There seems to be this new variant rule in the Starfinder 2e GM Core.

>SKILL PARAGON
>Skill feats allow characters to gain thematic feats that can help them in exploration, downtime, and social interactions. But given the high stakes of encounter mode, many players feel pressured to select skill feats that improve their efficacy in combat at the expense of selecting feats that better represent their character’s abilities. This can be especially frustrating if a character wants to specialize in a skill like Diplomacy or Piloting that includes skill feats that might only see use in one or two sessions.

>BUILDING A SKILL PARAGON CHARACTER
>When creating a skill paragon character, after selecting the character’s class, choose a specific skill. The character becomes trained in it. If they were already trained in it, they become trained in another skill instead of their chosen skill. At 3rd, 7th, and 15th levels, they gain an additional skill increase they can apply only to their chosen skill. They automatically gain all common general skill feats that specifically requires proficiency in the chosen skill as a prerequisite as soon as they qualify for those feats. If they already gain one of those feats (such as from a background or heritage), they instead gain Assurance for the chosen skill or, if they already have Assurance for that skill, a related Lore skill. Not all skills have the same number of feats, and some skill choices will end up granting more bonus feats than others. Characters with two or more fewer bonus Skill Paragon feats than any other character in the party gain their choice of the Additional Lore skill feat in a category related to their chosen skill, or the Assurance, Automatic Knowledge, or Experienced Professional skill feat in their chosen skill or a related Lore skill.

I notice that some public playtest periods are rather short.

Paizo likes to release one-month-long public playtests for two whole classes at a time, from 1st through 20th level. Last August (2024), Paizo released a public playtest for Starfinder 2e, running from August 2024 through December 2024: not too long a span for an entire game with six classes from 1st through 20th, all said. A couple of months ago, there was a month-long public playtest for two new classes, the mechanic and the technomancer, even though the finalized Starfinder 2e rules are not even out yet.

Some time ago, MCDM Productions suddenly released a public playtest for the Draw Steel! version of the Delian Tomb adventure: a rather, rather long adventure, with many encounters stretching well beyond the eponymous tomb. The Delian Tomb public playtest lasted for only a month. Half a day ago as of the time of this post, MCDM abruptly released a public playtest for the summoner class (spanning all levels of play), lasting for roughly two weeks: again, even though the finalized Draw Steel! rules are not even out yet, for neither the player book nor the bestiary book.

Consider that invested players are likely already playing or GMing a game, and have to disrupt or otherwise adjust an ongoing campaign just to get some playtesting in. For example, since the Draw Steel! summoner class playtest is only two weeks long, and with no finalized core rules, a player would be lucky to playtest the class for even a single session: let alone playtest the class at all levels of play.

To me, if a public playtest is being released on such a tight schedule, it comes across more like publicity and hype more than thorough, meticulous playtesting. This goes doubly when supplementary material (e.g. new classes) is being playtested before the finalized rules are out, as if to prioritize a rapid release schedule.

Am I missing some key benefit of short public playtest periods?