In-Game Tutorials: Yea or Nay?

[SamuelKeller 1]

I've played a lot of games, and one thing I constantly got tired of seeing was loads and loads of tutorials in the beginning stages. Don't get me wrong, I appreciated them a load of times (I never would've figured out Dark Souls parrying system without it), but the vast majority of them are redundant. I know how to shoot the gun (unless it's some incomprehensible button like Shift) or that I'm supposed to follow the only NPC not trying to kill me. I'm not saying they aren't important for obscure parts of the game, especially if you create something original, but many seem excessive. 

 

The reason I'm bringing that up is because my game is full of combat and puzzles. Now the combat system is almost self explanatory, requiring maybe a brief overview to explain Yanfly's Free Turn Battle system to those unacquainted. The puzzles are just as simple, ranging from riddle solving with clues in the nearby environment (we're talking in the same room, and they're the only objects in the room) to switch-gates (you step on a button, switch opens or closes. Certain buttons open gates or close gates, or both. You've probably seen it). 

 

My question is this: Does any of that really require a tutorial? Unless you're a total novice to gaming in general, you've probably seen most of these sort of things before (obviously I'd give a basic premise of the controls beforehand, as many new RPG Maker game-players don't know Enter is the Action Button). Thoughts?

[Lord Vectra 414]

If you can, it wouldn't hurt as some games do that. Going though a tutorial of the basics seems like it can only do good.

 

I'd say go for it.

[magic2345 252]

You should maybe ask something like, "Have you played a game made by RPG Maker before?" or something like, "Are you new to RPGs?". Then you would just use a conditional branch to check if the player is new or not. Mostly though, tutorials are the way to go. Unlike other genres, RPGs usually need tutorials for their systems. Even the default battlesystem in Ace needs a tutorial if the person's not familiar (at all) with RPGs.

 

So yeah, tutorials!

[Point08 219]

Another thing to consider, is this: once upon a time games came with a manual, and when that became less common (digital downloads and manuals online and such things) tutorials became more common. If you don't want to do tutorials, you can always make a glossary section or something in your menu that explains different aspects of the game that the player can reference. The more complex your various systems get, the more helpful some sort of reference becomes.

 

There is also the option that some games take where, for example, the first time the player enters combat, a menu pops up asking if they would like a tutorial on combat. You could use that same approach for any other game aspect you wanted. First time there is a switch puzzle, ask the player if they want a tutorial (or in that case probably just a short explanation) on how switches work. Allows those players new to the genre or whatever to have a little help if they need it, but allows more experienced gamers to skip it.

[RetroExcellent 369]

The important thing to factor in here is if your tutorial will take away immersion. If you can find a way to add the tutorial into the core story and game play then you have a winner. No matter how important a tutorial is, if it takes you out of the game, then you risk ruining an experience for a player. So that is the primary thing to consider in my opinion.

[lonequeso 1,921]

You should maybe ask something like, "Have you played a game made by RPG Maker before?" or something like, "Are you new to RPGs?". Then you would just use a conditional branch to check if the player is new or not. Mostly though, tutorials are the way to go. Unlike other genres, RPGs usually need tutorials for their systems. Even the default battlesystem in Ace needs a tutorial if the person's not familiar (at all) with RPGs.

 

So yeah, tutorials!

That's always a good idea - giving the player options. It also depends on who you're creating the game for. If it's a game that you want anyone to be able to pick up and play, you want to have something to teach novice players. If you're making a harder game geared for intermediate/advanced player, it's not as important, My game's more the latter. I don't have any tutorials, but I do have NPC's and books that give the player instructions and tips.

[Tsukihime 1,489]

A tutorial is generally necessary. Depending on the complexity of the game, it is better to have one than not.

 

You can choose to let them skip the tutorial, but to not have one because you assume it's obvious enough may alienate players that may not think it is obvious.

 

I like tutorials that are fully integrated into the game.

 

1. Game start. You're told to use your arrow keys to move around. 2 seconds. DONE NEXT.

2. An enemy appears. Popup says press Z to shoot. You shoot. 2 seconds. DONE NEXT

3. Two enemies appear. Figure out that you need to shoot them. DONE NEXT

4. Another enemy appears and shoots a projectile at you. If you don't know what to do, you'll die and realize you're not supposed to get hit. DONE NEXT.

 

If I already have an idea how the game is played based on prior experience, I can just ignore those little pop-ups. If I need a reminder, they're there. But either way, I will learn how to play the game without having to explicitly sit through a tutorial.

 

The tutorial doesn't take away from your experience, nor does it make you feel like you've never touched games before in your life.

 

There are plenty of ways to make them, and you can probably think of a lot of bad tutorials.

Edited September 29, 2015 by Tsukihime

[+ CVincent 234]

I've never really been that big of a fan of in-game tutorials. I've ranted about this several times in the community Skype chat, but I may as well iterate my arguments here..

 

Firstly I'd like to state that tutorials can be useful to many people, however for RM gamers a typical RPG won't really need one (unless you've added a bunch of crazy twists or use a combat system that requires some information). All you really need to know for simple games is what button does which action, so I suppose covering keymapping is good.

