Playtesting & Generating Game Keys

Using the Playtest feature allows you to give players early access to your game without the need to create a game page. This can be a helpful tool for QA testing, gathering feedback, or for promotional efforts such as Kickstarter exclusives and/or press releases.

Games that are in Playtest cannot be found in the game store, and players will not be able to access the game without a game key.

You may keep your community updated with the latest game files once Playtest has been enabled for continued testing, feedback, or promotion.

Published games cannot use the Playtest feature.

How to enable Playtesting

To use this feature, click Publish, then Upload. Follow the prompts to add game files, icon, category, and game name. Then, click Continue to Your Game.

You will see the option to enable Playtesting under Advanced Publishing Features. Toggle the Playtest switch to green, and the option to Push to Playtesters will become available.

Click Proceed 

Your game will now appear under Your Games as “unpublished”.

You can generate game keys to give to players from here. Click on the More dropdown, and select Generate Keys from the menu. This will open the Generate Keys modal.

 
Select the amount of keys you’d like to create. You may also select an expiration date for your game keys. Expiration dates are optional.

Click Generate Keys. You will receive a CSV file with the list of keys that you may distribute to players. You may also download this CSV list at a later time from the Publish page under the Playtest game if you misplace this list or need it for your records.

You may generate a maximum of 200 game keys per game. However, you may request additional keys by contacting [e-mail]. 

Updating Your Playtest Game & Publishing to Live

You may update your game for your playtesters at any time by uploading a new game file on the Game Edit page. Be sure to select the option to Push to Playtesters when updating your game, or your playtesters will not see the update. Players who redeem a game key after an update is  uploaded will receive the newest version of your game.

When you are ready to publish your game to the Game store, complete the required steps to enable the Publish As Live Game button. Clicking this button will publish your game to the live environment: your game will be added to the Kartridge Game Storefront, and be available for purchase by all players.

Note: Any players who have a playtest key for a game will automatically have access to the live version once it is published.

If you have any issues, please contact us at [e-mail]!