Dolven is a narrative-driven tactical RPG where combat blends party-based skills with unique card combos. Co-developed by Covyne Entertainment and The Kids From Yesterday, it gives players full control to command their mercenaries in grid-based battles against various enemies and dungeon masters while unravelling the mystery surrounding the Necromancer’s Curse.
The combination of tactical decision-making, deck management and party composition creates a gameplay loop that strongly encourages players to push through to complete just one more battle.
Current release note: Dolven has since released on Steam (23 October 2025). This QA note reflects my testing of the Experimental Beta v1.10 build.
Gameplay overview
Dolven challenges players to build and manage a party, clear dungeon rooms, upgrade card decks and equipment through looting and crafting, then ultimately defeat dungeon bosses to progress through new areas. Difficulty scales gradually through the introduction of new enemy types and encounter variations, resulting in pacing that feels deliberate and rewarding.
The clear progression game loop is:
Prepare → Fight → Upgrade → Advance
This reinforces engagement and encourages experimentation with party builds and card strategies.
Testing approach
My testing approach combined exploratory playtesting with directed focus areas, including:
- Gameplay experience and pacing
- Steam integration
- Achievement and leaderboard systems
- Identification of technical bugs and friction points
Testing was conducted across multiple solo playthroughs with different party compositions to assess balance and identify any potentially overpowered party builds.
Total playthroughs: 8
Session length: 1 hour minimum to 2.5–3 hours maximum
Tools used: Written notes, screen recording and spreadsheets
High-level findings
The Experimental Beta of Dolven was highly playable and polished. It demonstrated a clear, engaging gameplay loop with strong replayability. Core systems were stable and no critical game-breaking issues were encountered during testing.
What worked well
- Gameplay is intuitive and approachable from the outset.
- Difficulty scaling through varied enemy types maintains challenge without feeling unfair.
- The core gameplay loop is easy to understand, engaging and addictive.
- Visual presentation and audio design, including low-poly assets, 2D elements and character customisation, significantly enhance player immersion.
Opportunities for improvement
- Re-evaluating restrictive player navigation between dungeon paths.
- Expanding tutorial coverage to better explain negative status effects.
- Considering limits on the number of cards playable per turn to support balance.
All identified bugs and issues were documented, categorised and provided to the development team with clear reproduction steps for further review.
I recommended that any progression-blocking and immersion-breaking bugs be addressed as a priority. Additionally, targeted balance tuning — particularly around enemy difficulty spikes, select AI behaviours from the second dungeon onwards and party composition viability — would further improve consistency across different player playstyles.
Revisiting player navigation restrictions between branching dungeon paths may also improve player agency and reduce potential frustration, especially during longer play sessions.
A word from the developers
“There are some people who are absolutely obsessed with the game — to the point where they have completed all 6 endings, got all the Steam achievements, got all the most powerful gear and topped the ladder. If others experience even a fraction of what they have then I’ve done my job!”
— Andrew, Covyne Entertainment
“My favourite part of Dolven was the personal journey it took me on as a developer and writer — joining Andrew and Bree’s adventure, and being there alongside one of my now best friends — making it. It will always have a special place in my heart as it was the first game and the first time someone believed in what I could do in the indie game space. That’s everything to me… But… Also cards. I love cards. And we aren’t done with Dolven! It’s really just beginning.”
— Mike, TKFY
Personal takeaways
Playtesting Dolven was an incredibly insightful experience, and I’m grateful for the opportunity to complete a full QA report on a project at this stage of development.
One key takeaway was the importance of remaining adaptable during testing. While initial focus areas are important, unexpected behaviours or design questions often require deeper investigation or a reassessment of priorities. Clear communication is essential, not only for reproducibility in reports, but also when the scope or testing time needs to expand.
This project reinforced that no two games within the same genre category are tested in the same way. Each title has unique systems, mechanics and design goals. This requires a flexible and open-minded QA approach that considers gameplay loops, balance, features, mechanics, progression and player psychology.
Finally, allowing space for failure during playtesting often led to some of the most valuable discoveries, whether that meant encountering edge-case bugs, balance exploits or unintentional player behaviours that could otherwise be missed.
If you’re an RPG or turn-based strategy fan, I fully recommend checking Dolven out on Steam.