Playtest Parlor is a playtesting platform built for game designers. Every feature exists to help you build a prototype, get it in front of players, and learn what to change. Here is what you get.
Zero-friction access
No install. No purchase. No Steam account. Share a link and your playtester is at the table in under 60 seconds.
- Works in any modern browser on desktop, tablet, or phone
- Guest access via join link -- no account required to play
- Up to 16 simultaneous players plus spectators
- Mobile responsive so testers can join from wherever they are
Live Markup -- the digital Sharpie
The feature that defines Playtest Parlor. Players can write and draw directly on any game component during play -- tiles, cards, dice faces, tokens. It is the digital equivalent of grabbing a Sharpie and scratching out a number on a card mid-playtest.
- Freehand marker tool with adjustable brush size and color
- Text placement with adjustable font size and color
- Works on tile fronts and backs, sleeve fronts and backs, individual dice faces, and sprite tokens
- Zoom control for precision work
- 120-level undo stack
- Permission-controlled: everyone, session starter, or owner and collaborators
No-code automation
Build automation visually without writing a single line of code. The sequence builder has 38+ step types covering everything from card management to player prompts.
- Draw, deal, shuffle, and return cards to decks
- Roll dice and spin spinners
- Adjust counters and read counter values
- Move pieces between locations
- Dispense tokens from bowls and bags
- Start, pause, and reset timers
- Player prompts: confirmation, number input, choose from list
- Conditional branching: stop if, only if, switch-case dispatch
- Sub-sequence composition for reusable automation chains
- Reactive triggers that fire on game events without manual intervention
Full component library
Everything in the box, ready to use.
- Cards and tiles -- rectangular, hex, or circular with front/back artwork
- Decks and stacks -- ordered collections with draw, shuffle, and deal
- Tokens and pawns -- 3D-rendered pieces in any color
- Dice -- d4, d6, d8, d10, d12, d20 with customizable faces
- Spinners and coins -- random selection and coin flip mechanics
- Counters -- numeric trackers for scores, resources, and health
- Timers -- countdown and count-up with configurable alerts
- Bags and bowls -- hidden containers for blind draws
- Boards and spaces -- grid, hex, and freeform layouts with magnetism
- Sleeves -- two-sided protective holders for card crafting games
- Buttons -- trigger sequences with a single click
- Annotations -- shapes, arrows, and text overlays on the table surface
Table customization
Make the table yours.
- Custom backgrounds -- upload an image as the table surface (board, terrain map, play mat) with fill, fit, tile, or center options
- Freehand annotations -- draw directly on the table surface with persistent, movable, undoable strokes
- Measure tool -- point-to-point distance measurement in configurable units for miniature and wargame prototyping
- SVG-shaped tiles -- define arbitrary component shapes via SVG paths with accurate hit detection for jigsaw puzzles, irregular map tiles, and custom-shaped pieces
Playtesting-specific features
These are the tools that make Playtest Parlor a playtesting platform, not just a virtual table.
- Playtest records -- durable records of every play session with participant snapshots, winner and score outcomes, and facilitator notes
- Playtest surveys -- post-session feedback capturing fun, clarity, pace, and balance ratings plus highlights and pain points
- Session replay -- full playback of recorded sessions with timeline scrubbing and 30-day retention
- Marked moments -- in-game note-taking with timestamps so designers can annotate events as they happen
- Event logging -- every action recorded with timestamp and actor for post-session analysis
- Game resources -- attach rules PDFs, videos, and reference links directly to the session
- Playtest analytics -- session duration tracking, action frequency by type, per-player engagement, component interaction heatmaps, and cross-session trend analysis
Server-authoritative networking
The host can disconnect and reconnect. The game state persists on the server. No one loses progress and no one has to start over.
Managed asset hosting
Upload images or import directly from The Game Crafter. Assets are stored with checksums, deduplication, sprite sheet optimization, and derived thumbnails. Nothing breaks because a third-party host disappeared.
Collaborative game development
Multiple designers can work on the same game definition. Invite collaborators with permission controls. Changes sync in real-time. Import revision tracking shows what changed between versions.
Discord integration
Playtest Parlor integrates with Discord instead of building its own comms. Your playtesters get voice chat, text chat, screen sharing, persistent history, and mobile access -- all through a platform they already know.
Sleeves and card crafting
The sleeve system enables card crafting games. Sleeves are two-sided protective holders that cards slide into, letting players combine base cards with overlays, build custom cards during play, and prototype component combinations.
Undo, trash, and recovery
Full undo and redo with checkpoint snapshots, plus a recoverable trash system. Accidentally delete a component? Pull it back from trash. Undo a sequence that went wrong? One action reverts everything the sequence did.
Player presence
See where every player is looking and interacting with colored presence glows and grab indicators. You always know who is touching what.
The Game Crafter integration
Import your game directly from The Game Crafter. Your components, artwork, and structure come in ready to play. When your game is ready to manufacture, the path from digital prototype to physical product is already connected.