Once upon a time I worked on a game called "Darkfall". It was a hardcore full loot open pvp mmo.
As one might imagine, not super great for new players.
The community did something amazing though, they made a clan for noobs. They would go around to the starter areas, grab noobs, take them to their clan city, and help teach them the game.
The story of that clan is a lot longer than this, and very interesting, but it's not the point of this post. The point is: Communities can do more for new players than you think.
I've already seen a lot of you guys helping noobs. Aside from the usual pub stompers, we have a really noob friendly player base I feel.
I've long wanted to do something with a Mentor program, but I've never come up with a good way to do it. If you guys agree that it could be good, I'd love to hear your ideas.
I definitely agree with this. I believe someone had brought up server restrictions; Level 1-10. I know alot of games are like this where you can play in noob servers until you reach level 10 then its time to go face the real world lol.
I think if you guys (AA-Team) would set some servers up like this that'd be very beneficial and really help alot with new players. I've come into servers (not going to mention names or teamstacking) and it's been very 'lopsided' to where they all eventually leave and who knows if they come back.
So, to tear my thoughts from my ramble;
US Army Official JFK12 Newcomer Server (example, I'm sure there's a much better servername for it)
And for 'mentor ship' if there is a program in place i'm sure you'll have people sign up for it. Have them play on these servers with some sort of symbol beside there name and have the account not be able to gain XP. Then they can play there and help the newcomers with anything, show them around ect..
at it's core, even a buggy game with PB install issues can overcome that sorta thing IF the game is good enough to draw in big personalities who will endorse the game.
-
this game has no such endorsements, thus it will be hard to get over that hurdle.
-
when your favorite youtuber loves a game, it will give you more incentive to jump through the hoops of PB install issues and what not, just because you want to put a bunch of time into the game, just because you want to experience the fun being had by your favorite youtuber...
-
good youtubers have a cult following. that is the power they hold. they can make a small, obscure game with no marketing budget incredibly successful if it is good, just by shining a light on it. free advertising to a group of fans that are loyal enough to put in more than 10 minutes into the game.
-
but when you shine a light on this game, all youtubers have seen is glaring issues to the core gameplay experience that haven't been addressed. it's why it's been stuck in beta and hasn't grown. most of them would likely recommend their viewers go play another FPS. i'll be honest, i think BF3 is better. but none of my friends play BF3 these days so... all the hip kids are jumping on the csgo train.
-
a game's success lives or dies by word of mouth, unless it is heavily marketed by a big publisher where they see a profit through pre-orders before day one of the game's launch simply by throwing a ton of marketing dollars into the system.
I still miss all these PB issues and stuff, I downloaded the game from steam and played it 20 mins later no problems. For the whoever knows what % that had PB screw them I dont even see why we talk about it here.
Game will be fine, don't need guys running youtube channels to make it amazing. Pre-release I'm sure the team will do some marketing somewhere to spread the word. Then if the game comes out great it'll take off itself. No need to worry man plus IDK how we even got on this topic so I'm dunnnn
I still believe retention comes down the big 3, performance, optimization, hit reg.
At least it does to the new players that look for a skilled game where they want to put time into.
I would add aesthetics/UI/atmosphere to that. After all, casual players don't give a sh about any of the technical aspects if they don't like how it looks or feels. Caring about that comes when you actually start playing alot.
I still believe retention comes down the big 3, performance, optimization, hit reg.
At least it does to the new players that look for a skilled game where they want to put time into.
I would add aesthetics/UI/atmosphere to that. After all, casual players don't give a sh about any of the technical aspects if they don't like how it looks or feels. Caring about that comes when you actually start playing alot.
That depends on you who think we need to keep.. Everyone? impossible? Joe Shmoe? I don't care about some guy that turn a game on once a blue moon.. Its the player that's looking for something different a new challenge that we need to keep.. This player knows the basics and knows what hes looking for in a game.. and its not graphics or atmosphere.. its core game mechanics
I still believe retention comes down the big 3, performance, optimization, hit reg.
At least it does to the new players that look for a skilled game where they want to put time into.
