Aces High Bulletin Board

General Forums => Aces High General Discussion => Topic started by: 49Dallas on June 30, 2015, 03:47:21 PM

Title: Stop the alpha and make a in-game totorial
Post by: 49Dallas on June 30, 2015, 03:47:21 PM
I think the game is to hard to learn because there is a lack of in game resources. Create some pop ups or a "tour" of the ingame features. First and foremost talk about how to actually use the radio and expand it to a full page with the tilda "`" key... So they can use the help channel. and trying to scroll up, Just hit the tilda key and the text buffer now covers half your screen, Teach them to edit the transparacy so they can still read text and halfway see what's going on while they're reading text. I think there are a lot of people who see this game and think "oh cool let me try it" and play for an hour and not know what to do... I talked to a guy who didn't know how to switch planes. Hell, I just spent a few minutes trying to help a new guy pick up supplies because he was turreted. "kill your engine by hitting "e", then hit escape so you can use your mouse then click the icon in the top left of your screen"

I'm not trying to say "hey I'm awsome because I helped a new player..." I'm saying this game can be hard to learn and confusing to new players.


Title: Re: Stop the alpha and make a in-game totorial
Post by: BuckShot on June 30, 2015, 03:59:30 PM
No.

All that's needed is better visibility of what is already there.
Title: Re: Stop the alpha and make a in-game totorial
Post by: Ack-Ack on June 30, 2015, 04:22:39 PM
http://trainers.hitechcreations.com/
Title: Re: Stop the alpha and make a in-game totorial
Post by: bustr on June 30, 2015, 04:29:07 PM
A button on the front of the clipboard: List of Key Board Commands.

Tie it to the keymap files with the KMP extension. That way if you remap anything it shows in the pop out page. Yes there is farther in a Key mapping utility showing it all in gory detail. Finding and using it as a resource is as clunky as teaching your self how to find all the sub menus in SAP without sitting through the 3 days of end user class time for your specific GUI module.

The title of this post is as self serving as it is absurd. If you are around this game long enough, we all get our turn helping at least one newbi. Most of us don't rush in here and tell the world how wonderful we are and how awful Hitech is over it. 
Title: Re: Stop the alpha and make a in-game totorial
Post by: 49Dallas on June 30, 2015, 05:20:48 PM
http://trainers.hitechcreations.com/

Yes, but it's not in-game. New players aren't going to go to the website and look for help. They'll think "Well I'll try world of warplanes then" New players just need something to "Get them off the ground" and explain a few things to them eg: how to use the text buffer, how to change planes, how the options and setting menus work. Hell just link them to Vuvu15's videos, Or have it play ingame the first time a new player comes in the game. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QMrdrYzbuQY
Title: Re: Stop the alpha and make a in-game totorial
Post by: Dichotomy on June 30, 2015, 05:31:47 PM
As I recall, and unless things have changed drastically, if you ask politely, people will fall all over themselves to help you.  Granted it's been a while but I always thought that if people were willing to put one hour a week in the TA just helping a noob get to the point where a trainer could advance their ACM, SA, etc, it would be a boon to the game.  Granted I've been out of it forever but that's what I remember. 
Title: Re: Stop the alpha and make a in-game totorial
Post by: Kingpin on June 30, 2015, 05:57:02 PM
I always thought that if people were willing to put one hour a week in the TA just helping a noob get to the point where a trainer could advance their ACM, SA, etc, it would be a boon to the game.

Having done precisely this (spent time in the TA dedicated to helping others), I found that more people want to learn things "on their own" (via tutorials, videos or training missions) than want to coordinate actual dedicated "training" from an instructor. 

Working with a live trainer is better, of course, especially for learning more complex things like ACM and combat tactics.  But the game could certainly benefit from offering simpler things like basic controls instruction, game mechanics, comms use, etc. through easily accessed in-game tutorials.  Many games even have a "checklist" of tutorials that show "in tower" for new players to utilize.

That said, this needs to done for the new version, rather than the current one that is not being updated and is going to (soon?) be phased out.  This is one of the reasons I stopped working in the TA and left the game until the new version comes out and hopefully a new influx of players arrives.
Title: Re: Stop the alpha and make a in-game totorial
Post by: Hungry on June 30, 2015, 06:08:31 PM
What AW had with campaigns and in game asking (TA) is the best (besides taking the personal responsibility to listen and learn)

AH missions were, sorry, but for the most part are useless to buggy and changes too often.  I feel for the folks trying to create them, they should be consistent and produced by the ownership.
Title: Re: Stop the alpha and make a in-game totorial
Post by: DmonSlyr on June 30, 2015, 07:05:50 PM
I definitely agree there needs to be a solid training structure in the TA. I think a lot of good post have already talked about this issue in the past. I really hope there have been changes to the TA in the beta.

This is a hard game to learn. That both makes it frustrating but challenging at the same time, which is good and bad. If a video game is too easy, it just becomes boring. If no one can figure out what the hell do, it becomes unfun and or satisfying.


There was a post not too long ago where the OP had invisioned quite good TA arena. I think he had a lot of good ideas. I do agree that there does need to be more instructions for new players that will get them engaged in the game. Asking questions to random people is tough, and so creating a time to meet or discussing situations on the BBs is not the same thing as engaging in a few touorials that aren't impossible to download. I know and remember how hard this game was to learn and it took serious dedication to become better. Some people just do not have that drive to play a game for that long. I think a tutorial structure would great benefit the game and new player base.
Title: Re: Stop the alpha and make a in-game totorial
Post by: Zimme83 on June 30, 2015, 10:24:30 PM
I hadnt flew a sec in the online TA before i jumped into MA and it worked out..
Title: Re: Stop the alpha and make a in-game totorial
Post by: bustr on July 01, 2015, 01:20:16 AM
After flying AW from 89-99, AH was just a better version. I was also paid to play AW from 93-95.

Many of our new "try it outs" will probably come from the competition. Their acclimation time will be short. The never have before's, will be fewer. This game was designed to allow you to hop into it without RTFMing. If you cannot figure out the basics of this game as a casual gamer, you probably will need a membership with AAA when you grow enough hair to own a $1300 bicycle.

This community bends over backwards to help newbies. 
Title: Re: Stop the alpha and make a in-game totorial
Post by: guncrasher on July 01, 2015, 01:45:50 AM
See rule #4
Title: Re: Stop the alpha and make a in-game totorial
Post by: Kazaa on July 01, 2015, 07:35:05 AM
The game does have an extremely steep learning curve. Ironically that's one of the main reason I found Aces High to be enjoyable. I would say that I was most definitely one of minority in that respect.