Questions about playtesting

[italiansarecoming]

Krieghund in your playtesting group did you ever notice an advantage for one side over another. It is quite possible that your group saw the Centrals winning a lot or the allies. I understand that your group of 3 players can only come up with so many strategies however over time the community is under belief the allies win 80+ times out of 100.

Also I still have issues about Prussia (I’m waiting for 2nd if one because I’d rather have a finished product) I don’t think that Prussia needs to touch a nother territory against Russia. I think however that it should have extended itself farther along the baltic sea still only touching Poland. This would not change how the game plays out however would give myself more of a historical feel as the Germans would have roughly its correct boundaries.

[Krieghund]

@italiansarecoming:

Krieghund in your playtesting group did you ever notice an advantage for one side over another. It is quite possible that your group saw the Centrals winning a lot or the allies. I understand that your group of 3 players can only come up with so many strategies however over time the community is under belief the allies win 80+ times out of 100.

I really wish I could talk about this, but I can’t.

[BJCard]

Thanks Krieghund for posting this.  It is very insightful.

Two comments/questions:

1. It is frustrating to not get any insight into what you think of 1914 or any game because you are a respected voice here.  I understand that you would not want to speak of such things if you are party to NDAs, it is still frustrating.

2. Ok, so these groups that playtest the games.  Do you get the ‘battle reports’ from the other groups?  Say, one group tries a new strategy that you hadn’t thought of or something?  Or perhaps you misinterpreted the rules and could see how other people play?

[Krieghund]

Yes, we see each others’ reports.  There’s lots of discussion between the group leaders on strategy and rules.  Of course, the level of detail in the reports varies from group to group.  Sometimes you need to read between the lines and ask questions to see the whole picture.

[italiansarecoming]

@Krieghund:

@italiansarecoming:

Krieghund in your playtesting group did you ever notice an advantage for one side over another. It is quite possible that your group saw the Centrals winning a lot or the allies. I understand that your group of 3 players can only come up with so many strategies however over time the community is under belief the allies win 80+ times out of 100.

I really wish I could talk about this, but I can’t.

Can u Answer about the Prussia thing? Like possibly the decision of making Germany not have historical borders?

[Flashman]

I’m pretty sure that ws done to put distance between Berlin and Petrograd, perhaps made when Petrograd was still Russian capital?

[BJCard]

Guys, he’s not going to talk about that map specifically.

Perhaps a better question is:

How often are map changes made during playtesting and how does that happen?

[italiansarecoming]

@Flashman:

I’m pretty sure that ws done to put distance between Berlin and Petrograd, perhaps made when Petrograd was still Russian capital?

I’m not saying change how Prussia is connected to another territory. I’m suggesting taking up some more of Poland North

[Krieghund]

@italiansarecoming:

Can u Answer about the Prussia thing? Like possibly the decision of making Germany not have historical borders?

Sorry, I thought that was a comment rather than a question.  BJCard is right - I can’t comment.

@BJCard:

How often are map changes made during playtesting and how does that happen?

Map changes are much more rare than rules or setup changes.  Generally they are very small tweaks that are done to either give one side less of an advantage or avoid an exploitation.

How it happens is that either the designers see a trend in the playtest games that something is either too easy or too hard, or that the game would flow better with certain channels opened or closed.  Of course, one or more playtest groups could also suggest a change, which may or may not be implemented.  In some cases, the designers will take a playtester suggestion and implement it in a way that makes it even better.

[CWO Marc]

Thanks for the interesting behind-the-scenes description of the playtesting process.

[italiansarecoming]

@CWO:

Thanks for the interesting behind-the-scenes description of the playtesting process.

Shame the contract stops him from saying a lot.