Focus Feedback - Both Help & Hindrance.

retroFuture

@karuji Directed me to this tweet yesterday.
https://twitter.com/WashingMachineO/status/524417091504730112

As a game dev, I have learned that not all player feedback is created equal. Of course it can be helpful, even crucial to listen to feedback. My own project zX - Hyperblast is achieving its potential thanks to the great feedback I have received from this community and random players. However, learning to discern useful crit from the counterproductive drivel is a skill worth developing, lest uniformed opinions water your project down into a generic, boring mush.

Elyaradine

Something I've been learning is how all feedback is useful in that different pairs of eyes raise new potential problems that you may not have foreseen, but that proposed solutions (especially from people who aren't experienced game developers) are rarely a good fit.

Tuism

Yeah, what I've learned is to listen for problems not for solutions. Definitely valid, listen carefully, not to take everything at face value.

rustybroomhandle

Agreed with above. Just want to add that what I find most useful is just watching someone play your game. People are notoriously bad at knowing what they want (insert infamous coffee experiment anecdote here) and sometimes it's best just to watch.

Tuism

Yep. Watch and listen. Don't ask :) So many famous examples. There was that one where playtesters said "this weapon is not strong enough, your balance sucks", so they pumped up the damage. And again. And again, and the playtesters still said the damage is too low. Then they tried to up the juice, give screenshake, and with the numbers being what they were originally, the playtesters said "Yes, that's great". Lol :)