210: The Incredible Disappearing Teacher

[RicoADF]

Games are becoming so shallow and dumbed down, the only decent new games I've seen is ArmA II and Empire: Total War, both of which I have hard copes and love having a good read of the (abiet small) manuals

Having said that, Empire: Total War did the tutorial approch well, I just wish the manual was bigger, damn I miss them.

 

[civver]

"Elegant and sophisticated game systems are worthless unless people can appreciate them."

This is true. And there is nothing wrong with it. Hardcore players may like being challenged and figuring out complex systems, but I doubt most of the population does.

The perfect tutorial shows the player what to do and disguises itself effectively. That "Road to Independence" tutorial is quite justified and brilliant. I really don't like tutorials that just dryly give you the game controls, I want to see a creative introduction that draws me into the game I'm playing.

 

[Same River New Water]

Being a committed gaming non-snob, I once made an effort to play Madden (2007 or so), reasoning that despite the sneers of hardcore gamers, one of the most popular game series of all time must have a lot going for it. I couldn't make head or tail of it. I couldn't find a tutorial, I couldn't find anything useful in the manual, I couldn't even find an "easy mode" that was gentle enough to play without getting steamrolled. I've never played the series before, and I'm not American, but I have a basic understanding of the rules of gridiron football (Friday Night Lights is one of my favourite TV series) but I just didn't know what buttons to press.

Now, the game might have had a tutorial in there somewhere, but the menu was so unclear I just couldn't find it. From talking to friends who get every game in the series, it seems the designers have just forgotten that there are people to whom Madden 2010 might be their very first experience of the game. EA Sports, in the words of the snippy retail customer, you just lost a customer.

 

[theultimateend]

I must admit that one of the things I truly loved about older games was their personality ridden documentation. I liked finding out every little detail about the world. Or reading a manual that was written in character. Even if it wasn't technically arcane, such as in alot of sims, I really appreciated the length, detail, and care that went into them.

I'd think a good player-side solution would be to keep the in depth manual (when applicable) for the description of mechanics. But keep the more hands on "need-to-know" quick starts of sorts in game.

But then, that wouldn't be cost effective. And I feel dirty buying stratagy guides.

I buy Magic Cards just so I can get that "new manual smell" .

That and I love the game...but regardless manuals were my favorite first exposure to a game for a decade.

 

[Hurr Durr Derp]

I really miss those old manuals.

One of the manuals that always comes to my mind when thinking about stuff like this is the one for Arcanum: of Steamworks and Magick Obscura. A beast of a manual, filled to the brim with detailled and in-universe background information on everything, from the nature of magic and the origin of the various races, all the way down to cooking recipies.

I rarely ever read manuals, but that one was great. It put you in the right mood to play the game before you even installed it.

 

[Divinus Scientia]

I think this will evolve even further, as gamers begin to bore over the "tutorial sequences". A cycle might have happened, and gamers would eventually push on to something new again. But what is that, I do not know nor have the interest to find out.

 

[Biodeamon]

RPG`s certainly haven`t heard of this.

Quick! memorize all these stats and steps or die! KTHXBAI!