I would add aesthetics/UI/atmosphere to that. After all, casual players don't give a sh about any of the technical aspects if they don't like how it looks or feels. Caring about that comes when you actually start playing alot.
That depends on you who think we need to keep.. Everyone? impossible? Joe Shmoe? I don't care about some guy that turn a game on once a blue moon.. Its the player that's looking for something different a new challenge that we need to keep.. This player knows the basics and knows what hes looking for in a game.. and its not graphics or atmosphere.. its core game mechanics
I have to disagree, you can't pick and choose who you would want to keep playing, because we would remain in the same situation we're already in. A very small playerbase and at the same time a very small comp scene.
AAPG isn't going to steal comp players from other big franchises, it just isn't. At least not in it's current state.
The start is creating a bigger playerbase, that means not making the game only to please a certain group of people. You have to attract casuals/pubbers. Comp will grow with the playerbase. Alot of comp players on the forums seem to think the opposite, from what i've read over the years.
That just doesn't make sense to me, especially in the context of player retention.
The bigger issue which will make the new player experience so much better is the fact that we need more players playing the game. And contrary to what someone posted, I do believe that AAPG has gotten so much better that it can pull players from other games such as Ghost Recon, Insurgency, Call of Duty and so forth.
What needs to be done is constant AAPG promotion by the devs and the community. And also what is needed is community commitment to the game. What I mean by commitment is simple: when you get home, instead of connecting to Call of Duty, connect to AAPG
And we really need to get all the AA veterans back in the game. I am sure the devs have all the emails from the previous forums. Why not send a mass email to all of those players from AA2 inviting them all back to check out the new AAPG.
SOPMOD, I havent seen the AAPG Competitive side as I just fully came back to AA a few weeks ago, but in my opinion the issues between comp and not comp in all games can be boiled down to a few items:
-comp players are committed to improve, get better in the game and as a team
-comp players are ready and willing to train when needed
-non comp players are generally not willing to do any of the above, don't listen/follow orders from experienced players and generally don't contribute to the overall team success.
i think before i can recommend... i still need to see doors, fire teams, nerf supported position, remove 3d spots, remove red dots on minimap, remove seeing friendlies through walls, bigger minimap, minimap shows more of the area, fix ladder controls and camera restrictions, fix accidental vault when wanting to jump, z-axis audio, deviate bullet trajectory through walls, nerf wall banging in general, no reloading while sprinting, no walking on railings, no reduced friendly fire on officials, some classic OBJ types, ROE, breathing cycle, CEM display, stance display, new official maps, bigger maps, better spawn points, faster official adoption of best UMM's, ...
-
i'm sure there's more but that's off the top of my head.
-
still feels like an unfinished/shell of a game guys. sorry.
As per usual, great post BC.
-
Everyone has their opinions but the bottom line is that you need to ease a player into a game if you wish to retain them. UI design principles capture this well. You want to welcome a new player and guide them until they are familiar then turn the tool tips off when they no longer need them.
-
Solution: The new title screen will already help to make training more visible BUT those trainings need to give players an overview on how to assimilate into AAPG gameplay and not simply a rundown of movement and controls. Additionally, as someone has stated, there should be hints for newer players. No one likes to die and not understand why. Hand holding and guidance is key to retaining players early on.
-
Contrary to some peoples beliefs, the weapon sounds and feel has little to do with retaining new players. (unless they are seasoned FPS players). People who are new to FPS won't really question the nitty gritty, as with most things in life. It takes at the very least, acquaintance with something to generate a valid opinion of it.
2016 Flank Gaming Network Season 1 Champion
2016 FraggedNation Season 4 Champion
2015 FraggedNation Season 2 Main Champion
2015 ESL Test Cup Second place
2014 FraggedNation UMM Tournament Champion
2014 FraggedNation Old School map Tournament Champion
2014 TWL Season 1 Second Place
2013 TWL 7v7 Beta Tournament Champion
2013 TWL 5v5 Beta Tournament Second Place
As per usual, great post BC.
-
Everyone has their opinions but the bottom line is that you need to ease a player into a game if you wish to retain them. UI design principles capture this well. You want to welcome a new player and guide them until they are familiar then turn the tool tips off when they no longer need them.
