Claude-Code-Game-Studios/CCGS Skill Testing Framework/skills/utility/release-checklist.md

Skill Test Spec: /release-checklist

Skill Summary

/release-checklist [platform: pc|console|mobile|all] builds a pre-release checklist scoped to the project. It resolves modes.rigor, modes.workflow, project.stage and platform.cert_tier, reads CLAUDE.md and the current milestone in production/milestones/, and reads open bugs from production/qa/bugs/ (Severity and Status lines). The bug items use the release gate's thresholds for the resolved workflow — an open S1, S2 or S3 fails at full, only an open S1 at standard/minimal (an open S2/S3 is a listed risk) — and with no bug files they read NOT ASSESSED — no bug records, never zero. It scans the code root for TODO / FIXME / HACK, always stating the denominator (scanned [N] source files: …), or NOT ASSESSED — code root unresolved when no root resolves, or NOT ASSESSED — no source files found to scan when the root is absent or empty. Missing test output is reported as Test results: NOT ASSESSED — no test output or CI logs found.

The checklist has Codebase Health, Build Verification, Quality Gates and Content Complete sections, device blocks chosen by the argument (default all), then a certification block chosen only by platform.cert_tier: none → a single "Certification: omitted — cert_tier is 'none' …" line; itch → itch.io rows; steam → Steamworks rows; console → TRC/XR/Lotcheck rows. Unset cert_tier means asking which platforms are in scope, or ### Certification: NOT ASSESSED — cert tier unknown; unset is never treated as none. It ends with Store / Distribution, Launch Readiness and ### Go / No-Go: [READY / NOT ASSESSED / NOT READY] — first match NOT READY (a blocking item fails), then NOT ASSESSED (any section or item NOT ASSESSED), then READY — then asks "May I write this to production/releases/release-checklist-[version].md?". No director gates apply.

---

Static Assertions (Structural)

Checked against the SKILL.md by /skill-test spec — no fixture needed.

• Has required frontmatter fields: name, description, argument-hint, user-invocable, allowed-tools
• Has ≥2 phase headings
• Contains verdict keywords: READY, NOT READY, NOT ASSESSED
• Contains "May I write" language before writing the checklist
• Has a next-step handoff (/gate-check for the formal verdict, /team-release for sign-offs)

---

Director Gate Checks

None. /release-checklist spawns no agents (Agent is not in its allowed tools). The Sign-offs Required list (QA Lead, Technical Director, Producer, Creative Director) is a checklist for humans, not spawned gates. Formal phase advancement is /gate-check.

---

Test Cases

Case 1: Happy Path — PC Build on the Steam Tier

Fixture:

• platform.cert_tier: steam; project.stage: Polish; engine.name: Godot
• src/ has 40 source files containing 3 TODO, 1 FIXME and 0 HACK comments
• production/milestones/ holds the current milestone
• production/qa/bugs/ holds BUG-0003.md (S1, **Status**: Closed) and BUG-0004.md (S4, **Status**: Open); modes.rigor is unset (workflow: minimal)
• CI test output exists

Input: /release-checklist pc

Expected behavior:

1. Skill reads CLAUDE.md and the current milestone
2. Codebase Health states the denominator: scanned 40 source files: 3 TODO, 1 FIXME, 0 HACK, listing the FIXME
3. The PC device block is emitted; no Console or Mobile device block
4. Certification is the Steamworks block only
5. Store / Distribution, Launch Readiness and the Go / No-Go line follow
6. Skill presents total items and known blockers, then asks "May I write this to production/releases/release-checklist-[version].md?"; next steps name /gate-check and /team-release

Assertions:

• TODO/FIXME/HACK counts are reported with the number of files scanned
• Only the PC device block appears
• Certification contains Steamworks rows and no itch.io or console certification rows
• Go / No-Go is READY or NOT READY — never NOT ASSESSED, since every section in this fixture could be assessed
• The Quality Gates bug line is counted from production/qa/bugs/ (0 open S1, S2 or S3); the closed S1 and the open S4 fail nothing
• Nothing is written before the "May I write" ask naming production/releases/release-checklist-[version].md

---

Case 2: Device Argument and Certification Tier Are Separate Axes

Fixture:

• platform.cert_tier: itch
• Source files exist in the code root

Input: /release-checklist console

Expected behavior:

1. The console argument selects the Console device block (suspend/resume, user switching, controller prompts)
2. Certification follows cert_tier, not the argument: only the itch.io block
3. No Steamworks rows and no TRC/XR/Lotcheck rows appear

Assertions:

• The Console device block is present
• The only certification block is itch.io
• No console certification rows (TRC/Lotcheck, first-party submission) appear
• No Steamworks rows appear

---

Case 3: cert_tier none vs Unset — Different Output

Fixture:

• Run A: platform.cert_tier: none
• Run B: platform.cert_tier absent (resolved block shows it as unset) and the user cannot say which platforms are in scope

Input: /release-checklist (no argument → device blocks for all)

Expected behavior:

1. Run A emits no certification block, only the line "Certification: omitted — cert_tier is 'none' (internal build, alpha or jam release)."
2. Run B asks which platforms are in scope instead of emitting every track; with no answer it emits ### Certification: NOT ASSESSED — cert tier unknown and says why
3. In neither run does the all argument cause every certification track to be emitted

Assertions:

• Run A shows the "omitted — cert_tier is 'none'" line and no certification rows
• Run B asks which platforms are in scope
• Run B's certification section is NOT ASSESSED — cert tier unknown, not the none line
• Neither run emits itch.io, Steamworks and console certification together

---

Case 4: Edge Case — Nothing to Scan, No Test Output

Fixture:

