Bugs found in The WereCleaner for iOS
The WereCleaner is an original stealth-comedy game where players get to clean messes while fighting their own nature’s violent urges. The game gives the popular ‘clean the mess’ routine gameplay a unique and fun vibe. It also makes the gameplay more exciting, offering a big interconnected world with multiple secret passages and quirky details.
To keep players hooked, The WereCleaner offers a dynamic NPC system, shifting layouts, and hilarious surprises. The players can choose from four multi-purpose cleaning tools to deal with any kind of mess.
The QAwerk team enjoyed testing this game and uncovering both its fun secrets and bugs. Read about our findings below to find out how the game’s UI could affect your gaming experience.
Black screen appears after first level cutscene ends, requiring manual tap to progress
Severity:
Major
Precondition:
- The game was launched.
- The first level was completed successfully.
Steps to Reproduce:
- Allow the post-level cutscene to play through to the end.
- Observe the black screen that appears after the cutscene concludes.
Environment:
iPhone 11
iOS Version 18.6.2
Actual Result:
After the cutscene ends, a black screen appears without any visual cues or prompts. The game seems frozen, with the cutscene not concluding automatically. The game proceeds only after the user taps and holds the screen, indicating that user interaction is required. However, it’s not made clear to the user.
Expected Result:
The cutscene should end automatically and smoothly transition to the next gameplay segment or screen.
Contamination marker is displayed on minimap with no visible mess in playable area
Severity:
Major
Precondition:
- The game was launched.
- The first level was completed successfully.
- The second level of the game started.
Steps to Reproduce:
- Encounter an employee NPC.
- After the encounter, tap the “Knap” button.
- Enter a room that contains a mess.
- “Eat” the NPC.
- Clean all visible messes in the room.
- Observe the minimap and objective marker indicating a mess location.
Environment:
iPhone 11
iOS Version 18.6.2
Actual Result:
The minimap flag indicates residual contamination in the area, despite all visible mess being cleared and no interactive objects remaining.
Expected Result:
The contamination marker on the minimap should correspond to visible and interactive mess in the playable area.
Persistent notification icon on “Collectibles” despite not adding new items
Severity:
Minor
Precondition:
The game was launched.
Steps to Reproduce:
- Navigate to the “Credits“ from the main menu.
- View the content on the “Credits“ screen.
- Return to the main menu.
- Observe the “Collectibles“ menu item.
- Select the “Collectibles“.
Environment:
iPhone 11
iOS Version 18.6.2
Actual Result:
Despite there being no new collectibles, a notification icon (exclamation mark) is persistently displayed on the “Collectibles“ menu item, falsely indicating new content.
Expected Result:
If there are no new or unviewed collectibles, the notification icon should not appear on the “Collectibles“ menu item.
Cleaning progress bar is displayed prematurely, before entering cleaning room
Severity:
Minor
Precondition:
- The game was launched.
- The first level was completed successfully.
- The second level of the game started.
Steps to Reproduce:
- Approach the intended cleaning room without actually entering.
- Observe the UI at the bottom of the screen.
Environment:
iPhone 11
iOS Version 18.6.2
Actual Result:
The cleaning progress bar appears on screen, even though the player has not entered the room or started interacting with any mess.
Expected Result:
The cleaning progress bar should only appear after the player enters the room and starts interacting with a mess that can be cleaned.
Delay in level timer initiation
Severity:
Minor
Precondition:
- The game was launched.
- The player starts a level.
Steps to Reproduce:
- Complete the dialogue with the NPC guard.
- Click the “Start“ button.
- Wait for the timer to appear.
Environment:
iPhone 11
iOS Version 18.6.2
Actual Result:
After the level intro screen disappears, there is a short period where the gameplay screen is visible, but the timer is not displayed. The timer then appears and starts counting down with an approximate delay of 6 seconds.
Expected Result:
The timer should appear and start counting down immediately when the level begins, and the player gains control, without any delay after the intro screen.
Default selected collectible item is not visually highlighted until clicked
Severity:
Trivial
Precondition:
- The game was launched.
- At least one collectible item was unlocked.
Steps to Reproduce:
- Navigate to the “Collectibles“ from the main menu.
- Observe the item selected by default in the list.
Environment:
iPhone 11
iOS Version 18.6.2
Actual Result:
The collectible item selected by default is not visibly highlighted (for example, underlined) in the list. The underline appears only after the user manually clicks the item.
Expected Result:
The default selected collectible item should be visually highlighted (for example, underlined) immediately upon opening the “Collectibles“ screen, without requiring an additional click from the user.
I reviewed the core gameplay and UI/UX flows of The WereCleaner and identified some issues, primarily UI state inconsistencies, incorrect objective indicators, and unclear user feedback during cutscenes. To improve overall user experience and gameplay clarity, I recommend expanding testing coverage to include functional and non-functional requirements, with a particular focus on UI state validation, gameplay flow testing, first-time user experience (FTUE), and time-based mechanics.
