Austin Unity User Group: Playtest Your Sh*t

Talk Summary:
You’ve got a great idea. You’ve got the skills to make it happen. But have you actually tested it?

In Playtest Your Sh*t, producer Justen Andrews opens up a real talk about what gets in the way of testing our games, why it’s so easy to put off, and what changes when you stop building in a vacuum. Combining firsthand stories from indie and publisher-side experience, this talk challenges common assumptions and equips you with a new mindset around iteration and feedback.

Key talking points:

• How to separate validation from feedback, and why your game needs both,
• The myth of “it’s not ready to test yet”,
• Why friends and fans make terrible play testers (and how to use them anyway),
• Tuning your ears: gathering feedback without getting wrecked by it,
• How to design for clarity so players don’t need you in the room,
• What iteration really looks like in the wild - messy, humbling, and essential

Whether you’re polishing a vertical slice, building your first prototype, or working towards that final release-ready version, this talk will help you embrace playtesting not as a chore, but as a creative superpower.

Event Details:
We strongly encourage attendees to bring in their Unity projects to workshop and receive feedback from peers during this event.

We encourage our community to bring any playable demos of their game to this event. Feel free to share and get feedback on your projects before and after the speaker portion of the Meet-up.

RSVPs for this event are required to ensure building security and that we order enough food for all participants

We'll be meeting at Braker Business Park B, Suite 250 in North Austin, on November 13th from 6:00pm - 9:00 pm.

Thank you for sponsoring us, Unity & Owlchemy Labs!