All QA specialists during software testing (or computer game testing, to be more specific) constantly use a lot of additional tools and technical features, provided by a client.
Further, we will talk about different types of video game testing which require the usage of back-up tools. To be exact, we will analyze performance testing, functional testing, and localization testing.
Functional Testing
It is based on two things: testing of all the game mechanics, provided by technical requirements, and the interaction with the game engine. Some functional tests should be performed with different objects and virtual locations which clients can meet only at the last levels of computer games.
For this reason, programmers develop a special functionality that is called cheat codes. It helps QA specialists save time on passing the game quests and test the functionality that other testers wait to get verified.
Cheat code is a part of a program code which allows testing some specific game location or virtual plot without a need to pass the game.
In other words, testers need cheat codes to save time. They provide facilities in a moment (in other cases, it can take days or even weeks of your working time).
Ways to Activate Cheat Codes During Game Testing:
- Use console or a special field, created by a developer;
- Logging in a particular social network;
- Create a user with specific parameters;
- Log in with App Store/Google Play;
- Use default activation inside the test builds.
Moreover, there are a lot of video games where you can enter cheat code without a console or with the help of social networks (for example, different versions of GTA Vice City and GTA San Andreas). Inside the game functionality, a client can use some key combination and get the desired result at any time. In this case, the method for activating the cheat code features depends on the developer’s imagination and technical specification of computer games.
Example of cheat code usage in GTA Vice City
If you test with cheat codes, you have to understand that some bugs appear because of these cheat codes usage. In this case, you should try to reproduce the bug to see if there will be a defect in the final product version (if a user doesn’t use cheat codes).
Let’s take, for example, games on smartphones or tablets. Testers can use devices under different versions of iOS/Android. If there are no desired devices at that moment, one can use the functionality of Bluestacks service.
Localization Testing
This kind of testing implies a thorough checking of the correct text displaying inside the game interface in all the languages. Also, it tests the peculiarities of integration with other countries’ cultures.
Such a testing includes an examination of translations, correct displaying of user interface and additional blocks while changing the languages. Obviously, there’s no such a tester who knows all the languages. That is why lockit is an essential part of localization testing.
So, lockit is a special file that contains all the text translations into verified languages.
Example of lockit file
The first column of any lockit has a TextID field (original text identifier that is used for the easy software localization).
It is important to specify a value in the TextID field for quick bug fixing!
Additionally, there can be a column for images and screenshots of the place with an untranslated element.
Performance Testing
This kind of testing allows recording the maximum technical loads on the system with the help of special tools. The most popular of them are FPS and GameBench.
Performance testing of computer games is quite important in order to find and record the most difficult points (from the technical side), which consume many resources of the local PC or user’s mobile device. And this is an essential task of any company that provides mobile testing services.
After these parts are found in the game functionality, a tester should create a special bug report with a short description, attach a screenshot (if it is possible), mention the used tool, and give this information to the developer.
On the Internet, one can find a lot of various methodologies and practices of bug identifying during computer game testing. But all of them describe the usage of cheat code and documents with localization of different game genres.
To conclude, cheat codes and lockit are integral tools of that tester who must check the performance of some game products.
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