-
Solution: The new title screen will already help to make training more visible BUT those trainings need to give players an overview on how to assimilate into AAPG gameplay and not simply a rundown of movement and controls. Additionally, as someone has stated, there should be hints for newer players. No one likes to die and not understand why. Hand holding and guidance is key to retaining players early on.
-
Contrary to some peoples beliefs, the weapon sounds and feel has little to do with retaining new players. (unless they are seasoned FPS players). People who are new to FPS won't really question the nitty gritty, as with most things in life. It takes at the very least, acquaintance with something to generate a valid opinion of it.
Agreed with most of the post but can we really tell how many people that will try the AA:PG after release will be new to FPS games? Is it even possible that reasonable amount of people haven't played any FPS not to have some sort of an opinion on 'how FPS game should look'?
Agreed with most of the post but can we really tell how many people that will try the AA:PG after release will be new to FPS games? Is it even possible that reasonable amount of people haven't played any FPS to have some sort of an opinion on 'how FPS game should look'?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eternal_September
There are always new people coming to the table and a free title is a reasonable first choice for someone new to the genre. The biggest question in my mind would be whether AA has the recognition and visibility right now -- would a new user find it? Regardless, there should be systems in place to introduce both the brand new player to the genre and a more experienced user to any of the quirks of AAPG.
Agreed with most of the post but can we really tell how many people that will try the AA:PG after release will be new to FPS games? Is it even possible that reasonable amount of people haven't played any FPS to have some sort of an opinion on 'how FPS game should look'?
It sounds like you agree with everything i said. Though, i find that sentence confusing. It sounds like we're saying the same thing. He who has not experienced something would not have a valid opinion of it. His opinion would be based on things other than first hand experience.
2016 Flank Gaming Network Season 1 Champion
2016 FraggedNation Season 4 Champion
2015 FraggedNation Season 2 Main Champion
2015 ESL Test Cup Second place
2014 FraggedNation UMM Tournament Champion
2014 FraggedNation Old School map Tournament Champion
2014 TWL Season 1 Second Place
2013 TWL 7v7 Beta Tournament Champion
2013 TWL 5v5 Beta Tournament Second Place
As per usual, great post BC.
-
You want to welcome a new player and guide them until they are familiar then turn the tool tips off when they no longer need them.
.
As per usual, great post BC.
-
You want to welcome a new player and guide them until they are familiar then turn the tool tips off when they no longer need them.
.
Like from Full HUD to Min HUD? o.0
Partially, I'm thinking of things more along the lines of quick tips for players while they play. Someone used the example of telling the player they are bleeding and instructing them on what button to hit to patch.
2016 Flank Gaming Network Season 1 Champion
2016 FraggedNation Season 4 Champion
2015 FraggedNation Season 2 Main Champion
2015 ESL Test Cup Second place
2014 FraggedNation UMM Tournament Champion
2014 FraggedNation Old School map Tournament Champion
2014 TWL Season 1 Second Place
2013 TWL 7v7 Beta Tournament Champion
2013 TWL 5v5 Beta Tournament Second Place
Agreed with most of the post but can we really tell how many people that will try the AA:PG after release will be new to FPS games? Is it even possible that reasonable amount of people haven't played any FPS to have some sort of an opinion on 'how FPS game should look'?
Ive seen and heard of a lot of dads on here that play this game and have their son playing it thats prolly their first FPS. Also PC Numbers are slowly rising year by year seems like the younger generation is finally starting to figure out that console is just a huge limited environment cash cow. Oppose to a PC...The only thing a console has going for it over a PC in terms of looking at the younger generation is the console is much more user friendly.
But overall I think you get a lot of players that join this game and its their first FPS ever. It does seem like it.
Deathmatch is the answer to a lot of new player issues. It allows people to grow their skills against other players while never having to wait long to get back into the game. There's constant game play. No matter how bad you are at the real game, you can at least jump into a DM game and not get as frustrated since you get another chance within a few seconds.
Deathmatch is the answer to a lot of new player issues. It allows people to grow their skills against other players while never having to wait long to get back into the game. There's constant game play. No matter how bad you are at the real game, you can at least jump into a DM game and not get as frustrated since you get another chance within a few seconds.
