releasing it to our alpha testing group. This is a small group of players, generally (but not always) consisting of team members such as administrators and moderators. During this stage, the more obvious issues are caught and reported. In addition to being the first layer of testing, the alpha group will be responsible for testing specific features and security. If any issues are found, the game will be sent back to the development stage. This process repeats until no issues are reported, at which point, the game can move on to the beta testing stage.
The beta stage is very similar to the alpha stage, the only big difference is the number of participants. The beta stage allows for a larger group of players to look for issues. If an issue is found, the game will again revert back to the development stage. However, if this happens, the game will not move immediately back to beta. It will move on to the alpha stage again and repeat this process. The reason for this is to prevent unnecessary publications if the fix requires more than one attempt. This method will (hopefully) have your ticket fixed before it gets back to you for testing. If no issues are found, the game will finally be able to move to production and be released to the public as a high-quality update.
To become an alpha tester, you must first be a beta tester. When a vacancy becomes available in the alpha group, the successor will be selected from one of the beta testers.
If you are interested in becoming an alpha tester for Conquer Kings, please fill out a beta tester application on the forums (you must be logged in to view the specific forum). Please note, if your application is submitted to the wrong place, it will automatically be disqualified. Beta testers must possess a strong attention to detail. If you have any questions, feel free to message me (FelixCrystal) anywhere you can find me (on the website, Discord, contact form, email [support@conquerkings.com], etc).
Thank you and good luck to any applicants,
FelixCrystal
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