Comments on: I Kind of Hate Tutorials, Except When They’re Hidden

By: Katherine

Katherine — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 23:52:05 +0000

I hate games if they don’t explain (somehow) how to play the game. It can be anything, tips, learn-as-you-go, a list of controls (not so good if there are lots). Not so keen on “annoying voice” or video-clip style ones. The ones I like best are learn-as-you-go that give you a new move each level until you’ve got all of it, and then maybe if you read another document (guide, or community forums) they will give you some strategy tips or something. I don’t mind reading instructions but I hate when they are read to me. I quite like games (where it’s appropriate) that have an in-game encyclopaedia. Games have to be pretty well done to give you no tutorial and no instructions at all (or they need to operate under current typical control schemes for that genre).

Actually the videos in Evil Genius were ok. And they were skippable but you could go back and watch them again if you wanted in the in-game encyclopaedia :D

The tutorial for Civ4 was horrrrrrrrrible. “Hi, I’m an animated version of Sid Meyer. I’m incredibly annoying and unnatractive, and I’m only going to tell you the basics of how to move units and stuff, chich you’d know how to do if you played any of the previous versions, but I’m not going to tell you that. Also you can’t save this tutorial, so I hope you have a couple hours RIGHT NOW!”Argh.

By: Anthony

Anthony — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 20:06:29 +0000

Totally with you on this one. This especially applies to games I only have a mild interest in. If the game can’t capture my attention is about two minutes, then I’m not going to waste any more time on it.

By: tonic

tonic — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 10:16:46 +0000

I don’t play games which have annoying tutorials.

At all.

When I encounter an annoying tutorial, I just quit the game demo and uninstall it.

If I have made a mistake of buying a game before knowing that it has an annoying tutorial, I might force myself to try bear through it.. but usually that doesn’t really save the game for me.

The tutorial stuff can be made so much better anyway, just so that you don’t really notice it unless you stop and think about it… i.e. the elements, controls, etc. of the game are just introduced you a bit at a time, without any kind of forceful spoon-feeding. Some games do it properly, many don’t. In my case no tutorial is better than an annoying tutorial.

By: Ryan Fox

Ryan Fox — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 06:28:23 +0000

I sorta liked how Super Metroid explains its advanced techniques. For instance, at some point, you’ll be stuck at the bottom of a pit. There’s also a bird in there that is essentially part of the background. If you watch what it does though, you’ll learn how to do a super jump that will enable you to get out of the put.

By: RobertD

RobertD — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 05:08:59 +0000

I dislike them too. Which is why I’ve made the whole first level of ‘Lylian’ a ‘learn as you go’ type experience.