Dr. Savas OzturkDigital Game Design, Mugla Sitki Kocman University

Testing Games vs. Gamifying Tests

Analysts expect that game market will double its revenues until 2027. More games require more quality and hence more testing. We must revise our test strategies  depending on a changing World which is very different, and very unusual. On the other side, applying game mechanics in testing processes is a new trend. Badges, score tables, avatars, medals, and similar gamification elements are used to keep the test team in  the flow by adding some fun to testing process. The bottom line here is, gaming and testing have common characteristics and they can be employed together mutually.

As a certified and experienced tester and and a new academician of game design department, I have realized  the potential of the both fields and I’ve started to merge them to boost their benefits. In this talk, the balance between software testing processes and game mechanics will be discovered.

Savaş Öztürk is an assistant professor in the department of Digital Game Design at Mugla SKU, and he is an advisor for “Software Testing and Quality Evaluation Laboratory (YTKDL)” at TUBITAK BILGEM.
After seven years of software development experience, he worked as a test manager and a test leader in several projects and departments at TUBITAK. He also directed Software Quality Evaluation Dept. to conduct software quality measurements and reporting especially for fulfilling public institutions’ needs. Also, he was a member of the Usability Lab. In the same department.
In 2021, he started a new career as an academic at Mugla Sıtkı Kocman University because of his passion for learning, teaching, and transferring his experience to others. His recent research field is at the junction of his past and future: Testing and QA of Games.