this is why we test …
OK. So … we just extended our Closed Beta +2weeks to mid-April. So far, so good. Any online Beta test is fraught with stress as your expose the sum total of many man-years of work to the candidate audience of PC Gamers …
So what have we learned?
It sucks to be a new merchant. Taking payments online is hard, but the margin advantages are very real. Surprises - being able to accept payments at such a high rate of success from ‘Day One’. The nasty reality? That you can’t cover all bank cards and that not all bank cards are created equal (yes, I’m talking about VISA cards issued by micro credit unions - very annoying).
Signpost, signpost, signpost. What we’ve done is genuinely innovative and exciting. How do we know? Because more than one Venture Capitalist has said so (and they see everyone and everything, particularly in the current down cycle phase of the Games Industry). Predictably, we’ve been “too close” to the product, for too long, so as feedback and questions rolled in our team members rolled their eyes, slapped foreheads and said “Yep, we should have seen that one”. More than once. Still, this team is nimble and we’ve already had our first Server/Client update, with another coming online this week with major User Experience upgrades. Large, important SIGN POSTS to explain exactly what does what (and why) at every step of the UX … with a focus on the First Time User Experience (ahhhh, FTUE, for acronym lovers).
PC Gamers are … very patient. Thanks to all our players, all the patient ones in particular. We launched our Online Beta just a short few weeks ago warning all “The Gold is Real … but so are the Bugs”, which triggered some wry chuckles. This is why we test, right? Testing and optimizing the payments in, withdrawals out, the Launcher client, the integration between Launcher and Game Client, the insanely complex code and systems within the Game Client … so far, pretty darn good report card. Yes, a few instances of our Cloud servers not responding fast enough, some networking issues with the Launcher, but nothing showstopping. Great customer support helps here - a lot - and we are thankful for all our community members for their screenshots, ideas and feedback (and reviews - thanks everyone!).
Cloud Schmloud. Not having to manage your own servers and load balancers is a waking dream, but that doesn’t make it simple. At all. The Cloud still requires specialist knowledge, clever configuration and an open eye to ensure something chatty doesn’t start racking up the bills. So far, so good (and efficient).
Marketing Alignment. We’ve tested - at some degree of statistical stability - the marketing channels of major global marketing platforms. There is a whole wide world of eyeballs out there, waiting to blink in your direction (if you get it right). Bringing onboard highly qualified specialists in performance marketing and creative direction have been a blessing. Aligning marketing imagery/video with the website, Launcher and (increasingly) the in-Game look/feel has been a critical success factor in driving cost effective traffic, converting to Launcher installs, new Accounts created, Game client downloads, new players and … finally … new prospectors.
Many learnings, a handful of self-inflicted ‘oops’ but a great start.
BIG shout out to the hard-pressed Team of ‘Dirty Diggers’ at Paydirt Games.
/laters
