Nv Sheng
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Posted - 2009.02.26 19:54:00 -
[1]
Ok.
After reading through 15 pages of comments (most of which are people fighting on both sides about learning skills) I think I can actually comment on the ACTUAL TOPIC of this discussion...
We have have to remember that the topic for this discussion is The New Player Experience, which is the re-design of character creation and the starter tutorials. Bringing up issues not directly related to that doesn't help the devs to tweek the new system to better create a start for people new to this game. Yes, a lower starting skill point total is a VALID topic, and to a certain extent so is discussing learning skills...
I may be the odd man out here, but AFTER making a new character on singularity AND playing through one of the tutorial sets (Cashflow for Capsuleers) I can say that the character I ended up with at the end was damm close to what I would have making a new character on tranquility now. The difference was that I got to choose the skills I was training, and that the agent / Aura gave me skills I needed (for a basic soldier toon that is). I didn't need to make any trips to the market to buy skills. The new training queue really showed it's potential by allowing me to add or move skills to best gain the skill I would need to know next. I'm loving that by the way...
Did I get EVERY skill I would need to jump straight into PVP? No.
Did I get the starting skills I would need to fly a T1 frigate and conduct basic combat ops? Yes.
Which is part of the PURPOSE of the Tutorial mission arc...
Did the tutorial help me understand the concepts and mechanics of the game? Kind of.
I think that the text added to the tutorials could be better. Some concepts like the certificate system are only mentioned in passing, and the Market wasn't covered at all (I assume the market is covered in detail in the trade arc, I'll find out when I go through that). Many of the new pieces of text were redundant with parts of the mission text, and Aura kept giving me skills the agent had either just given me, or was about to give as a reward. That seems odd to me. Couldn't you add some sort of a skill check so that a new character isn't given the same skill twice??
In my opinion having three starter tutorials is the wrong way to go. IF the re-design of the tutorials were up to me I would have a short tutorial (maybe three missions) describing the three professions, then have three short profession tutorials (I'm not sure how long to make them, just long enough to get the fundamental differences in the professions across). I would then create six longer tutorial arcs detailing each of the specializations. This would allow a new player the ability to not only gain specialized skills but to gain a more in-depth understanding of what the specialized career paths allow. Also, it would place the CHOICE of career firmly in the hands of the player.
This whole thing can be created in the new branching epic mission system. You could even allow a player to change npc corporations during the progression (for example: starting out at the center for advanced learning and switching to the naval academy or something similar).
I know, there are a lot of older players who will think this idea is pure crap, or will call on me to go back to WOW or something, but adding a little structure to the first few hours / days of the new player is what this whole "New Player Experience" is all about. It's not about what we, as existing players who want to create quick alts and already know the game fairly well want.
With that in mind I think most new players are currently overwhelmed by the sheer complexity of the sandbox we are dropped into. Walking a new player through the basics shouldn't be done too quickly, nor take too long... but it needs to be done.
Flame away...
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