7 replies to this topic

[Yagubiougami]

Not sure if this is the perfect place for this topic but it might spark some discussion among new players too.

My question is should everyone be forced to take a tutorial before they start playing normal matches?
I have seen recently quite a few ppl who were suprised about others having 2 targeting reticles as they didn't know they could move arms separately. Also i still see ppl who sometimes don't realize which weapons are torso/arms mounted and group them by type which leads to many shots missed.

But since the new stalker champion became trial mech I see a ton of ppl who don't understand how LRMs work(they shoot them without any lock whatsoever, not mentioning they don't know about minimum range).

I think we all know that such players(especially the second case) need some advice or tutorial because they are a liability in a team. Also I believe knowing how to play the game at least on basic lvl is more fun, rather than blindly push buttons and spend most time shut down from overheat.

Maybe PGI should consider a few minutes tutorial to be the first thing new player has to do. Or at least put some bulletpoints tips on basics in loading screens based on number of matches played.

[Koniving]

The in-game tutorial they have covers movement...

But there is this.

[B0oN]

Good question, Sir, short answer :

YES !

If matches <=5, then force Tutorial before dropping .
Is arbitrary but at least gives most newcomers the nearly same basics .

Discussssssssssss

[Adran]

Rad Hanzo, on 22 February 2014 - 07:22 AM, said:

Good question, Sir, short answer :

YES !

If matches = 0, then force Tutorial before dropping .
Is arbitrary but at least gives most newcomers the nearly same basics .

Discussssssssssss

Fixed.

[marepinta]

From my beginner's perspective, maybe tutorials at certain levels. If you're good you could just whiz through them, but if you're really a beginner (like I was) then just walking was what I worked on for a good 20 matches. I know you're all thinking what an idiot I am, but really, I'm an OK player now. It was just very new and every time I got fired on it terrified me ... lolol.

I had drop mates who would end up in my mech after dying screaming at me to do 'x' or not forget about 'y' ... but I was busy trying to learn to keep moving when being fired upon and not to get stuck against something because my torso and legs were going in opposite directions.

I am still trying to watch all kinds of videos to pick up the finer points that I was completely oblivious to ... and I'm in the 300 match range. Live military situations expect you need continuing education. Might be interesting to see what they could come up with for 0, 10, 25, 50, 100 ... or something.

[Redshift2k5]

Just walking/aiming in MWO is hard enough, anyone who doesn't believe that needs to go and actually try to teach a noob hands-on (I have a younger cousin who plays CoD but couldn't grok the leg/torso movement for MWO)

I wouldn't be against mandatroy tutorials- Anyone who is "too good" for the tutorials will simply complete them quickly and efficiently. A reward for completion will make anyone feel good abut the time spent running the tutorial- For example I would suggest giving a few free days of premium time as a reward.

Unfortunately putting tutorials in-game is harder than it sounds, and takes a lot more work than simple video tutorials.

Maybe, in the interim until we get more i-game tutorials, they could put more effot into a tutorial section on the website and give players vouchers, cockpit items, and premium time for watching the videos (the website already gives you 1 day just for downloading the client, replacing that with a tutorial+free day would be beneficial)

Edited by Redshift2k5, 22 February 2014 - 08:42 AM.

[oldradagast]

Or, give the players some XP and Cbill bonus for completing the tutorial. Those that want it will do it, while others may just skip it.

[Dramborleg]

Definitely. I see newbies with the same issues nearly every match. This is very much a game about learning a lot of little gameplay subtleties. Only (optionally) teaching the player how to move only gives them the tools necessary to bumrush the enemy, get focused, reamed, and frustrated. Also, certain default settings hamper new players and prevent them from improving; third-person, despite the hoopla and anger surrounding its addition, is generally less effective, making it difficult to tell where you're aiming and what can hit what from where. I'm sure it helps a bit with newbs understanding the movement system, but in the long run it's worse; Arm lock cripples the player for the sake of simplicity; similarly throttle decay removes the ability to regulate speed just so the game can be more similar to a traditional FPS. At the very least the new player should be aware that these options are on, what they mean, and what the alternatives are like. I think the assumption by PGI is that a new player with have enough sucky games that they'll eventually get educated by the community, but more likely the response to frustration is to quit.

There definitely needs to be a comprehensive, mandatory tutorial featuring

• Movement
  
• A basic rundown of what the buttons do (night vision, heat vision, JJs, the map, etc.)
  
• Relaying targets ("do it")
  
• The damage system, how to read your own and your opponent's status, how to identify weak points and attack them
  
• Basic tactics like don't wander away from your team and into the enemy
  
• Weapon groups and chain fire
  
• Heat and heat penalties
  
• The mechanics of certain specific weapons like LRMs, the Gauss Rifle, and the PPC
  
• The mechanics of special equipment like TAG, ECM, and BAP
  
• An explanation of airstrikes, artillery, and other nonesense ("just stand there like an ******* and take it because the red smoke happened to be behind you and you're in a heavy or an assault")
  
• "Lead your targets dummy, that Spider can probably outrun your AC round"
  
• Probably some other stuff I'm not remember right now

This doesn't even include things like missile doors and coolant flush and command, and the mechbay could probably use a tutorial unto itself, although if (hopefully when) they make the UI useable, that's probably be obsoleted, and ideally it could have mouse-over tooltips that explain individual elements.