Beta Test Application

[Randomizer]

Unless I find someone else with 10.3.9, looks like you are a prime candidate for a tester, Randomizer. Are you running an Intel or a PowerPC CPU?

I'm on a PowerPC CPU with OS 10.3.9. If only I'd known that Apple was going to break down and use Intel chips I might have waited another few months for it.

[Yeliu]

submitted mine! Really hope I'm chosen!

BW, is there an address to which we can send along treats?

[AstralWanderer]

Heh, I like this advisory:

Beta testing is not fun. It is work. You will be playing a buggy, incomplete game and you may be asked to start over several times. Basilisk Games expects you to check in every few days and let us know how testing is going. You will grow to hate us and the game itself. Is this really what you want?

Does this mean that applicants from another continent can claim priority? (less chance of a Molotov cocktail).

[IJBall]

Timing! As much as I'd love to help out I have a choir tour starting up near the end of the month. So yeah, while I've been enthusiastic about the idea I won't be submitting an application.

Ditto.

After thinking it over for a while, I too have ultimately decided not to submit an application, because I figure the Mac Beta (I have Mac OS 10.5.8, so I could do it from a hardware/OS standpoint...) is likely to fall in April, which is not a good time for me as that's when I'll have to be thinking about writing exams for the end of the semester, etc.

(And I'm actually torn on the idea of doing the Beta anyway. On the one hand, I've been following the Din's Curse Beta closely, and I can see how being a Beta tester actually allows for the Beta testers to actively shape the final game. And I definitely would like to be a part of spell 'balancing' after my experiences with Book I spellcasting. But, OTOH, I kind of don't want to be "spoiled" on the game's storyline until I play the 'finished' version - in fact, I'm worried about being Spoiled on plotlines just from reading these forums over the next few weeks, and I kind of don't know what to do about that!! )

But, anyway, the way I figure it - if BW really needs guys like us, he knows us from the forums, and can always "draft" us directly...

[Zorlac]

I really appreciate all you guys taking the time to beta test this game.

I've been to Zipper Interactive studios here in Redmond. These are the guys that make the SoCom series for the PS3... Video game testing isn't as sexy as it sounds! They work long hours and only get paid $14 an hour.
They move their characters around all day long TRYING to lock up the game, then have to submit detailed reports.

Anyhow, my point is, as a tester, you're main goal isn't to finish the game. It's to find as many bugs as possible.

Good luck guys.

[Painted Lady]

After stewing about the issue for almost a week, I'm sort of going to play Beta testing the same way IJBall is - although for different reasons.

I use a Mac. I would assume that BW want to have 6 - 8 Windows users, plus a couple each for Macs and Linux. There a lot of Mac users on this forum, and many of them have been friends of Eschalon since the early days of Book 1. So, I would think that they rightly should have first call on Beta testing if they want to do it.

If BW needs more Mac users, one posting would probably bring lots of us out of the woodwork.............

[tungprc]

I put in for the beta too, but I couldn't remember how I had messed up my nickname on this site. I turned my normal cprgnut userid backwards and am tungprc on this forum. We're the same dude. Glad the folks over at RPGWatch were keeping an eye on Book II.

[Drixx]

Curses. Mid terms just finished ... been so busy didn't check the site and missed the window

[Buckets]

Is the process complete then? I was still hoping today I would get an email. I so badly wanted to beta test.

[Riggon]

You can't win 'em all. I didn't get the great and revered email either, but I realize that there are MANY people much better qualified than I, so it doesn't really bother me much. All we have to do is wait a few weeks (I'm on a mac, so my wait's gonna be even longer than you lucky windows users), and book 2 will become available... without the bugs the beta testers have to face.

[BasiliskWrangler]

Anyone who has applied may get an email at any time. I am not contacting all the winning testers at once.

Right now we have 5 testers going through the game. I'll be sending out emails this week to bring in another 4-5 testers to run through the next version.

We'll bring in Linux testers later, as well as a few people to make a run through with the Windows and Mac "release candidate" versions.

So, until the game is actually released, any applicant may still get an email from us!

[Buckets]

Awesome! There's still a chance. I really thought I would be picked considering I am a professional software tester. Testing Eschalon is sure to be a lot more fun than my usual projects (large business applications). I also have a pretty clear understanding of what it takes to test and that it is not all fun (even though I find software testing the best job in the world). Still hoping...

[IJBall]

Right now we have 5 testers going through the game. I'll be sending out emails this week to bring in another 4-5 testers to run through the next version.

And I think I've figured out who those 5 are, though I might be wrong...

[Painted Lady]

Well, anyone with a rank of officer would be a pretty safe bet............

[BasiliskWrangler]

So, how goes the testing? Has anyone finished the game yet?

Testing is going great. No one has reached the end, but a couple are close. Lots of small bugs found (but no game-stoppers) and a lot of good suggestions given. The second testing round begins late next week with some "fresh eyes" (additional testers) added to the team.