From uncovering bugs to driving innovation: Here’s how modern technologies are shaping the future of flawless gameplay
In 2024, the global gaming market generated an estimated $455 billion in revenue. Behind every successful release lies a dedicated team of developers, including those responsible for quality assurance.
Whether crafting a sprawling open-world epic or a fast-paced multiplayer showdown, QA is essential not just for delivering a polished player experience but for ensuring a game’s commercial success. In this guide, we’ll explore the fundamentals of QA that leading studios use to elevate their production, helping to create games that are as profitable as they are engaging.
What is QA in game development?
Quality Assurance (QA) in game development involves systematically testing a game to identify, document, and help resolve issues that could impact its functionality, performance, and overall player experience. It encompasses various activities to ensure the game runs smoothly, adheres to design specifications, and meets industry compliance standards across multiple platforms and devices. Unlike traditional software QA, game QA is uniquely complex, as it not only tests technical stability but also evaluates gameplay mechanics, narrative elements, and even game feel.
As Henry Golding, Senior Test Engineer at Netflix, explains, “Without robust automated testing and quality checks built into your development process, you’re really just leaving money on the table in terms of the ability to iterate faster and release more safely.” This highlights how QA is the gatekeeper of quality, bridging the gap between a developer’s vision and the player’s expectations.
QA ensures that every aspect of the game — from physics interactions to audio synchronization — aligns with the desired experience. Ben Wibberley, Founder of Digital Age Quality Assurance, adds, “In the relentless cycle of live game services and frequent content drops, the one thing studios cannot typically buy is time. Tools that make QA processes more efficient allow studios to focus on delivering quality enhancements rather than revisiting past fixes.”
A robust QA process ensures the game is not only technically sound but also enjoyable, fair, and free of critical issues that could disrupt gameplay, protecting both player satisfaction and a studio’s bottom line.
The value of QA in game development
The benefits of QA extend far beyond bug detection. It ensures a game’s reliability and polish, minimizing the risk of negative reviews, refunds, or player churn due to technical issues. For studios, investing in QA saves time and money by catching problems early, reducing the cost of fixing bugs closer to release. Moreover, a well-executed QA process supports developers by freeing them to focus on creativity rather than firefighting technical problems late in the development cycle.
With games becoming increasingly sophisticated and player expectations rising, the importance of QA cannot be overstated. It’s the foundation upon which successful games are built, ensuring functionality and the kind of experience that players will return to again and again.
Key types of games QA
- Functional testing: Examines the basic functionality of the game. Does the player character respond correctly to inputs? Are quests triggering properly? Is the AI behaving as intended? Functional testing ensures the game operates as intended at a fundamental level.
- Performance testing: Evaluates how the game runs under different conditions, such as varying hardware capabilities or network environments. This includes monitoring frame rates, load times, memory usage, and server stability to ensure consistent performance.
- Compliance testing: Focuses on meeting platform-specific requirements set by console manufacturers, app stores, or publishers, as well as adherence to government regulations (i.e., GDPR, COPPA, etc). Non-compliance can lead to delays or rejection during submission, making this a critical step.
- Usability and playability testing: Ensures that the game is intuitive and enjoyable. This may involve assessing difficulty levels, user interface clarity, and overall player satisfaction.
- Regression testing: Confirms that fixes applied to previous issues haven’t unintentionally introduced new problems, ensuring stability with each iteration of the game.
To learn more, check out “What is Modern Game Testing?“
How QA fits into the game development lifecycle
It’s unfortunately common for studios to treat QA as an afterthought — something to be done only if time allows at the end of development cycles. However, industry veterans argue that this approach can lead to significant problems, including missed bugs, delayed releases, and higher costs for fixes.
Rob Sandberg, Game Production Executive and advocate for the “shift-left” approach, emphasizes, “The smart developers are the ones who shift left — the ones who have the QA team in the development phase. They’re not testing all the features when they get dumped off to them as a functional test. They’re doing development-level testing.” This proactive strategy involves embedding QA into the software development lifecycle (SDLC) from the earliest stages, ensuring issues are addressed early, when they’re faster and cheaper to fix.
By integrating QA throughout the production lifecycle, studios can maintain higher quality standards and avoid the pitfalls of late-stage testing. From pre-production planning to live-service updates, QA plays a critical role in every phase:
- Pre-production: QA teams may assist in defining test plans and identifying potential risks based on the game’s scope and design.