This would actually be good imo
2016 Flank Gaming Network Season 1 Champion
2016 FraggedNation Season 4 Champion
2015 FraggedNation Season 2 Main Champion
2015 ESL Test Cup Second place
2014 FraggedNation UMM Tournament Champion
2014 FraggedNation Old School map Tournament Champion
2014 TWL Season 1 Second Place
2013 TWL 7v7 Beta Tournament Champion
2013 TWL 5v5 Beta Tournament Second Place
Comments
I definitely agree with this. I believe someone had brought up server restrictions; Level 1-10. I know alot of games are like this where you can play in noob servers until you reach level 10 then its time to go face the real world lol.
I think if you guys (AA-Team) would set some servers up like this that'd be very beneficial and really help alot with new players. I've come into servers (not going to mention names or teamstacking) and it's been very 'lopsided' to where they all eventually leave and who knows if they come back.
So, to tear my thoughts from my ramble;
US Army Official JFK12 Newcomer Server (example, I'm sure there's a much better servername for it)
And for 'mentor ship' if there is a program in place i'm sure you'll have people sign up for it. Have them play on these servers with some sort of symbol beside there name and have the account not be able to gain XP. Then they can play there and help the newcomers with anything, show them around ect..
My thoughts!
-
this game has no such endorsements, thus it will be hard to get over that hurdle.
-
when your favorite youtuber loves a game, it will give you more incentive to jump through the hoops of PB install issues and what not, just because you want to put a bunch of time into the game, just because you want to experience the fun being had by your favorite youtuber...
-
good youtubers have a cult following. that is the power they hold. they can make a small, obscure game with no marketing budget incredibly successful if it is good, just by shining a light on it. free advertising to a group of fans that are loyal enough to put in more than 10 minutes into the game.
-
but when you shine a light on this game, all youtubers have seen is glaring issues to the core gameplay experience that haven't been addressed. it's why it's been stuck in beta and hasn't grown. most of them would likely recommend their viewers go play another FPS. i'll be honest, i think BF3 is better. but none of my friends play BF3 these days so... all the hip kids are jumping on the csgo train.
-
a game's success lives or dies by word of mouth, unless it is heavily marketed by a big publisher where they see a profit through pre-orders before day one of the game's launch simply by throwing a ton of marketing dollars into the system.
Game will be fine, don't need guys running youtube channels to make it amazing. Pre-release I'm sure the team will do some marketing somewhere to spread the word. Then if the game comes out great it'll take off itself. No need to worry man plus IDK how we even got on this topic so I'm dunnnn
That depends on you who think we need to keep.. Everyone? impossible? Joe Shmoe? I don't care about some guy that turn a game on once a blue moon.. Its the player that's looking for something different a new challenge that we need to keep.. This player knows the basics and knows what hes looking for in a game.. and its not graphics or atmosphere.. its core game mechanics
#Support Comp Mode
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCN4YhM6jUB2MxVj8i3b9rhw
I have to disagree, you can't pick and choose who you would want to keep playing, because we would remain in the same situation we're already in. A very small playerbase and at the same time a very small comp scene.
AAPG isn't going to steal comp players from other big franchises, it just isn't. At least not in it's current state.
The start is creating a bigger playerbase, that means not making the game only to please a certain group of people. You have to attract casuals/pubbers. Comp will grow with the playerbase. Alot of comp players on the forums seem to think the opposite, from what i've read over the years.
That just doesn't make sense to me, especially in the context of player retention.
What needs to be done is constant AAPG promotion by the devs and the community. And also what is needed is community commitment to the game. What I mean by commitment is simple: when you get home, instead of connecting to Call of Duty, connect to AAPG
And we really need to get all the AA veterans back in the game. I am sure the devs have all the emails from the previous forums. Why not send a mass email to all of those players from AA2 inviting them all back to check out the new AAPG.
SOPMOD, I havent seen the AAPG Competitive side as I just fully came back to AA a few weeks ago, but in my opinion the issues between comp and not comp in all games can be boiled down to a few items:
-comp players are committed to improve, get better in the game and as a team
-comp players are ready and willing to train when needed
-non comp players are generally not willing to do any of the above, don't listen/follow orders from experienced players and generally don't contribute to the overall team success.
