13 BONES - Pre-Demo QA Pass: Combat System Clarity & Stability (PC)
🧾 Test Overview
- Platform: PC (Windows 11), keyboard and mouse
- Build: 0.8.1 Beta, tested from the Itch pre-demo build
- Focus Areas: Turn resolution, status effect clarity, card upgrade visibility, and damage/outcome feedback
- Purpose: Validate system stability and player-facing clarity under pre-demo conditions before wider Steam demo exposure
Introduction
This is a focused QA mini-pass on 13 BONES, tested on PC using the 0.8.1 Beta build from Itch before the Steam demo release.
The goal was to evaluate whether the core card-battler loop communicates player actions, round outcomes, status effects, and card upgrade state clearly enough for a pre-demo build.
Testing focused on:
- DRAW and END TURN behaviour
- Win/loss outcome clarity
- Damage feedback and source visibility
- Status effect readability
- Card upgrade visibility in deck composition
Findings are based on short targeted sessions and are supported with a QA workbook, session notes, reproducible bug information, and gameplay evidence.
| Game | Platform | Scope |
|---|---|---|
| 13 BONES | PC, Itch Beta build | QA mini-pass focused on system stability and player-facing clarity across turn resolution, status effects, card upgrades, and damage feedback. |
🎯 Goal
Validate whether the player can clearly understand turn outcomes, damage resolution, and applied card effects during short combat encounters.
🧭 Focus Areas
- Turn resolution
- Player action consistency
- Status effect feedback
- Damage and outcome clarity
- Deck composition visibility
📄 Deliverables
- QA workbook with README, charters, session notes, bug log, risk matrix, and one-line summary
- Bug log with reproducible steps and evidence link
- Short video evidence for the key issue
- Developer-facing summary of validated systems and risk area
📊 Metrics
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| Total Sessions Logged | 3 |
| Total Bugs Logged | 1 |
| Critical | 0 |
| High | 1 |
| Medium | 0 |
| Low | 0 |
| Systems Validated Without Issues | 2 |
| Primary Risk Area | Status effect and card upgrade visibility |
| Repro Rate | 1/1 observed, follow-up retest recommended |
📷 Evidence
Supporting evidence is included to show the issue clearly and make it easy to review.
- Short gameplay clip showing the selected upgrade not appearing in deck composition
- Structured bug notes with repro steps, expected vs actual behaviour, and linked evidence
- Session notes covering turn resolution, damage feedback, and status effect observations
| Type | File / Link |
|---|---|
| QA Workbook (Google Sheets) | Open Workbook |
| QA Workbook (PDF Export) | Open PDF |
📌 Key Findings
| Area | Finding | Evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Turn Resolution | Turn system is clear and consistent; DRAW and END TURN resolve predictably with no confusion. | Session Log: S01 |
| Damage Feedback & Outcome Clarity | Round outcomes and damage are clearly communicated; cause-and-effect is easy to understand. | Session Log: S02 |
| Status Effects & Feedback Clarity | Status effects are clear when triggered, but selected upgrades are not consistently reflected in deck view. | See Bugs Logged |
🐞 Bugs Logged
| ID | Title | Severity | Repro | Evidence Clip/Screenshot |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| C03-01 | Selected Card Upgrade Not Reflected in Deck Composition View | High | 1/1 in tested upgrade scenario | Watch Clip - Upgrade Not Visible in Deck |
Full bug log with repro steps, expected vs actual, and evidence: Download Bug Log (PDF)
The only issue identified in this pass was C03-01, where a selected card upgrade was not visible in the deck composition view, creating uncertainty about whether the upgrade was applied.
🧠 Risk Assessment & System Coverage
| System Area | Risk Level | Why Risky | Tested | Test Depth | Issues Found | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Turn Resolution (DRAW / END TURN) | High | Core loop dependency; unclear timing or behaviour would immediately confuse players. | Yes | Shallow to moderate; multiple rounds with varied action timing. | No | System behaved consistently; outcomes clearly tied to 13 threshold and manual END TURN. |
| Damage Feedback & Outcome Clarity | High | Players need to understand why they win, lose, take damage, or deal damage. | Yes | Moderate; tested win, bust, END TURN, player damage, and enemy damage scenarios. | No | Round outcomes and damage sources were clearly communicated through UI, animation, values, and direction indicators. |
| Status Effects & Card Upgrades | High | Card upgrades are core progression choices; unclear visibility breaks player trust in deck state. | Yes | Moderate; tested upgrade selection, curse card behaviour, reveal effect, and deck composition view. | Yes | Effects were clear when triggered, but selected non-curse upgrade was not visible in deck composition. |
📈 Results
- Completed 3 focused QA sessions on 13 BONES.
- Validated turn resolution with no control, timing, or clarity issues observed.
- Validated round outcome and damage feedback with no confusion observed.
- Logged 1 high-severity player clarity issue related to card upgrade visibility.
- Identified status effect and deck composition feedback as the main risk area from this pass.
🔍 Key Points for the Developer
- Turn resolution is clear and predictable. DRAW and END TURN behaved consistently across tested scenarios, with no hidden timing or control issues observed.
- Round outcome feedback is strong. Winning at 13, busting over 13, and resolving END TURN outcomes were all clearly communicated through values, UI changes, and visual feedback.
- Damage feedback is easy to follow. Player and enemy damage matched visible attack values, with clear direction and outcome indicators.
- Status effects are readable when triggered. The curse/reveal behaviour was clearly shown through card visuals, animation, and the revealed enemy card state.
- Upgrade visibility needs review. After selecting Incremental Poison, the upgrade was not visible in deck composition, while the cursed card was. This makes it unclear whether the upgrade was applied, hidden, or failed.
🔚 QA Summary & Next Steps
The core combat loop is communicating well in the areas tested. DRAW, END TURN, win/loss outcomes, and damage resolution were all consistent and understandable during short encounter testing.
The main issue found in this pass is tied to card upgrade visibility. After selecting multiple upgrades, the cursed card appeared correctly in deck composition, but the Incremental Poison upgrade was not shown or confirmed. For a card-based game, that creates a player trust issue because deck state and upgrade state are central to decision-making.
Recommended next steps:
- Review whether non-curse upgrades should appear in deck composition.
- Add clearer confirmation when an upgrade is successfully applied to a card.
- Consider showing active upgrade icons or effect markers in the deck composition view.
- Confirm whether Incremental Poison was applied but hidden, or whether the upgrade failed to apply.
- Keep the current round outcome and damage feedback, as these systems were clear in testing.
📎 Disclaimer
This is a personal, non-commercial portfolio for educational and recruitment purposes. I’m not affiliated with or endorsed by any game studios or publishers. All trademarks, logos, and game assets are the property of their respective owners. Any screenshots or short clips are included solely to document testing outcomes. If anything here needs to be removed or credited differently, please contact me and I’ll update it promptly.