Quick fixes for tutorial mode

[Kaya]

Short summary of suggestions:

1. Remove game intro text (pop up when starting) or at least remove time required to move on to the next step
2. Reduce max visc at all gates or only GG and NC gate to 0 or remove the arrow at the aramory pointing towards GG when in tutorial mode.
3. Reduce max visc in MB, MDA, the rest of MD in decreasing order of importance.
4. For the community; make more mp3 alts.

 

Fairly long post with problems and suggestions below feel free to just read the suggestions and skim through the rest.

 

Over the past few days I've been keeping an eye at the paper cabin and surroundings, and noticed that many new mp3s seem to get stuck halfway through the tutorial. What I'm going to suggest here are mostly quick fixes that should allow players to continue through more easily instead of any fundamental changes to the tutorial it self, as I know a lot of work is being done on that already.

 

Therefore I'll follow the path of an mp3 and note down a few quick fixes for some of the main issues.

 

1.

Problem:

The first point at which many mp3s appear to get stuck is the game intro. Whether it's the amount of spelling/grammar errors that turns most people off or it's simply it's length, I fear I do not know, but about over half the new players that join seem to never leave the Paper Cabin at all.

 

Suggestion:

As such I think it might be best to just completely remove it for the time being or at least remove the time required to move on to the next stage of the tutorial. Yes, there is some important information in there, but there is also a good deal of even more important information not in there.

 

2.

Problem:

While reducing visc in No Man's Land is a good start a lot of new mp3s still seem to get stuck and leave. How? Most importantly, the Gate to GG which, as GG teritory, does still have normal visc and is a death trap for the unprepared mp3.

 

Suggestion:

So my suggestions, in order from in my opinion most to least desirable: Reduce max visc at all gates to 0, at the GG and NC gate to 0, or simply remove the arrow pointing towards it while in tutorial mode.

 

3.

Problem:

Before I make this suggestion I would like to say that I'm one of the biggest fans of visc in MD, but there are some major problems with it. Most notably, curious mp3s who start exploring MD are heavily punished for doing so. A new mp3 can take 2 steps in max viscosity before running out of AP after which they have to wait a full regen timer in order to be able to move again. Simply to recruit an elemental egg and an archers when at the marble dale park and return costs about 12 * 30 + 40 = 400 AP. If we take off 100 AP we have to begin with we have 300 left. 300/30=10 regenerations 10*10 minutes each gives us a trip of 1 hour and 40 minutes. Similar amounts of time could be easily spend just wandering around, getting lost a few times and quitting MD.

(6 steps to get there, 6 steps to get back and 40 ap for recruitment. 30 ap per step is a rough estimation of a normal cost in that area)

 

Suggestion:
Hence my following suggestion; At least lower max visc dramatically in MB, I would say up to max 10 at worse. Furthermore lower max visc in MDA (for similar reasons to the GG gate) and for most of MD in general.

 

4.

Problem:

There are no mp3. The way MD works you can't really progress unless there are people of the same mind power, so no mp3s means no new mp3s.

 

Suggestion:

This one is for the community and may not be all that popular, but none the less I'll add it here for completeness and due to it's importance; Alts. Plain and simple, if there are a few more mp3 alts roaming around it would already be a lot more interesting for new mp3s to play.

[Chewett]

2: is the arrow not removed anyway?

[Kaya]

Nope, even worse, when you arrive you won't be able to enter the aramory until you've checked your scroll, so if you aren't really paying attention it would seem like the path you should take to continue.

[Ary Endleg]

I fully agree with everything above. But I'll also tell you that with alt thing there isn't much room left for improvement. People do have lower level alts, they don't have time to play them. When and if they notice new player in need of help those alts show up if those said players have time (rather than being idle all day). MD seems to be designed as a game that expected influx of new players constantly and now it had hit that problem in lack of new players.

[Maebius]

2: is the arrow not removed anyway?

 

confirmed, the arrow is there, and new folks  'may' stuck until next regen, but the Viscosity was only 1+36 when I visited, so not too "sticky" at all.   I expected it, but new folks, maybe get frustrated for 10 minutes..  :)

Edited July 24, 2014 by Maebius

[Chewett]

1 - A25

2/3 - Talk to land leaders, get them to discuss and actually decide on something

4 - go for it.

[Kamisha]

Couldn't we employ a similar system to that in GG with NPC's. This of course only at the MP3 levels (and maybe MP4). I'm not saying flood the system with what was done in GG but a steady trickle coming out of the house of liquid dust may work. We want them to fight people but when there are not enough people a supplement may be required.