@runevision Makes sense. I can sympathize for sure.

Can you capture metrics from a test session? We learn a lot by looking at key events and statistics, which eases the pressure on recording (and, indeed, manual objective reports in general from testers).

If you are fortunate enough to have in-engine replay tech, that's pure gold as far as data goes.

@runevision If your later content is still somewhat approachable for a novice, set up cheats or savegames that drop testers directly in the late game. That way they don't need multiple sessions.

If, like most games, you have a considerable difficulty ramp, dedicated alpha/beta test groups are the way to go. Much harder to get a large cohort but usually far more dedicated players.

@Vexzal The trick to engines like Unity is they have accrued many years of situational solutions to various challenges. Often what makes sense in that context will look dramatically different from what makes sense in a fresh design.

My favorite mentality for building things like engines is "know what you need to solve." Emulating other solutions is problematic because you are likely solving slightly differing problems.

In other words, design what you need, not what someone else once needed.