• platform.cert_tier: steam
• No engine.name, no legacy engine value, and none of src/, Assets/, Source/ exists (code root unresolved)
• No test output directories or CI logs
• production/qa/bugs/ holds one bug, BUG-0002.md (S2, **Status**: Closed)

Input: /release-checklist pc

Expected behavior:

1. The code root is unresolved, so no scan runs
2. Codebase Health reads NOT ASSESSED — code root unresolved (.claude/docs/code-root-resolution.md), not 0 TODO/FIXME/HACK
3. The test line reads Test results: NOT ASSESSED — no test output or CI logs found rather than being omitted
4. The rest of the checklist is still generated and offered for writing

Assertions:

• No bare 0 count is reported for TODO/FIXME/HACK
• Codebase Health is NOT ASSESSED — code root unresolved
• The test-results NOT ASSESSED line is present
• Go / No-Go is never READY: it is NOT ASSESSED naming both unassessed sections, or NOT READY if a blocking item failed
• The write still waits for the "May I write" ask

---

Case 5: Director Gate Check — None; Sign-Offs Are Listed, Not Spawned

Fixture:

• platform.cert_tier: console; source files present
• Any review mode

Input: /release-checklist all

Expected behavior:

1. Skill generates the checklist with all device blocks and the console certification block
2. The Sign-offs Required list appears as unchecked items
3. No director or other agent is spawned; no gate IDs appear
4. Next steps point to /gate-check and /team-release

Assertions:

• No director gate is invoked and no gate skip message appears
• No subagent is spawned, although sign-offs are listed
• The console certification block is the only certification block
• Next steps name /gate-check and /team-release

---

Case 6: A Known Blocker Outranks an Unassessed Section

Fixture:

• platform.cert_tier: steam; project.stage: Polish
• No engine.name, no legacy engine value, and none of src/, Assets/, Source/ exists (code root unresolved)
• CI test output exists
• production/qa/bugs/BUG-0007.md is an S1 (Critical) bug with **Status**: Open

Input: /release-checklist pc

Expected behavior:

1. Codebase Health reads NOT ASSESSED — code root unresolved
2. Quality Gates' "Zero open S1 (Critical) bugs" fails — a blocking item, at every tier
3. Go / No-Go is NOT READY: first match wins, and NOT READY ranks above NOT ASSESSED
4. The Rationale lists the S1 bug as a blocking item; the unassessed Codebase Health section still reads NOT ASSESSED rather than being dropped

Assertions:

• Go / No-Go is NOT READY — not NOT ASSESSED
• The S1 bug is listed in the Rationale as a blocking item
• Codebase Health still shows NOT ASSESSED — code root unresolved

---

Case 7: Bug Thresholds Follow the Workflow Tier

Fixture:

• platform.cert_tier: steam; source files present; CI test output exists
• Run A: modes.rigor: standard (workflow: standard); production/qa/bugs/BUG-0012.md is an S2 (High) bug with **Status**: Open, and no other bug is open
• Run B: modes.rigor: full (workflow: full); production/qa/bugs/BUG-0013.md is an S3 (Medium) bug with **Status**: Open, and no other bug is open

Input: /release-checklist pc

Expected behavior:

1. Both runs read the bugs from production/qa/bugs/, not from the milestone
2. Run A: the open S2 fails no item — at standard only an open S1 blocks — and is listed in the Rationale as a risk; the S2/S3 row is not emitted
3. Run B: the "Zero open S2 (High) and S3 (Medium) bugs" row fails on the open S3, which is named in the Rationale as a blocking item; Go / No-Go is NOT READY

Assertions:

• Run A's Go / No-Go is not NOT READY because of the S2, and the S2 appears in the Rationale as a risk
• Run B's Go / No-Go is NOT READY, naming BUG-0013 as a blocking item
• Neither run offers a "documented exception" for the S3 at workflow: full

---

Case 8: No Bug Records — NOT ASSESSED, Not Zero

Fixture:

• platform.cert_tier: steam; source files present; CI test output exists
• production/qa/bugs/ does not exist

Input: /release-checklist pc

Expected behavior:

1. The Quality Gates bug line reads NOT ASSESSED — no bug records, not 0
2. The bug items are not ticked
3. Go / No-Go is NOT ASSESSED (naming the bug items), unless a blocking item failed elsewhere — never READY
4. The output says bugs are filed with /bug-report

Assertions:

• No bare 0 bug count and no ticked "Zero open S1 (Critical) bugs" item
• NOT ASSESSED — no bug records appears
• Go / No-Go is not READY

---

Protocol Compliance

• Resolves platform.cert_tier and branches only on none | itch | steam | console
• Treats unset cert_tier as a question (or NOT ASSESSED), never as none
• Chooses device blocks from the argument and certification from cert_tier
• States a denominator with every scan count, or reports NOT ASSESSED
• Reads open bugs from production/qa/bugs/ and applies the release gate's thresholds for the resolved workflow (S1–S3 at full, S1 at standard/minimal); no bug files → NOT ASSESSED — no bug records
• Go / No-Go takes the first match: NOT READY, then NOT ASSESSED, then READY
• Presents totals and blockers before asking "May I write"
• Ends with /gate-check and /team-release as next steps

---

Coverage Notes

• project.stage scoping (items for unreached phases marked out of scope) and modes.rigor: minimal trimming are not separately tested.
• The mobile device block (App Store / Play Store rows kept in the device block by design) is not tested by a dedicated case.
• How READY vs NOT READY is decided depends on the unchecked items and the user's inputs; a live run is needed to verify the rationale text.
• A resolved code root that is absent or empty reads NOT ASSESSED — no source files found to scan; not separately tested.