Full notes
Full Paladins® update
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Repeated intro
Greetings Champions! This Developer Insights blog aims to shed light on how our PTS process works, from the version that we use internally to the final version that becomes the Live build and everything in between. In the past, Evil Mojo has discussed PTS and veteran players may know a lot of this info, however, we felt it was time for an updated rundown of how we utilize this for the modern team using Street Style: World Tour as an example.
What changed
- Gameplay
- Compatibility
- Balance
Internal Testing
As many players know, we start to work on an update in a development build designed for rapid iteration and implementing things into Paladins on our own timescale. Often, smaller changes in Dev are intended to go out the following update while larger changes tend to exist in Dev multiple updates prior to release. For example, Wave Defense was in Dev for 11 months before it entered Beta in July and we already have some changes aimed for next year in our Dev build. However, whenever we’re ready to move all those smaller changes over to PTS, we go through a process called branch. Basically, this is when we move over all the files and changes in Dev to be reflected in the PTS client & servers.
This process can sometimes be quick, or occasionally take days depending on what we’re moving over, any issues or concerns we have during the process, and the current timeline. Generally, we try to branch a month out from the planned release date to allow us 2 weeks before public PTS.
Private PTS & Partner Playtests
Once we’ve branched, our testing and changes are entirely focused on the PTS version of the game. This usually means refining our existing changes as well as resolving bugs players may be unable to playtest through. As an example of the state changes that tend to be in during this early PTS testing, look no further than the first blog of this series on Talent Design. Those Talent designs are the Dev versions we pulled to PTS, with test values and rougher designs than you all saw during public PTS.
The reason we released that blog – and the reason we always do private PTS testing for a bit – is to be able to iterate on designs, balance, and new content in the exact environment that players will playtest in. Once we’ve gotten PTS in a state we’re beginning to feel comfortable with, we then start Partner Playtests. This is a fairly new addition to the process that started in the Anniversary Update (June 2023) and has evolved to replace AoC previews from 2022 and prior.
The current iteration allows a select group of creators & community members to playtest on the PTS build alongside us about a week before it’s made public, giving us early feedback to start trending towards before we reveal the changes publicly. This group has been super helpful in allowing us more time to make larger changes to match community expectations as well as have a wider gamut of skill levels interacting with all the adjustments. Once we’ve held a few Partner Playtests, it’s time for the public!
Public PTS & Feedback
Once we’ve announced and revealed the patch to players, we can release the public PTS and get feedback! In the past, PTS had been a larger moment due both to the number of team members we had and the number of players who would playtest, but it’s still quite impactful even today! We discover many new issues, bugs, and feedback points during public
Source
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