FINDING BALANCE IN COMPLEXITY FOR
LUNCHBOX ENTERTAINMENT
FINDING BALANCE IN COMPLEXITY FOR
LUNCHBOX ENTERTAINMENT
HOW LIVE AWARE ACCELERATES ITERATION
FOR AN EMERGENT SANDBOX MOBA
HOW LIVE AWARE ACCELERATES ITERATION AN EMERGENT
SANDBOX MOBA
KEY RESULTS
10x faster post-playtest triage: Dramatically accelerated the process of identifying and addressing issues from playtests
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Streamlined feedback collection: Replaced manual OBS recording, Google Sheets note-taking, and Discord threads with a unified system
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Enhanced team collaboration: Enabled the entire studio to actively participate in the feedback process without location constraints
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Accelerated iteration cycles: Transforming weekly playtests into actionable insights from days of work to minutes
-
Improved bug reproduction: Eliminated time wasted attempting to reproduce issues by having video evidence readily available
KEY RESULTS
10x faster post-playtest triage: Dramatically accelerated the process of identifying and addressing issues from playtests
-
Streamlined feedback collection: Replaced manual OBS recording, Google Sheets note-taking, and Discord threads with a unified system
-
Enhanced team collaboration: Enabled the entire studio to actively participate in the feedback process without location constraints
-
Accelerated iteration cycles: Transforming weekly playtests into actionable insights from days of work to minutes
-
Improved bug reproduction: Eliminated time wasted attempting to reproduce issues by having video evidence readily available
1 map. 10 players. 21 ships. 63 skills. 126 skill modifications. That's a lot of variables to combine to create an infinitely replayable team-based competitive experience with no "right way to play." That's exactly what Lunchbox Games set out to create with its upcoming title, Sirocco.
Sirocco is a sandbox MOBA combining rogue-like emergent gameplay with competitive, team-based multiplayer. With a philosophy of play that encourages limitless builds and strategies, Lunchbox needed robust processes to iterate design, squash bugs, and constantly drive improvements for the player experience.
BUILDING A COLLABORATIVE FEEDBACK CULTURE
From the start, Lunchbox embraced a collaborative approach to game development. Each week, their entire studio would remotely come together to battle in a series of competitive 5v5 matches using the latest build. These sessions served dual purposes: they fostered team camaraderie through friendly competition while also creating valuable opportunities to identify issues and potential improvements.
"Our weekly playtests weren't just about finding bugs, they were about experiencing our game together as players, feeling what worked and what didn't firsthand," explains Max Wink, Founder and Co-CEO of Lunchbox Games.
Sirocco is a sandbox MOBA combining rogue-like emergent gameplay with competitive, team-based multiplayer. With a philosophy of play that encourages limitless builds and strategies, Lunchbox needed robust processes to iterate design, squash bugs, and constantly drive improvements for the player experience.
-
BUILDING A COLLABORATIVE FEEDBACK CULTURE
From the start, Lunchbox embraced a collaborative approach to game development. Each week, their entire studio would remotely come together to battle in a series of competitive 5v5 matches using the latest build. These sessions served dual purposes: they fostered team camaraderie through friendly competition while also creating valuable opportunities to identify issues and potential improvements.
"Our weekly playtests weren't just about finding bugs, they were about experiencing our game together as players, feeling what worked and what didn't firsthand," explains Max Wink, Founder and Co-CEO of Lunchbox Games.
However, these valuable insights came with significant operational challenges. The team's early process relied on a patchwork of tools that created friction at every stage:
-
Videos captured through OBS required technical setup that varied across team members
-
Notes were manually compiled into Google Sheets, losing crucial context in the process
-
Team members would pile into Discord threads to discuss findings, creating scattered documentation
-
Hours of footage had to be manually reviewed to identify specific moments for reference
This approach consumed an unsustainable amount of time and effort. After each playtest, the team faced a massive volume of data and media to process, often extending their workweek as they struggled to organize findings before the next development cycle began.
A SECRET WEAPON FOR STREAMLINED FEEDBACK
Last year, Lunchbox added a crucial tool to their development arsenal: Live Aware. The team continued their weekly playtests, but with one significant change. They now used Live Aware's Desktop Recorder application to capture and share their experiences.
