Ten Playtesters, One Brutal Truth: Core Loop CPR

Posted by Gemma Ellison

July 27, 2025

Your game’s core loop is the heartbeat. If it’s weak, the entire project flatlines. I learned this the hard way on my last game, a procedurally generated space exploration title. We thought we had something special, a vast universe to explore, resources to mine, and ships to upgrade.

The Ten Playtester Gauntlet

We were excited to get it in front of people. We recruited ten playtesters, a mix of friends, acquaintances from online forums, and a couple of actual strangers. We gave them a basic build, a brief tutorial, and unleashed them into the cosmos. The goal: establish a base, upgrade a ship, and explore three star systems.

We watched, we took notes, and we braced ourselves.

The Brutal Truth: Boredom Sets In

The feedback came in waves. Some liked the art style. Others appreciated the procedural generation. But the overwhelming consensus, the brutal truth that punched us in the gut, was this: the core loop was boring. Players described it as repetitive, grindy, and lacking a sense of real progression.

One playtester put it bluntly: “I felt like I was just going through the motions.” Another said, “I lost interest after about an hour. It all felt the same.”

This wasn’t just criticism, it was a diagnosis. Our game wasn’t fun.

Diagnosing the Problem: Targeted Questions

We didn’t panic, though we wanted to. We realized we hadn’t asked the right questions during playtesting. We focused on surface-level things: “Did you understand the tutorial?” “Did you like the graphics?” We needed to dig deeper, to understand why the core loop felt boring.

So, we went back to our notes and formulated more targeted questions, focusing on specific elements of the core loop:

What was the most engaging part of exploring a new system? Why?
What was the least engaging part of gathering resources? Why?
At what point did you feel like you were just repeating the same actions?
What would make the upgrade system feel more rewarding?

We also looked at player behavior. How long did they spend in each system? How often did they upgrade their ship? What resources did they prioritize? This data gave us a clearer picture of where the problems were.

The Underlying Issues: A Multifaceted Problem

The targeted questions and behavioral analysis revealed several key issues:

Resource Acquisition was a Chore: Mining resources was tedious and unrewarding. Players spent too much time clicking on rocks and waiting for their ship to fill up. There was no strategic element, no sense of risk or reward.
Upgrades Felt Incremental: Upgrades provided marginal improvements, not game-changing boosts. Players didn’t feel a significant difference after investing their hard-earned resources.
Lack of Meaningful Choice: The procedural generation, while visually impressive, didn’t translate into meaningful choices. Every system felt largely the same, with the same resources and the same basic challenges.
No Clear Endgame: Players didn’t have a clear sense of what they were working towards. There was no overarching goal, no compelling reason to keep exploring.

Core Loop CPR: Actionable Changes

Armed with this understanding, we started performing core loop CPR. Here’s what we did:

Revamped Resource Acquisition: We introduced automated mining drones that could be deployed and upgraded. Players could now focus on exploration while the drones gathered resources in the background. We also added rare, high-value resources that required specialized equipment to extract, introducing a strategic element to mining.
Overhauled the Upgrade System: We rebalanced the upgrade system to provide more significant boosts. Upgrades now unlocked new abilities and drastically altered the ship’s performance. We also added unique upgrade modules that could be found in hidden locations, encouraging exploration.
Introduced Dynamic Events: We added random events that could occur in any system, such as pirate attacks, distress signals, and resource anomalies. These events forced players to adapt and make choices, adding an element of surprise and challenge.
Implemented a Storyline: We introduced a basic storyline with a clear objective: find the lost colony ships. This gave players a sense of purpose and a reason to keep exploring. The story unfolded through environmental storytelling and cryptic messages found in abandoned space stations.

Iteration and Playtesting (Again!)

We didn’t expect to get it right on the first try. We knew this was an iterative process. After implementing these changes, we went back to playtesting. This time, we saw a marked improvement. Players spent more time exploring, experimented with different upgrades, and engaged with the dynamic events.

They were still providing feedback, but it was now focused on fine-tuning the experience, not on fundamental issues with the core loop. “The mining drones are a game changer!” one player exclaimed. Another said, “I actually felt a sense of urgency when I stumbled upon a pirate ambush.”

Avoiding Common Mistakes

Looking back, we made several common mistakes that hindered our initial playtesting efforts:

Asking Vague Questions: “Did you like it?” is useless. Ask specific questions about specific elements of the game.
Ignoring Negative Feedback: It’s tempting to dismiss criticism, especially when you’ve poured your heart and soul into a project. But negative feedback is invaluable. Embrace it.
Not Observing Player Behavior: Watch how players actually play your game, not just what they say they do. Their actions often speak louder than words.
Treating Playtesting as a One-Time Event: Playtesting is an ongoing process. You should be constantly gathering feedback and iterating on your design.

The Power of Playtesting

Our experience proves the importance of playtesting, but more importantly, the right kind of playtesting. Don’t be afraid to face the brutal truth about your game. It’s better to discover the flaws early on and address them, rather than releasing a game that nobody wants to play. Targeted questions, careful observation, and a willingness to iterate can transform a boring core loop into an engaging and rewarding experience. It saved our game, and it can save yours too.