Elite Dangerous - Exactly What The Game Needed - New Player Experience

The September Update brings with it a new player experience. Starting out in the traditional situation on board a Sidewinder, new players are greeted by a voice actor - Elite's very own pilot trainer. Introductions are given, and the player is walked through the basics of how to play the game. This is done through a series of exercises, from the narrator highlighting elements of the ships HUD and explaining their function, through to guidance on how to fly the ship and get involved in combat.

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#EliteDangerous #SeptemberUpdate

[Anakin]

Hey ant. Have you looked at the top mission in training? It’s the exact tutorial

[Ender]

The new tutorial is excellent and is a great example of the kind of interaction and narration that should be present through several hours of the game! This is the kind of presentation that is sorely needed for a main campaign that gives you a story, introduces the powers and key leaders, the various mission types, and so on. In addition this kind of narrated experience should be how unique events and community goals should be presented!

[michaelk.]

I literally downloaded this yesterday. I never experienced anything BUT this new tutorial, and honestly he's right. It was really informative in ways that I would have definitely had trouble with otherwise. Plus it was neat, feeling like I was taking my driver's test again. But in space this time

[shadowcub]

I tried out the game a year or so back while waiting for X4. I didn't personally have any trouble with figuring out how to play, but having played the X Series since 2 and Freelancer (as well as numerous other sandbox games with even less direction like ARK) I knew what I was getting into. I can, however, definitely see how the first hours before the update could be difficult for many people, especially those not familiar with the genre or sandbox games as a whole.

I did reset my account, not having much to lose, and picked the game up again last week. I was pleasantly surprised by the tutorial. It was very, very well done. So well done in fact, that I just recommended my step-dad (who's 69) try the game out. He did have an actual pilot license and his own plane a number of decades ago and regularly plays a flight simulator on his iPad. Frankly, ED is right up his ally, with its extremely long flights and realistic HUD and flying physics. And I think he'd really enjoy the exploration and ship modification features.

Then again he also may become the most insane fighter pilot and murder us all. Never know with him.

[Draecko]

I really wish Elite has a cool SP story to start off with. Something like Freelancer, I really miss this.

[AWFKproductions]

i mean they have the gates for racing right there.... just saying

[pedroguerrero]

Nice to see all the differing opinions. Thanks, Ant!

[djfritz]

I remember when space games had a point. Like an actual engaging story that unfolded as you played.

[thegwolf]

In other words - nothing is happening in Elite - as per usual, from an existing player's perspective.
I appreciate your work ObsidianAnt, it spares me from having to log into the game or read through patch notes to discover that nothing of what was once promised in the kickstarter videos coming to a fruition. Yeah I know, I know they said the game's planned life cycle is around ten years, but I find it difficult to call it a life-cycle when there are no signs of life since years. Its almost like Frontier would deliberately ignore things that work exceedingly well in other space titles just so they can say that they are 100% unique. Yeah they are but with that same move they suck out the fun of the gameplay. Hell I'm having more fun flying a flight simulator than I have when traveling in supercruise. Elite is still the main supporter of Netflix at this time when there is anything that needs either a lot of supercruise travel or a lot of jumping.

[mbrsart]

I have an alt account that I got back in April but haven't played on yet. I'm definitely going to check out the new tutorial. I felt like the old training stuff (I started back in Feb) was pretty good, not as hand-holdy as X-Wing Alliance or similar games, but it still gave a decent rundown of how to fly and turn. I do agree with you, though, the new player experience was pretty opaque, and I would probably still be struggling without Mobius, Reddit, etc.

[davidhenriques]

Im a veteran elite player and i thought the tutorial was great even if a bit on the late side, but it also left me thinking about missing opportunities, i mean they game would greatly benefit from more voice acting and some scripted scenes mixed with the already open part of the game, (ohh great voice acting by the way). Its weird playing a tutorial and feeling this type of thing could be way more in the game. I would pay for some kind of elite stories dlc, with content like this. I also totally agree with you in the racing part, it should be a career and you could for once implement cqc into the game without it being a separate part

[MGL]

What the game actually needs is content. Real workable and fun missions, not just go-fetch. We need good market system, integrated with map. Some kind of sensible economy, something that uses the resources we trade - crafting. It's little value for new players to be able to start playing and learn the game, if right after that tutorial they have nothing to do.

[danteuk]

Mr Ant you missed that anyone can play through that - I did a yesterday - in the training section on the right hand panel with the other training missions.

[richrich]

O-Ant, TY for the vid. Well done. The dumbing down aspect I don't agree or disagree, for new players, it's a handicap given to them to adjust (grow into) the regular game. Dumbing down does not exist. It's merely a perception of the individual. Elite / Frontier needs new player in ED. The handicap is a fair and helpful addition. The addition I wish they would add is 'storage space' for commodities. Of course, limited space (500 max possibly). Ship storage is good, but the emptying out the crago bay makes no sense to me.
Any-ho, Enjoy and see you in the black....
CMDR Dustdevil

[moldoveanu]

Game controls are weird on Elite. Other than that it's not too bad. Game needs cloud storage for custom edited controls

[inf]

I guess a downside could be that once new players are wowed by the fantastic early-game experience, they feel let down when the game never does anything like that again.

[SCIPIO]

Yeah I'm not sure I'd say it's exactly what the game needs. I'm 2k hours in and tons of people who play elite have even more hours than that by far. The vast majority of players dont need tutorials we need content or were out. Fdev will attract some new players with their tutorials but in the long run as far as retention goes....content retains

[Ploskkky]

Of course this is nice for new players, but I have to wonder about the helplessness of gamers these days. I think the absurd spoon feeding and hand holding you see in modern games has not done them much good. I am old, but when I started playing Elite I felt like a fish in the water. Yes I had to find things out, but that I considered to be part of the experience. My noob time in Elite was the best time.
I do wish FDev had added a bit more new stuff, just QoL improvements, for the vets like me.

[echo]

Ok I have to say one thing, we know that that the panther clipper is still to lage for the current starport, but would it not be possible to put the starport back to the massive size that they were made for therefore the devs could drop in the panther clipper or even with these fleet carriers coming out I know that landing pads on them will be big enough. But I am just one voice I can not say much been happy with game this far

[sailor]

wow they put analytics in, cutting edge stuff