However, these valuable insights came with significant operational challenges. The team's early process relied on a patchwork of tools that created friction at every stage:
-
Videos captured through OBS required technical setup that varied across team members
-
Notes were manually compiled into Google Sheets, losing crucial context in the process
-
Team members would pile into Discord threads to discuss findings, creating scattered documentation
-
Hours of footage had to be manually reviewed to identify specific moments for reference
This approach consumed an unsustainable amount of time and effort. After each playtest, the team faced a massive volume of data and media to process, often extending their workweek as they struggled to organize findings before the next development cycle began.
A SECRET WEAPON FOR STREAMLINED FEEDBACK
Last year, Lunchbox added a crucial tool to their development arsenal: Live Aware. The team continued their weekly playtests, but with one significant change. They now used Live Aware's Desktop Recorder application to capture and share their experiences.
The impact was immediate and profound. Instead of wrestling with complicated recording setups, team members could focus on playing and providing feedback. Live Aware's lightweight recorder eliminated technical barriers while ensuring consistent, high-quality capture across the entire team.
"Live Aware is orders of magnitude more effective than OBS. Especially for first-time users. When you launch it all you have to do is set an audio source and the correct screen, then hit record. Our playtesters love it," notes Wink.
FROM HOURS TO MINUTES: TRANSFORMING THE TRIAGE PROCESS
The real transformation came with Live Aware's Insights Dashboard. With their playtest videos centrally organized and automatically transcribed, the team gained unprecedented visibility into player experiences across multiple sessions.
The impact was immediate and profound. Instead of wrestling with complicated recording setups, team members could focus on playing and providing feedback. Live Aware's lightweight recorder eliminated technical barriers while ensuring consistent, high-quality capture across the entire team.
"Live Aware is orders of magnitude more effective than OBS. Especially for first-time users. When you launch it all you have to do is set an audio source and the correct screen, then hit record. Our playtesters love it," notes Wink.
FROM HOURS TO MINUTES: TRANSFORMING THE TRIAGE PROCESS
The real transformation came with Live Aware's Insights Dashboard. With their playtest videos centrally organized and automatically transcribed, the team gained unprecedented visibility into player experiences across multiple sessions.
The impact was immediate and profound. Instead of wrestling with complicated recording setups, team members could focus on playing and providing feedback. Live Aware's lightweight recorder eliminated technical barriers while ensuring consistent, high-quality capture across the entire team.
"Live Aware is orders of magnitude more effective than OBS. Especially for first-time users. When you launch it all you have to do is set an audio source and the correct screen, then hit record. Our playtesters love it," notes Wink.
FROM HOURS TO MINUTES: TRANSFORMING THE TRIAGE PROCESS
The real transformation came with Live Aware's Insights Dashboard. With their playtest videos centrally organized and automatically transcribed, the team gained unprecedented visibility into player experiences across multiple sessions.
The impact was immediate and profound. Instead of wrestling with complicated recording setups, team members could focus on playing and providing feedback. Live Aware's lightweight recorder eliminated technical barriers while ensuring consistent, high-quality capture across the entire team.
"Live Aware is orders of magnitude more effective than OBS. Especially for first-time users. When you launch it all you have to do is set an audio source and the correct screen, then hit record. Our playtesters love it," notes Wink.
FROM HOURS TO MINUTES: TRANSFORMING THE TRIAGE PROCESS
The real transformation came with Live Aware's Insights Dashboard. With their playtest videos centrally organized and automatically transcribed, the team gained unprecedented visibility into player experiences across multiple sessions.
The impact was immediate and profound. Instead of wrestling with complicated recording setups, team members could focus on playing and providing feedback. Live Aware's lightweight recorder eliminated technical barriers while ensuring consistent, high-quality capture across the entire team.
"Live Aware is orders of magnitude more effective than OBS. Especially for first-time users. When you launch it all you have to do is set an audio source and the correct screen, then hit record. Our playtesters love it," notes Wink.
FROM HOURS TO MINUTES: TRANSFORMING THE TRIAGE PROCESS
The real transformation came with Live Aware's Insights Dashboard. With their playtest videos centrally organized and automatically transcribed, the team gained unprecedented visibility into player experiences across multiple sessions.
Before Live Aware, post-playtest analysis was a tedious process. Team members would spend hours reviewing footage, copying notes into shared documents, and trying to identify patterns across different sessions. With Live Aware's AI-powered analysis, insights began to surface automatically.