 

As good practice it is always proper to inform the player how to play your game by some kind of means, however there are a bunch of neat ways to do this. For example some games will explicitly teach the player as they play and give you updates on functions when acquired. Using text to explain to the player can be boring but effective,

 

Another way to create a tutorial may be to teach the player subconsciously through level design. Games like Super Meat Boy focused on making stages which force you to learn new things by experimentation. The Legend of Zelda series is quite effective at giving the player an item or skill and immediately making them use it to make progress.

 

I'm more a fan of the latter approach; I want the player to feel like they've accomplished something when they find function in form. It can be an effective hook to teach the player a skill they may not even knew they had while making them feel like they had figured it out themselves. It can even add some challenge if you want to go that extreme, but going too far by alienating the player and not giving them enough information is a terrible thing to do so it's necessary to be fair with how you express things to your players.

 

Anyway, I've played some games with HORRIBLE tutorials that were almost necessary to complete. I'll start off with The Witcher 2 (I think this is the right one in the series), where the inventory system was so complex they literally needed to guide you through it. It actually ruined my mood to keep playing since I just wanted to get into the action which is a natural thing for a player to want (so give it to them!).

 

Another game to take example from may be Final Fantasy 8. Gosh the tutorial was really poorly handled.. Stare at a school computer with a codex of information until you realize what you're doing. Yeah it was useful when you needed it, but I didn't really want to feel like I needed the extra homework.

 

Anyway, if your game is so complex that you need descriptive tutorials to inform the player of its functions without first being able to experiment then consider some alternatives. A slower and more progressive approach may be more beneficial than by slapping a big wall 'o text on the screen. I personally take a lot of inspiration from older RPGs which were mostly pick up and play types of games, so that's just how I feel about things.

 

A real good alternative might be to create a manual as Point had mentioned. I like this idea because you can really get creative and maybe even add a bit of enjoyment to the overall experience. Having stuff like pictures of items with brief explanations of functions can be effective at making the player want something in the game before they ever knew it existed.

 

So if you need to make a tutorial beyond explaining basic functions, be creative with it! Play some old RPGs and take example from them, they were obviously good at what they did if they are being played to this day.

Edited September 29, 2015 by CVincent

[magic2345 252]

Some RPGs are just not made for people who dislike reading and just skips messages.. For an example, my friend wanted to try a game, so I gave him Valkyrie Profile Lenneth. A couple of minutes later, he comes up to me and says that the game is "broken" and "stuck". I tried looking at it and since I haven't played it in a long time, it does look like it is stuck. I tried pressing some buttons and nothing happened. So I restarted the game, got into that scene. Lo and behold, literally the message JUST BEFORE the scene says to press SELECT.

 

I facepalmed so hard. But I also thought that maaaaaybe you should not make the player press super unusual buttons. In the game's defense though, the SELECT button is always used for that, so it's actually part of the controls.

 

Other super unique RPGs like Sting's Knights in the Nightmare forces you to read the whole manual since the system is so unique (it's a...bullet hell strategy RPG). If you don't read the manual, you're going to be so very confused.

 

Another point to remember is to give the player some sort of notebook/function where he/she can reread or go through the tutorials. Sometimes people will misread and/or accidentally skip messages.

[Kayzee 4,032]

You know, I am honestly kind of the opinion that in-game tutorials are a waste of time. I know that may sound kind of weird or maybe even elitist but conciser the fallowing points:

 

1. A well designed game with intuitive controls and mechanics shouldn't need any instruction really. I know everyone and their mum probably watched it already, but I have to link to this video once again. This might not apply in a RPG as much really, but there are still ways to teach people through play and design.
2. If a game is too complicated or counterintuitive and you can't effectively teach it through play, often it would be better to simply look up stuff in an easy to reference manual or better yet a wiki. I am pretty sure no one figures out Minecraft simply by fiddling around, much less something like Dwarf Fortress which is often with out hyperbole called the most complicated game ever made (also one of the best), and an in-game tutorial would be exhausting and break the free form nature of the game.
3. Sometimes figuring out how to play the game is part of the game. A good example is The Binding of Isaac where you are intended to go in blind and are told nothing except the basic controls. It's easy to spoil yourself if you want to look at wikis, but the whole game is based around discovery. Secret mechanics exist that are never even hinted at that you may uncover by accident. I am not sure if it was designed intentionally this way, but one of my favorite RPG series of all time is the SaGa series which does basically the same thing with RPG gameplay. It bucks traditional RPG mechanics at every turn and challenges you to figure it out. At the extreme end of this is Memory at a Broken Dimension. The old demo you see being played on youtube at least. Hope you know your way around a DOS prompt! Otherwise you probably can't even figure out your way past the first screen. Mean? Maybe, but it really tries to capture that feeling of booting up some old computer system that you don't know anything about. Not what it is for, not who made it, and certainly not how to use it, and it's glorious.

