How to Join a ScummVM Public Game Testing Round

To join a ScummVM public testing round, you need three things: the original game data files, a recent daily development build of ScummVM, and a willingness to report what breaks. The workflow is the same for every testing announcement: grab the daily build, add your game directory to ScummVM, play through the game, and file issues on the project's tracker following its bug submission guidelines. You cannot participate with only the ScummVM download — the game data files must come from you.

What a testing round actually is

When ScummVM adds support for a game engine or a new game variant, the team announces a public testing period before the support is considered stable. The announcement names exactly which releases are in scope.

A recent example: the team announced that Eagle Eye Mysteries and Eagle Eye Mysteries in London were ready for public testing. For that round, supported targets were:

• Eagle Eye Mysteries DOS releases, in English and Spanish
• The Eagle Eye Mysteries Macintosh release
• The Eagle Eye Mysteries in London DOS release

The Macintosh version of Eagle Eye Mysteries in London was explicitly not part of that round because it was still under development. This is the pattern to watch for: testing announcements usually include a supported list and an excluded list, and reporting bugs against an excluded variant wastes your time and the team's.

Step 1: Confirm you have the original game data files

ScummVM replaces the game's original executables; it does not supply the game content. You need the data files from a legitimate copy of the game. If you do not own the game, you cannot test it.

Step 2: Get a recent daily development build

Testing rounds run against development code, not the last stable release. The announcement directs testers to a recent daily development build. Download the build for your platform from the project's downloads area rather than using an older installed version — a stable release may predate the support you are trying to test.

Step 3: Add your game directory to ScummVM

Point ScummVM at the folder containing your game data files, the same way you would add any other game. ScummVM should detect the game and identify it. If detection fails or the game is misidentified, that itself is worth reporting.

Step 4: Play through the game

The goal is coverage, not a quick launch test. Play far enough to exercise the parts of the game most likely to break:

• Intro sequences, cutscenes, and any video or audio playback
• Saving and loading, including across different points in the game
• Inventory, dialogue, and puzzle interactions
• Transitions between areas or chapters
• Any platform-specific behavior if you are testing a non-DOS release

For a deduction game like Eagle Eye Mysteries, that means working through cases, questioning suspects, and using the in-game clue system rather than just confirming the title screen appears.

Step 5: Report problems on the issue tracker

Report what you find on the project's issue tracker and follow its bug submission guidelines. A useful report typically includes:

• The exact game and variant you tested (platform, language, release)
• Your ScummVM build version and your operating system
• Steps that reproduce the problem
• What you expected versus what happened

Screenshots and saved games that demonstrate the issue are always helpful, because they let a developer reproduce the problem without replaying the whole game.

Common pitfalls

• Testing an unsupported variant. Check the announcement's supported list first. In the Eagle Eye round, the Macintosh version of the London game was out of scope.
• Using a stable release instead of a daily build. The support you are testing may not exist in the stable branch yet.
• Reporting without reproduction steps. "It crashed" is hard to act on; "it crashed when I opened the case file after loading save 3" is actionable.
• Assuming ScummVM includes the games. It does not. The data files are your responsibility, and this applies to every testing round.

Quick reference

If you can supply the game files and run a development build, you can join any open testing round the moment it is announced.