These insights transformed how Lunchbox approached their development cycle:
-
Issues were identified faster: Problems that previously took days to document could now be spotted, categorized, and prioritized within hours
-Evidence became immediately accessible: Team members could quickly find video examples of specific issues without hunting through hours of footage
-Patterns emerged naturally: Similar feedback from multiple players was automatically grouped, highlighting systemic issues versus one-off experiences
-Positive moments were celebrated: The team could easily identify what was working well, not just what needed fixing
"The Insights Dashboard was key to being able to drive our fix cycle so quickly. Usually we're still ticketing bugs from Thursday's playtest on Monday, but now we can have all our severe bugs created same day as the playtest, and complete our full triage on Friday, saving the team nearly a day of effort on every cycle," explains Adrienne Pass, Director of QA at Lunchbox Games.
BEYOND BUG FIXING: FINDING THE FUN
For Lunchbox Games, playtesting isn't just about fixing technical issues, it's about the ongoing pursuit of that elusive quality that makes a good game great. Some call it "finding the fun," and with a game as complex as Sirocco, this requires a deep understanding of the player experience beyond metrics and bug reports.
Live Aware provided a window into the emotional and experiential aspects of gameplay that are difficult to capture through traditional feedback methods. By analyzing player commentary and reactions, the team could identify frustration points, moments of excitement, and unexpected player behaviors that wouldn't be evident from data alone.
"I think as designers, we can get used to the way it's been done. And it's hard to pull that out. When you get feedback, you're constantly thinking about it in terms of what you already know and think, and it's really hard to get rid of that type of behavior. But with data coming out of Live Aware, we're just getting statements that players have said that's been picked up with the AI and then accumulated into these data points. And then when we go look at the actual video, it becomes really obvious how we can improve that player's experience," reflects Arik Torkelson, Founder & Chief Gaming Officer.
Before Live Aware, post-playtest analysis was a tedious process. Team members would spend hours reviewing footage, copying notes into shared documents, and trying to identify patterns across different sessions. With Live Aware's AI-powered analysis, insights began to surface automatically.
These insights transformed how Lunchbox approached their development cycle:
-
Issues were identified faster: Problems that previously took days to document could now be spotted, categorized, and prioritized within hours
-Evidence became immediately accessible: Team members could quickly find video examples of specific issues without hunting through hours of footage
-Patterns emerged naturally: Similar feedback from multiple players was automatically grouped, highlighting systemic issues versus one-off experiences
-Positive moments were celebrated: The team could easily identify what was working well, not just what needed fixing
"The Insights Dashboard was key to being able to drive our fix cycle so quickly. Usually we're still ticketing bugs from Thursday's playtest on Monday, but now we can have all our severe bugs created same day as the playtest, and complete our full triage on Friday, saving the team nearly a day of effort on every cycle," explains Adrienne Pass, Director of QA at Lunchbox Games.
BEYOND BUG FIXING: FINDING THE FUN
For Lunchbox Games, playtesting isn't just about fixing technical issues, it's about the ongoing pursuit of that elusive quality that makes a good game great. Some call it "finding the fun," and with a game as complex as Sirocco, this requires a deep understanding of the player experience beyond metrics and bug reports.
Live Aware provided a window into the emotional and experiential aspects of gameplay that are difficult to capture through traditional feedback methods. By analyzing player commentary and reactions, the team could identify frustration points, moments of excitement, and unexpected player behaviors that wouldn't be evident from data alone.
"I think as designers, we can get used to the way it's been done. And it's hard to pull that out. When you get feedback, you're constantly thinking about it in terms of what you already know and think, and it's really hard to get rid of that type of behavior. But with data coming out of Live Aware, we're just getting statements that players have said that's been picked up with the AI and then accumulated into these data points. And then when we go look at the actual video, it becomes really obvious how we can improve that player's experience," reflects Arik Torkelson, Founder & Chief Gaming Officer.
Before Live Aware, post-playtest analysis was a tedious process. Team members would spend hours reviewing footage, copying notes into shared documents, and trying to identify patterns across different sessions. With Live Aware's AI-powered analysis, insights began to surface automatically.