So yeah, it seems to me tutorials really aren't too necessary. Still, I have seen some interesting ones that worked themselves into the game in a interesting way like in Undertale, so it's not like they are all bad. :3

Edited September 30, 2015 by KilloZapit

[Point08 219]

I agree with KilloZapit, and disagree. I grew up when games came with a manual. Of course, I never read it before I played the game. But later, when my parents made me go to bed, I'd lay in bed then and pour over it (the whole 12 pages of it, not including the blank notes pages in the back). Those manuals though, didn't actually provide much info. A lot of it, these days, is given in game. The first two pages were how to turn on your console in case you were completely brain dead, and the general game controls. The next was often the menus. Then maybe a brief combat overview (by brief I mean, it would say you can choose to attack, use magic, use an item, or flee). There would be some other info, maybe how leveling up works or what not, and then that's it. (If you wanted details, you had to wait until Nintendo Power did a feature on the game. Yes, I'm old, thanks for reminding me.) Granted, games are more complicated now, but a lot of the simple stuff, as Killo and others said, can be taught through simple gameplay. There might be something though, that could use a bit more explanation, like if you have a crafting system.

 

There is also the fact that our society has become a very lazy, and inpatient one. People want things handed to them. If there is no wiki for your game, and you didn't explain something, they're likely to just get frustrated and quit. This isn't everyone of course, but enough to be worth mentioning. Which is why I'm a fan of an in-game help system or glossary, or something like that. It gives them a reference if they need it, and if they don't, they can ignore it...it doesn't even require them to press skip. As a game becomes popular, wiki or wiki-like sites will pop up and this becomes less necessary.

[Kayzee 4,032]

You know I hare it when people say "our society has become x". I am pretty sure most of the time it's simply not true and is just kinda like old people complaining about "kids these days". First of all, people have always been sort of lazy, it's just that back then when games were new they were niche and most people who played them were kids who maybe got like one or two games a year at best. It's a lot harder to give up on a game where it was the only one you were gonna get for a while. Second of all, just because some game publishers assume that the mainstream audience are all dumb lazy people with no attention span doesn't mean they are, and even if they were that doesn't mean everyone is. Again Minecraft is often criticized by some people for it's lack of tutorial, but I don't think anyone who seriously plays it ever had that as a problem. There are just too many wiki pages, videos, and even some in-game mods to help with the learning curve and people  still love it, especially children. The majority of gamers simply aren't the drooling braindead morons many game developers seem to thing they are.

[Point08 219]

I wasn't implying our society of gamers has become lazy, I meant society in general. Perhaps entitled and more prone to instant gratification would have been a better choice of words. Disagree and/or hate that myself or others say that all you like, and feel free to peruse some research on the subject and make your own conclusions about whether that statement is true or false. (It supports my statement, especially the rephrased version in this post. No, I'm not going to link to articles, because it's not that important to me to bother spending the time to do so. Feel free to assume that makes me wrong.) Why do you think wikis for games are so popular though? Is it because people love to read about their favorite game, or is it because so many people want to look up the answer that someone else figured out for them, instead of doing it themselves? How do I beat this boss? I could try and figure it out on my own, that might be fun. Nah, screw that, I'll look it up online. Does everyone do this, of course not. Is it even the majority? I don't know honestly. I think there are enough of them though, as I said, to be worth considering, if you're trying to reach the broadest market possible. If you plan or expect just fans of RPG games to play your game, and don't think you'll attract people new to the genre or whatever, then by all means, leave out the help as it will likely be wasted effort in that case.

 

I would say I think most gamers will figure your game out regardless of manuals, wikis, or other forms of instructions. However, not everyone who plays games, would I at least, consider a gamer. Some of those people may have more trouble figuring things out. Someone who has never played an RPG before, might have a bit of trouble figuring out how to use your crafting system. God-forbid you offer them a little help, because doing so implies you think they're an idiot. This is anecdotal, so take for what it's worth, but my step-father is in fact, a gamer. He plays more games than anyone else I know. If he's not asleep or eating, he's likely playing a game on something. Despite that, he regularly asks me questions about mechanics or something else, that to me, seem obvious. Do I think he's an idiot? No. I think he, for whatever reason, isn't good at figuring out certain types of mechanics, despite the fact that he plays RPGs more often than other genres of games.

[Kayzee 4,032]

But doesn't that kinda prove my point? People have resources now, options. They don't have to sit there and be frustrated until they stubble on the solution anymore. Why wouldn't they get help if they are frustrated unless they don't want help? They can get help or look online whenever they wish if they wanted it, Yeah maybe sometimes they won't want to bother with that and just play games that spell everything out for them, but there is no reason every game has to be like that, and some people like being challenged to figure a game out.

 

It's a choice now to get help, and it sort of wasn't before. Used to be you couldn't really get help. At least unless you had a parent and older sibling who gamed and would help you, and quite a few people did. People don't need and I bet most of them don't appreciate getting tutorials forced upon them and interrupting the game all the time. I mean I kinda like the "beginner house" they have in some of the earlier Final Fantasy games. It was an optional place where you could learn some basic elements of the game at your own pace. Having an in-game manual you can browse though isn't really that bad either. But stopping the game for a tutorial section to force the player to do things is annoying.

Edited October 1, 2015 by KilloZapit