-
i'm sure there's more but that's off the top of my head.
-
still feels like an unfinished/shell of a game guys. sorry.
-
Everyone has their opinions but the bottom line is that you need to ease a player into a game if you wish to retain them. UI design principles capture this well. You want to welcome a new player and guide them until they are familiar then turn the tool tips off when they no longer need them.
-
Solution: The new title screen will already help to make training more visible BUT those trainings need to give players an overview on how to assimilate into AAPG gameplay and not simply a rundown of movement and controls. Additionally, as someone has stated, there should be hints for newer players. No one likes to die and not understand why. Hand holding and guidance is key to retaining players early on.
-
Contrary to some peoples beliefs, the weapon sounds and feel has little to do with retaining new players. (unless they are seasoned FPS players). People who are new to FPS won't really question the nitty gritty, as with most things in life. It takes at the very least, acquaintance with something to generate a valid opinion of it.
2016 FraggedNation Season 4 Champion
2015 FraggedNation Season 2 Main Champion
2015 ESL Test Cup Second place
2014 FraggedNation UMM Tournament Champion
2014 FraggedNation Old School map Tournament Champion
2014 TWL Season 1 Second Place
2013 TWL 7v7 Beta Tournament Champion
2013 TWL 5v5 Beta Tournament Second Place
Agreed with most of the post but can we really tell how many people that will try the AA:PG after release will be new to FPS games? Is it even possible that reasonable amount of people haven't played any FPS not to have some sort of an opinion on 'how FPS game should look'?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eternal_September
There are always new people coming to the table and a free title is a reasonable first choice for someone new to the genre. The biggest question in my mind would be whether AA has the recognition and visibility right now -- would a new user find it? Regardless, there should be systems in place to introduce both the brand new player to the genre and a more experienced user to any of the quirks of AAPG.
It sounds like you agree with everything i said. Though, i find that sentence confusing. It sounds like we're saying the same thing. He who has not experienced something would not have a valid opinion of it. His opinion would be based on things other than first hand experience.
2016 FraggedNation Season 4 Champion
2015 FraggedNation Season 2 Main Champion
2015 ESL Test Cup Second place
2014 FraggedNation UMM Tournament Champion
2014 FraggedNation Old School map Tournament Champion
2014 TWL Season 1 Second Place
2013 TWL 7v7 Beta Tournament Champion
2013 TWL 5v5 Beta Tournament Second Place
Like from Full HUD to Min HUD? o.0
_________________________
********Bam4D********BE ALL (THAT) YOU CAN BE!
________Army 1980_________
Partially, I'm thinking of things more along the lines of quick tips for players while they play. Someone used the example of telling the player they are bleeding and instructing them on what button to hit to patch.
2016 FraggedNation Season 4 Champion
2015 FraggedNation Season 2 Main Champion
2015 ESL Test Cup Second place
2014 FraggedNation UMM Tournament Champion
2014 FraggedNation Old School map Tournament Champion
2014 TWL Season 1 Second Place
2013 TWL 7v7 Beta Tournament Champion
2013 TWL 5v5 Beta Tournament Second Place
Twitch: Demo of an in-game tip system
That clip's also a good chance to laugh at some hilariously bad aim on my part
Ive seen and heard of a lot of dads on here that play this game and have their son playing it thats prolly their first FPS. Also PC Numbers are slowly rising year by year seems like the younger generation is finally starting to figure out that console is just a huge limited environment cash cow. Oppose to a PC...The only thing a console has going for it over a PC in terms of looking at the younger generation is the console is much more user friendly.
But overall I think you get a lot of players that join this game and its their first FPS ever. It does seem like it.
This would actually be good imo
2016 FraggedNation Season 4 Champion
2015 FraggedNation Season 2 Main Champion
2015 ESL Test Cup Second place
2014 FraggedNation UMM Tournament Champion
2014 FraggedNation Old School map Tournament Champion
2014 TWL Season 1 Second Place
2013 TWL 7v7 Beta Tournament Champion
2013 TWL 5v5 Beta Tournament Second Place