These insights transformed how Lunchbox approached their development cycle:
-
Issues were identified faster: Problems that previously took days to document could now be spotted, categorized, and prioritized within hours
-Evidence became immediately accessible: Team members could quickly find video examples of specific issues without hunting through hours of footage
-Patterns emerged naturally: Similar feedback from multiple players was automatically grouped, highlighting systemic issues versus one-off experiences
-Positive moments were celebrated: The team could easily identify what was working well, not just what needed fixing
"The Insights Dashboard was key to being able to drive our fix cycle so quickly. Usually we're still ticketing bugs from Thursday's playtest on Monday, but now we can have all our severe bugs created same day as the playtest, and complete our full triage on Friday, saving the team nearly a day of effort on every cycle," explains Adrienne Pass, Director of QA at Lunchbox Games.
BEYOND BUG FIXING: FINDING THE FUN
For Lunchbox Games, playtesting isn't just about fixing technical issues, it's about the ongoing pursuit of that elusive quality that makes a good game great. Some call it "finding the fun," and with a game as complex as Sirocco, this requires a deep understanding of the player experience beyond metrics and bug reports.
Live Aware provided a window into the emotional and experiential aspects of gameplay that are difficult to capture through traditional feedback methods. By analyzing player commentary and reactions, the team could identify frustration points, moments of excitement, and unexpected player behaviors that wouldn't be evident from data alone.
"I think as designers, we can get used to the way it's been done. And it's hard to pull that out. When you get feedback, you're constantly thinking about it in terms of what you already know and think, and it's really hard to get rid of that type of behavior. But with data coming out of Live Aware, we're just getting statements that players have said that's been picked up with the AI and then accumulated into these data points. And then when we go look at the actual video, it becomes really obvious how we can improve that player's experience," reflects Arik Torkelson, Founder & Chief Gaming Officer.
Before Live Aware, post-playtest analysis was a tedious process. Team members would spend hours reviewing footage, copying notes into shared documents, and trying to identify patterns across different sessions. With Live Aware's AI-powered analysis, insights began to surface automatically.
These insights transformed how Lunchbox approached their development cycle:
-
Issues were identified faster: Problems that previously took days to document could now be spotted, categorized, and prioritized within hours
-Evidence became immediately accessible: Team members could quickly find video examples of specific issues without hunting through hours of footage
-Patterns emerged naturally: Similar feedback from multiple players was automatically grouped, highlighting systemic issues versus one-off experiences
-Positive moments were celebrated: The team could easily identify what was working well, not just what needed fixing
"The Insights Dashboard was key to being able to drive our fix cycle so quickly. Usually we're still ticketing bugs from Thursday's playtest on Monday, but now we can have all our severe bugs created same day as the playtest, and complete our full triage on Friday, saving the team nearly a day of effort on every cycle," explains Adrienne Pass, Director of QA at Lunchbox Games.
BEYOND BUG FIXING: FINDING THE FUN
For Lunchbox Games, playtesting isn't just about fixing technical issues, it's about the ongoing pursuit of that elusive quality that makes a good game great. Some call it "finding the fun," and with a game as complex as Sirocco, this requires a deep understanding of the player experience beyond metrics and bug reports.
Live Aware provided a window into the emotional and experiential aspects of gameplay that are difficult to capture through traditional feedback methods. By analyzing player commentary and reactions, the team could identify frustration points, moments of excitement, and unexpected player behaviors that wouldn't be evident from data alone.
"I think as designers, we can get used to the way it's been done. And it's hard to pull that out. When you get feedback, you're constantly thinking about it in terms of what you already know and think, and it's really hard to get rid of that type of behavior. But with data coming out of Live Aware, we're just getting statements that players have said that's been picked up with the AI and then accumulated into these data points. And then when we go look at the actual video, it becomes really obvious how we can improve that player's experience," reflects Arik Torkelson, Founder & Chief Gaming Officer.
Before Live Aware, post-playtest analysis was a tedious process. Team members would spend hours reviewing footage, copying notes into shared documents, and trying to identify patterns across different sessions. With Live Aware's AI-powered analysis, insights began to surface automatically.
These insights transformed how Lunchbox approached their development cycle:
-
Issues were identified faster: Problems that previously took days to document could now be spotted, categorized, and prioritized within hours
-Evidence became immediately accessible: Team members could quickly find video examples of specific issues without hunting through hours of footage
-Patterns emerged naturally: Similar feedback from multiple players was automatically grouped, highlighting systemic issues versus one-off experiences
-Positive moments were celebrated: The team could easily identify what was working well, not just what needed fixing
"The Insights Dashboard was key to being able to drive our fix cycle so quickly. Usually we're still ticketing bugs from Thursday's playtest on Monday, but now we can have all our severe bugs created same day as the playtest, and complete our full triage on Friday, saving the team nearly a day of effort on every cycle," explains Adrienne Pass, Director of QA at Lunchbox Games.
