German developer Fishlabs may be experiencing some corporate issues, but its game development is still in full effect.

It's currently running a closed beta of over 30,000 players for the iOS version of Galaxy on Fire - Alliances. The mobile strategy game is due to be released in early 2014.

We caught up with executive producer Michael Krach to find how why the company is taking such an approach, how it's managing the large number of players, and what it's learning.

Pocket Gamer: Why is a beta test at this scale so important?

Michael Krach: In many regards Galaxy on Fire - Alliances will be a first for Fishlabs. It is our first MMO; our first game where the galaxy we build is shared by thousands of players simultaneously; and our first where you are always online.

While such complex projects always require longer testing in the form of massive betas, we also appreciate the chance to experiment with our backend architecture and servers.

Things like massive battles involving hundreds of players, group dynamics and backend stability can only be simulated so much. 

How hard is it to run 30,000 testers through a platform like TestFlight? Did you consider doing the beta test on Android rather than iOS?

We've ultimately gone for a closed beta on iOS, because we have the biggest and most active fan base on that platform. Android is catching up and we're doing our best to support it - e.g. with the recent release of Galaxy on Fire 2 HD on Google Play - but iOS is still our first and most important platform.

In the future, we will, of course, try our best to include Android in such undertakings as well, not the least because it offers a very clever solution, which enables you run a stable track and a beta branch of the same game in parallel.

Getting the whole thing run through TestFlight was a little tricky at first, but in the end it worked out fine. Our web team had to develop some custom-made scripts that enabled us to handle larger numbers of players as well - as opposed to the rather small numbers that TestFlight can handle itself - but overall we are glad we had the chance to do it this way.

We believe that you should always run proper closed betas if you get the chance. Launching an unfinished product to real players for the sake of testing is not what we do.

Besides TestFlight, PlayHaven has also played a crucial role in the recruiting of the beta testers. In order to reach out to as many Galaxy on Fire- and sci-fi-loving players as possible, we launched a banner campaign in Galaxy on Fire 2. Via these banners, our fans have been able to sign up for the closed beta right away, without even leaving the app.

All in all, the PlayHaven recruitments have accounted for more than 90 percent of all registrations.

Do you worry that giving away premium currency to players in the beta test means you're getting different results compared to if people were spending their own money?

Things will be different, that is for sure. You should never expect people to behave exactly the same with free credits as they would if they had put their own real money into the game.

But that is okay and there is still a lot to learn. Even free credits are limited to a certain extent, right?

And what people choose and more importantly don't choose from the things you offer them tells you a lot about the usability of your in-game items. It is a great way for designers to verify the hypothesis they had when setting up a certain item. If no one wants it, funny money or not, it is probably not a good idea.

Have you discovered any surprising behaviours from players during the beta test?

In an open MMO environment like GoF - Alliances it is impossible to predict all the things that people will do with the feature set you give them.

So this is as much about confirming theories, calibrating features, balancing numbers as it is about fixing bugs. I would even say the bug fixing is the most straightforward thing that happens.

One of the things that surprised us the most is how sticky a shared universe can be for people. Even if the experience is still in beta and rough around the edges, people love to have this shared galaxy with their alliance in their pocket and jump back into it again, and again, and again.

After a full month we still see one in three players coming back several times a day. Such a strong retention has been a pleasant surprise for us.

Direct community feedback is another thing you get only from this kind of test. And this is more than bug fixes, this is creative input.

Do you worry that players will enjoy the beta test but then not be so interested in the game when it's live?

Not at all. If you have ever played a closed beta, you will see that it is a fantastic way to get to know a game. You know its history and you have seen features and designs that have either been changed dramatically or - sometimes - did not even make it into the final game.

And while players are collecting first impressions and experiences during it, - tasting blood so to say - they usually can't wait for the day when it is 'for real'. That's when the gloves come off and you use the insights you collected to your advantage.

What do you think Apple's attitude to such prolonged beta testing is?

If there's one thing that Apple's known for above all else, it's perfection. They're always eager to offer their customers a polished and flawless experience and product, no matter the cost or effort.

And that's just as valid for their own line of products as it is for the apps they distribute via the App Store.

So a prolonged closed and open beta phase ultimately results in a much better and more engrossing gaming experience for hundreds of millions of potential iPhone and iPad gamers. And we know that this is very much in Apple's interest.

Also, we have seen a fair number of mobile games going open beta prior to their official launch on the App Store and we believe Apple understands that this is a crucial part of the development of a successful F2P game.

Thanks to Michael for his time.

You can find out more about Galaxy on Fire - Alliance's beta program here.