When video game developers design and develop a video game, how do they know that the game meets its objectives for performance, functionality, and game experience? The simple answer is that the game needs to be tested and the gathered data needs to be analyzed. In fact, it needs to be tested just like any other piece of software.

The authors lay out a testing framework for video games that includes internal testing, external testing, and subjective evaluations. Internal testing is largely quality assurance; external testing is user acceptance; and subjective testing attempts to measure user experience. The authors then apply this framework to a case study involving an Xbox racing game.

The proposed framework looks like a first step, and I would hope that video game developers are further along than this. However, if they are not, this paper provides a good start, a useful framework, and a case study of the ideas.