BEYOND BUG FIXING: FINDING THE FUN
For Lunchbox Games, playtesting isn't just about fixing technical issues, it's about the ongoing pursuit of that elusive quality that makes a good game great. Some call it "finding the fun," and with a game as complex as Sirocco, this requires a deep understanding of the player experience beyond metrics and bug reports.
Live Aware provided a window into the emotional and experiential aspects of gameplay that are difficult to capture through traditional feedback methods. By analyzing player commentary and reactions, the team could identify frustration points, moments of excitement, and unexpected player behaviors that wouldn't be evident from data alone.
"I think as designers, we can get used to the way it's been done. And it's hard to pull that out. When you get feedback, you're constantly thinking about it in terms of what you already know and think, and it's really hard to get rid of that type of behavior. But with data coming out of Live Aware, we're just getting statements that players have said that's been picked up with the AI and then accumulated into these data points. And then when we go look at the actual video, it becomes really obvious how we can improve that player's experience," reflects Arik Torkelson, Founder & Chief Gaming Officer.
SCALING FOR THE FUTURE
As Lunchbox Games continues developing Sirocco, they've expanded their testing beyond the core team to include playtesting with their growing community. Live Aware has scaled effortlessly with this growth, maintaining the same streamlined process whether analyzing internal team feedback or capturing experiences from new players.
The ability to rapidly identify issues, implement changes, and validate improvements has become central to Lunchbox's development philosophy. With each iteration cycle accelerated by Live Aware's insights, the team can focus more energy on refining what makes Sirocco special—its emergent gameplay, strategic depth, and memorable player moments.
SCALING FOR THE FUTURE
As Lunchbox Games continues developing Sirocco, they've expanded their testing beyond the core team to include playtesting with their growing community. Live Aware has scaled effortlessly with this growth, maintaining the same streamlined process whether analyzing internal team feedback or capturing experiences from new players.
The ability to rapidly identify issues, implement changes, and validate improvements has become central to Lunchbox's development philosophy. With each iteration cycle accelerated by Live Aware's insights, the team can focus more energy on refining what makes Sirocco special—its emergent gameplay, strategic depth, and memorable player moments.
SCALING FOR THE FUTURE
As Lunchbox Games continues developing Sirocco, they've expanded their testing beyond the core team to include playtesting with their growing community. Live Aware has scaled effortlessly with this growth, maintaining the same streamlined process whether analyzing internal team feedback or capturing experiences from new players.
The ability to rapidly identify issues, implement changes, and validate improvements has become central to Lunchbox's development philosophy. With each iteration cycle accelerated by Live Aware's insights, the team can focus more energy on refining what makes Sirocco special—its emergent gameplay, strategic depth, and memorable player moments.
SCALING FOR THE FUTURE
As Lunchbox Games continues developing Sirocco, they've expanded their testing beyond the core team to include playtesting with their growing community. Live Aware has scaled effortlessly with this growth, maintaining the same streamlined process whether analyzing internal team feedback or capturing experiences from new players.
The ability to rapidly identify issues, implement changes, and validate improvements has become central to Lunchbox's development philosophy. With each iteration cycle accelerated by Live Aware's insights, the team can focus more energy on refining what makes Sirocco special—its emergent gameplay, strategic depth, and memorable player moments.
SCALING FOR THE FUTURE
As Lunchbox Games continues developing Sirocco, they've expanded their testing beyond the core team to include playtesting with their growing community. Live Aware has scaled effortlessly with this growth, maintaining the same streamlined process whether analyzing internal team feedback or capturing experiences from new players.
The ability to rapidly identify issues, implement changes, and validate improvements has become central to Lunchbox's development philosophy. With each iteration cycle accelerated by Live Aware's insights, the team can focus more energy on refining what makes Sirocco special—its emergent gameplay, strategic depth, and memorable player moments.
Sorraco is currently in development by Lunchbox Entertainment. Visit their website for more information and wishlist their game on Steam.
To learn more about how Live Aware can help your team capture and analyze player feedback at scale, click here to sign up for a demo.