Preparation - Phase 1,
In this phase, you can plan out how much testing you will need in the future stages off your game.
Alpha - Phase 2,
Alpha is a very early version of the game. You would get testers to fill out a checklist making sure the product is meeting all the requirements.
Beta - Phase 3,
The Beta stage is to test the game for any problems/bugs that you can find. Once found these bugs should be fixed.
Gold - Phase 4
This stage happens at the end of the Beta stage. There is a Release Candidate of the game. All severity 1 bugs are fixed. 90% of severity 2 bugs are fixed. 85% of severity 3 bugs are fixed. Also the performance of the game matches the release expectation.
Certification - Phase 5,
Certification tests the game to see if it meets the platform technical requirements checklist (TRC). If it does then it passes and can be released. If not developers must make changes and resubmit the game.
Regression - Phase 6,
Regression Testing verifies that the game developed and tested previously still preforms fine after being changed/modified. Changes include patches software enhancements etc…
