Tutorial yes – manual no

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Tutorial yes – manual no - 6/21/2007 4:19:15 AM

Fred98

Posts: 4430
Joined: 1/5/2001
From: Wollondilly, Sydney
Status: offline

I don’t believe in manuals. Please do not produce a manual.

Instead produce the best tutorial in the history of gaming.

The tutorial needs to be simple and yet cover each and every aspect of the game.

You don’t need each and every unit present on the map. But every different type of unit must be utilised. Every different type of hex must be utilised. Every feature of the game must be utilised. Then the new player understands.

The tutorial should be broken into small chunks so a player can go through that small part a few times.

Here is an example. Have some Japanese forces invade Turkey.

The invasion fleet starts in Japan and is escorted by surface fleets and carriers.

Along the way they are intercepted by enemy carriers and surface fleets and fight them all off.

As Gibrallta is in the hands of friendly Spain due to pre – war diplomacy shown earlier in the tutorial, the Japanese fleets sails to the coast of Turkey and invades the coast near to Troy.

Some Germans occupation troops, fresh from resting in the peaceful Stalingrad, travel south and invade Turkey from the north.

While this is going on, a Russian winter bites and has an effect on the German troops within the Russian border.

This should cover just about every feature of the game. If it doesn’t please make it up!

-

_____________________________

Post #: 1

RE: Tutorial yes – manual no - 6/21/2007 4:41:33 AM

Shannon V. OKeets

Posts: 22095
Joined: 5/19/2005
From: Honolulu, Hawaii
Status: offline

quote:

ORIGINAL: Joe 98

I don’t believe in manuals. Please do not produce a manual.

Instead produce the best tutorial in the history of gaming.

The tutorial needs to be simple and yet cover each and every aspect of the game.

You don’t need each and every unit present on the map. But every different type of unit must be utilised. Every different type of hex must be utilised. Every feature of the game must be utilised. Then the new player understands.

The tutorial should be broken into small chunks so a player can go through that small part a few times.

Here is an example. Have some Japanese forces invade Turkey.

The invasion fleet starts in Japan and is escorted by surface fleets and carriers.

Along the way they are intercepted by enemy carriers and surface fleets and fight them all off.

As Gibrallta is in the hands of friendly Spain due to pre – war diplomacy shown earlier in the tutorial, the Japanese fleets sails to the coast of Turkey and invades the coast near to Troy.

Some Germans occupation troops, fresh from resting in the peaceful Stalingrad, travel south and invade Turkey from the north.

While this is going on, a Russian winter bites and has an effect on the German troops within the Russian border.

This should cover just about every feature of the game. If it doesn’t please make it up!

-

MWIF rules are as close as possible to WIF Final Edition rules. Those are 60+ pages long with small print in double columns. Communicating everything through tutorials is not realistic. Besides, it would be a poor choice of communication media for many aspects of the game (e.g., tables are a real fast way to comunicate a lot of pieces of information).

However, I do agree that tutorials are crucial and we have been working on them for a while now. Please read through the threads for tutorials #1 -> #7 and let me know what you like/dislike. They already are vastly improved over what I started with due to feedback from forum members. A few of the tutorials are missing pages and for some of them the graphics are out-of-date, but there are still over 70 pages shown. That is about 2/3rds of the Introductory Tutorials (where the reader is passive).

If the reader doesn't have the background knowledge presented in the Introductory Tutorials, the second set of tutorials won't make much sense. I have about as many more pages to write for the Interactive Tutorials, where players can see what happens when they 'do' things.

_____________________________

Steve

Perfection is an elusive goal.

(in reply to Fred98)

Post #: 2

RE: Tutorial yes – manual no - 6/21/2007 3:51:19 PM

Freddy Fudpucker

Posts: 235
Joined: 6/22/2004
Status: offline

quote:

ORIGINAL: Joe 98

I don’t believe in manuals. Please do not produce a manual.

I don't believe in tutorials. I believe in manuals.

Seriously. I install a new game I just want to get going. I hardly ever spend time on tutorials. I do read manuals though. However, I must admit I tend to read them only after I've started playing a game. The best manuals have excellent indexes and are laid out so you can skip stuff and head straight for the bits you're stuck on. I rarely start reading them from page 1. But regardless of how I refer to it/read it: a manual is a must have for me.

_____________________________

Gentlemen, we're in the stickiest situation since Sticky the stick insect got stuck on a sticky bun'. -Capt. E. Blackadder.

(in reply to Fred98)

Post #: 3

RE: Tutorial yes – manual no - 6/21/2007 9:08:39 PM

composer99

Posts: 2923
Joined: 6/6/2005
From: Ottawa, Canada
Status: offline

MWiF probably doesn't need a manual - the WiF rules pretty much are the manual (and I certainly would not suggest reprinting those for release with MWiF - although either providing a softcopy or linking to the ADG website might be a good idea). But for those of us who are familiar with WiF:FE either a hard- or softcopy document that details what parts of WiF:FE are modified to reflect the design demands of MWiF might be useful.

A manual with specific "how-to" mechanics of using the game might come in handy. Whether it is in the cards or not is a matter, of course, for Matrix Games to decide (since they will be paying to print one).

_____________________________

~ Composer99

(in reply to Freddy Fudpucker)

Post #: 4

RE: Tutorial yes – manual no - 6/21/2007 9:41:59 PM

Shannon V. OKeets

Posts: 22095
Joined: 5/19/2005
From: Honolulu, Hawaii
Status: offline

quote:

ORIGINAL: composer99
MWiF probably doesn't need a manual - the WiF rules pretty much are the manual (and I certainly would not suggest reprinting those for release with MWiF - although either providing a softcopy or linking to the ADG website might be a good idea). But for those of us who are familiar with WiF:FE either a hard- or softcopy document that details what parts of WiF:FE are modified to reflect the design demands of MWiF might be useful.

A manual with specific "how-to" mechanics of using the game might come in handy. Whether it is in the cards or not is a matter, of course, for Matrix Games to decide (since they will be paying to print one).

As is clear from even these few posts, different people have different preferences.

MWIF will come with two sets of tutorials: Introductory screen shots with text, & Interactive, where the player gets to execute some of the player interface commands to see how things 'happen'.

For the experienced WIF FE player, MWIF will include a RAC (Rules as Coded) PDF file, which will be very similar to RAW (Rules as Written). I already have annotations from forum members on which sections/paragraphs of RAW will need revisions to reflect the changes from WIF FE to MWIF. Those primarily concern the map and turning units faceup/facedown. This should only take me a day or so of editing to create.

Finally, the players manual will contain 7 Sections:
I - Getting Started (Installation, Opening Screen, Tutorial overview, Starting a New Game, Restoring a Saved Game
II - Player Interface (main screen, menus, detailed map, global map, forms, screen layouts)
III - Modes of Play (Head2head, Solitaire, NetPlay, PBEM)
IV - Scenarios (quick overview)
V - Optional Rules (this section has already been written and also appears as popups when starting a new game)
VI - Rules as Coded
VII - Appendices (Standing Orders for PBEM, data file formats, bitmaps used, other files, combat tables, etc.).

_____________________________

Steve

Perfection is an elusive goal.

(in reply to composer99)

Post #: 5