Test Data Generation Using a Game with a Purpose

Salami, Nima; Haghighi, Hassan

doi:10.48308/jicse.2026.245046.1102

Test Data Generation Using a Game with a Purpose

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

Nima Salami ¹

Hassan Haghighi ²

¹ Faculty of Computer Science and Engineering Shahid Beheshti University of Technology Tehran/Iran

² Faculty of Computer Science and Engineering Shahid Beheshti University of Technology Tehran, Iran

https://doi.org/10.48308/jicse.2026.245046.1102

Abstract

Software testing is a crucial and resource-intensive phase in the software development life cycle, where test data generation (TDG) remains a major bottleneck. While automated tools exist, human intuition is still valuable for resolving complex logic. To optimize this tedious task, we propose a 3D Game with a Purpose (GWAP) that crowdsources TDG. Unlike prior studies, our 3D environment maps program execution paths to interactive spatial puzzles and visually represents complex data structures, such as arrays and records, through customizable character attributes. This specific visual mapping enhances player interaction and addresses previous structural limitations. We evaluated the proposed approach using standard benchmark programs. Quantitative results demonstrate that players achieved 100% coverage across all 279 feasible execution paths—out of 511 total analyzed paths, 232 of which were infeasible—in an average of 29 minutes, whereas the baseline game failed to generate puzzles for 30.5% of these feasible paths (85 of 279) due to structural limitations. Furthermore, user evaluations show engagement among players with varying levels of expertise. The results confirm that the proposed 3D GWAP successfully handles complex input parameters while transforming a technical testing task into an effective, user-friendly environment.

Keywords

Software Testing

Game with a Purpose (GWAP)

Test Data Generation

Serious game

Human-based computation game

Human-based software testing

Crowdsourcing

Subjects