- Production: QA involves ongoing testing of new features and game mechanics, with feedback loops informing development adjustments.
- Post-launch: QA shifts to live service testing, ensuring patches and content updates don’t disrupt the player experience or introduce critical issues.
Why is QA essential in the gaming industry?
QA is the backbone of delivering games that captivate players while avoiding pitfalls that can derail highly anticipated titles. With today’s increasingly complex games, the role of QA has become more critical than ever.
The cost of poor QA
The gaming industry has seen numerous high-profile launches marred by technical issues. Glitches, crashes, or unbalanced mechanics can quickly turn a promising release into a PR disaster, leading to poor reviews, refund requests, and player dissatisfaction. In a competitive market where first impressions matter, a poorly tested game risks being overshadowed by more polished alternatives.
Meeting player expectations in a demanding market
Players expect smooth gameplay, cross-platform compatibility, and minimal downtime. Whether it’s a AAA blockbuster or an indie passion project, QA ensures the game can meet these expectations. QA doesn’t just uncover flaws; it identifies areas for improvement, enhancing player satisfaction and retention.
Games QA industry stats
77% | 77% of developers say they conducted less QA than they should have for their studio’s most recent release, often due to limited time and resources. This gap highlights the need for more robust QA processes to meet the demands of modern game development. |
94% | 94% of game developers believe AI will play an important role in the future of game QA. By adopting AI-driven tools, studios can address challenges like increased game complexity and shorter development cycles more efficiently. |
50% | 50% of developers don’t think that QA budgets are growing fast enough to keep pace with the rising complexity of modern games, signaling a critical need for cost-effective and scalable solutions. |
Best practices for QA in game development
Game developers need a streamlined and effective QA process to succeed in today’s fast-paced industry. Here are the top best practices that can transform your approach to QA:
Test early and often
Shifting QA left integrates testing into every phase of development, addressing issues early when fixes are faster and cheaper. This proactive approach prevents costly late-stage bottlenecks and ensures consistent quality. Tools like modl:test enable this strategy by automating testing and integrating seamlessly with CI/CD workflows, catching bugs early and streamlining development.

Diversify testing methods
Comprehensive QA requires multiple testing types:
- Functional testing ensures basic mechanics work as intended.
- Exploratory testing reveals unexpected issues by testing beyond planned scenarios.
- Regression testing ensures updates don’t disrupt existing features.
Leverage automation
Manual testing alone cannot keep up with the complexity and scope of modern games. Automation using AI-powered tools accelerates the process, covering more ground while freeing human testers to focus on creative problem-solving.
Build collaboration into your workflow
QA shouldn’t be a siloed activity — it works best when tightly integrated with development. Agile workflows, for example, encourage collaboration between developers and QA teams, ensuring issues are addressed quickly and efficiently.
Collect real-world player feedback
Beta testing with real players provides invaluable insights. Analyzing player behavior and feedback helps QA teams refine the experience and catch issues that internal testing might overlook.
Challenges in game QA and how to overcome them
Increasing game complexity
Modern games are more demanding than ever, with open worlds, real-time physics, and multiplayer interactions. Manual testing alone struggles to keep pace. AI-driven solutions tackle this challenge by scaling testing efforts to match game complexity.
Tight deadlines and budget constraints
With rapid development cycles, studios often sacrifice thorough QA to meet deadlines. Automated tools enable developers to achieve more quickly, and more often maintaining quality without breaking the bank.
Post-launch updates
Live-service games require ongoing QA to ensure that patches and new content don’t disrupt gameplay. Continuous testing with AI ensures updates are deployed smoothly and players remain engaged.
Get the most out of QA with modl.ai
QA in game development is more than just a safety net — it’s a strategic advantage that ensures games are polished, engaging, and reliable. By adopting best practices, leveraging AI-powered tools, and fostering collaboration between QA and development teams, studios can meet the demands of an ever-evolving industry. Ready to elevate your QA process? Discover how modl:test, powered by Modl.ai’s Behavioral AI Engine for Games, can revolutionize your testing workflow. Contact us to learn more and start your journey toward faster, smarter, and more efficient QA today.