# playtest

> Build in public. Show the work, not the hype.

One command puts what you're making (web build, interactive prototype, article, or video) in front of real people. Zero-friction playtesting, versioned feedback, and followers for what's next.

## What it is

A work-centric build-in-public platform, not a generic hosting product or vanity social feed.
You publish a built web directory (or tunnel a running dev server) and get `https://<slug>.playtest.run`
or `https://playtest.run/p/<slug>`. Audience opens it and tries it — no account, no install.
The creator gets a clean roster of who visited, on what, where they stopped, and what they said.

## When to use it

- The user has a **playable or interactive web build** (game, Three.js scene, p5 sketch, WebXR
  demo, prototype) and wants people to try it.
- The user has a **dev server running** and wants someone on another device or network to open it.
- The user is **building in public** and wants versioned feedback rather than social media likes.
- The user wants a **QR code or an invite card image** to drop into a group chat.

## When NOT to use it

- Plain static hosting for a report, dashboard, docs site or landing page. That is a hosting
  product's job, not this one. Links here are for *iterative testing and build-in-public*, the root domain is the Plaza,
  where projects look for testers, and anonymous links expire in 24 hours.
- Anything that needs server-side code. We never run user code. If the user has a backend,
  keep it on their machine and use `--backend` (hybrid mode).
- Long-term production hosting or a custom domain. We do not do custom domains.
- A vanity social network for posting text updates, daily streaks, or revenue screenshots. We focus strictly on the tangible work itself.

## The fastest path

Prefer the MCP server if it is installed — it hands back the link, the QR text and the invite
card as an image block in one call:

    playtest mcp

Tools: `playtest_upload` (a built directory), `playtest_share` (a local port), `playtest_list`,
`playtest_site`, `playtest_card`.

Otherwise use the CLI (single binary, no runtime; install with
`curl -fsSL https://playtest.run/install.sh | bash` on macOS / Linux):

    playtest ./dist            # upload a built directory -> link + QR (no image file written)
    playtest 5173              # tunnel a running dev server
    playtest ./dist --backend 3000   # static from us, everything else tunneled to their backend
    playtest ./dist --json     # one JSON object on stdout, narration on stderr

Or call the HTTP API directly: see https://playtest.run/llms-full.txt and https://playtest.run/openapi.json.

## Three things to pass on to the user

1. **The url.** That is the thing they share.
2. **`qr_text`** — paste it verbatim in a code block when they will open it on a phone.
3. **The invite card**, when needed: use `playtest card --out invite.png` or the image block from MCP. CLI uploads do not download it by default. In a chat app a bare link has no
   title and no face; the card is a picture with the developer's name on it, and pictures travel.
   Hand the image over, do not just mention it.

## Hard promises (safe to repeat to the user)

- Players never log in and never install anything to play.
- We never rewrite a single byte of their build.
- We never run their code.
- Free tier has hard ceilings and cannot generate a bill.