How to Find Playtesters for Your TTRPG

You've got a draft. The rules make sense in your head. Your friend group played it twice and said it was fun.

That's not enough.

Real playtesting means putting your game in front of people who don't know you, don't know your intentions, and will interact with your rules in ways you never imagined. If you're still working on your game and found this article early, that's great. Check out our guides on how to make a TTRPG and how to design a TTRPG system for the design side of things. But if you've got something playable, here's how to find testers and make the most of their feedback.

Why You Need Outside Playtesters

Your friends are great, but they have context you didn't write down. They know what you meant by a rule, so they play it correctly even when the text is unclear. They fill in gaps with assumptions because they've heard you talk about the game for months.

Outside playtesters have none of that context. They only have the document. When they get confused, that confusion is real data about your writing, not their reading comprehension.

You need both:

• Guided playtests where you run the game and watch how people interact with it
• Blind playtests where someone else runs the game using only your written rules

Blind playtests are harder to set up but infinitely more valuable for catching unclear writing.

Where to Find Playtesters Online

Reddit

• r/RPGdesign is the biggest TTRPG design community. They have regular playtesting request threads.
• r/lfg is the "looking for group" subreddit. Post that you're seeking playtesters for an indie game.
• System-specific subreddits are great if your game leans toward a specific design school. PbtA-adjacent? Post in r/PbtA. OSR-adjacent? Try r/osr.

When posting, include: what the game is about, how long a session takes, what platform you'll use, and what kind of feedback you're looking for. Don't just say "playtest my game." Pitch it.

Discord

Some of the most active TTRPG design communities live on Discord:

• RPG Design & Development is a large server with dedicated playtesting channels
• The Gauntlet is story-game focused with a very feedback-oriented community
• Indie TTRPG servers are everywhere. Search Disboard for TTRPG servers and join ones that match your game's vibe
• System-specific servers for Blades in the Dark, PbtA, OSR, and others often have design channels

Be a member first. Engage with other people's work. Then ask for playtesting help. Communities respond better to people they recognize.

Online Play Platforms

• Roll20 has a "looking for players" section. List your game and specify it's a playtest.
• Foundry VTT has a community Discord with channels for game recruitment.
• StartPlaying.games is another option. Some GMs run playtest sessions there.
• Tabletop Simulator / Tabletopia work well if your game uses custom components.

Social Media

Post on Twitter/X, Bluesky, and Mastodon with hashtags:

• #ttrpg #playtesting #rpgdesign #indiettrpg #ttrpgdesign

Be specific about what you need: "Looking for 3-4 players to playtest a one-shot survival horror TTRPG this Saturday at 2pm EST on Discord." Specificity gets responses. Vagueness gets scrolled past.

Where to Find Playtesters In Person

Conventions

TTRPG conventions are the gold standard for playtesting. Players are there specifically to try new games.

• Gen Con lets you sign up to run games in the event system
• Big Bad Con is indie-friendly with a strong feedback culture
• PAX Unplugged has a growing TTRPG presence
• Local and regional cons are often easier to get a table and attract engaged players
• Free RPG Day is a chance to run your game at a participating local game store

Convention players give immediate, honest feedback because they have no social obligation to be nice. That's exactly what you want.

Local Game Stores (FLGS)

Many game stores have open RPG nights. Ask the store if you can run a playtest session. Most store owners are happy to support local designers because it brings people into the store.

Meetup Groups

Search Meetup.com for TTRPG or board game groups in your area. These groups are often hungry for new experiences and willing to try indie games.

How to Run a Good Playtest

Finding playtesters is only half the job. You need to extract useful information from the session.

Before the Session

• Decide what you're testing. Don't try to test everything at once. Focus: "I want to know if combat feels too slow" or "I want to know if character creation is clear."
• Prepare a feedback form. Even a short Google Form with 5-6 questions is better than relying on memory.
• Set expectations. Tell players: "This is a playtest. Things might break. I need honest feedback, not politeness."

During the Session

• Take notes on moments, not opinions. Write down what happened, not what you think about it. "Player spent 3 minutes figuring out damage calculation" is more useful than "damage system needs work."
• Don't explain rules that aren't in the document. If a player is confused, note the confusion. Don't rescue them. That confusion is the most valuable data you'll get.
• Watch body language. Phones out? Long pauses? Players looking at each other for confirmation? These are signals that something isn't working.

After the Session

• Ask open-ended questions first. "What stood out to you?" before "Did you like the magic system?"
• Ask about specific moments. "When you fought the cultists, what was that experience like?"
• Ask what they'd change. Players are surprisingly good at identifying problems. They're less good at designing solutions. That's your job.
• Send the feedback form. People will write things they won't say out loud.

Blind Playtesting

This is where a group plays your game without you present, using only the written rules. It's the most important playtesting phase and the hardest to organize.

How to Set It Up

1. Find a GM willing to run a game they've never seen before
2. Give them the rules document and nothing else. No verbal instructions, no "oh, also..."
3. Ask them to keep notes on every point of confusion
4. Debrief with the GM afterward

What You'll Learn

Blind playtests reveal:

• Rules that make sense in your head but not on paper
• Missing information you assumed was obvious
• Sections people skip or misread
• Whether your game can survive without you in the room

If your game passes a blind playtest, it's ready to publish. If it doesn't, you know exactly what to fix. When you do get to the publishing stage, we've got guides on how to sell your TTRPG and how to market your TTRPG.

How Many Playtests Do You Need?

There's no magic number, but here's a rough framework:

• 3-5 guided playtests to test core mechanics and find big problems
• 2-3 blind playtests to test your writing and find gaps
• 1-2 playtests with your target audience to confirm the game resonates with the right people

If you're finding major issues in every session, you're not done. If sessions are producing only minor tweaks, you're close.

Compensating Playtesters

Most TTRPG playtesters do it for free because they like trying new games. But it's good practice to:

• Credit them in the final publication
• Give them a free copy of the finished game
• Thank them publicly on social media
• Return the favor by playtesting their games

The TTRPG design community runs on reciprocity. Give as much as you take.

When Your Game Is Ready, Get It Listed

Playtesting isn't just about fixing bugs. It's the process that takes your game from "something I made" to "something other people can pick up and play." Once you've gotten through that process and your game is solid, the next challenge is making sure people can actually find it.

Submit your game to TTRPG List when it's ready. Here's what that does for you:

• Your game gets a permanent home in a searchable database. Players browse TTRPG List by genre, system, and type. If someone is looking for games like yours, they can find it.
• You get a free backlink. Your listing links directly to wherever you sell or host your game (Itch, DriveThru, your website, wherever). That helps your search engine rankings and sends traffic your way.
• It's exposure that keeps working. Social media posts disappear in a day. A directory listing stays up and keeps getting traffic from search engines indefinitely.
• It's free. No cost, no catch. We're indie too. We built TTRPG List because the discoverability problem in this space is real and we wanted to do something about it.

The hardest part of this whole process is asking. Post in one community today. Just one. Describe your game, say you're looking for playtesters, and see what happens.

You'll be surprised how many people want to help.