Your Next: The Learning Cliff
How will EverQuest Next introduce new players to the sandbox?
There are players for whom the initial discovery and experimentation is a large part of the fun in a sandbox, and I would agree with them. However, this type of gameplay is not sustainable for a persistent online world like, choosing totally at random, EverQuest Next.
The issue is that the difficulty curve is backwards, once you understand how the world works the challenge is gone. I would rather see a progression of difficulty and complexity in a sandbox game. By levelling out the learning curve you can increase the period of experimentation and discovery without having to lower the complexity of the game overall.
The achievement system in Minecraft created an elegant solution to the 'first night' problem by laying out some achievable goals from the start, with branches moving out to increasingly complex destinations. Even just the first achievement 'Getting Wood' is enough to relieve much of the potential frustration of a new player. I still think 'Welcome to Minecraft, please punch a tree to begin' would be a great overlay for a fresh spawn.
When EverQuest Next Landmark was announced, there was concern it would fall into the 'Creativity without context' trap. In a game where players are encouraged to build anything without any sense of purpose, we could easily end up with a landscape full of abstract experimentation with nothing of use to show for it.
Luckily for us Landmark comes pre-packaged with at least one definite goal; our creations could be featured in an EverQuest MMO. How's that for something to focus on?
With skill and item based progression, and new features being introduced over time, we could end up with a nice cadence of increasing complexity.
As for EverQuest Next, we know there will be at least one activity players will be able to engage in immediately as well. The Rallying Call system, by which all players can work together over weeks or months toward a world-changing goal, could be a fantastic mechanism for introducing new players into the game. Using a large scale public event to contextualize the activity of players, and hopefully teach them a few things about the world, is a great way to ease new players in. New players will be able to have an impact on the world immediately while being actively useful to veteran players. So a new player starts with a sense of agency, a reasonable learning curve and an immediate link to the established community.
One thing to note when discussing the new player experience is that it does not imply the game should be less difficult, or less complex. If anything, the bulk of the game can be more difficult and complex as new players are given a chance to learn the ropes and become invested in the world. Think of it like your driving test, you only really start to learn after you've passed, and having a test doesn't stop NASCAR, the Grand Prix or Les Mans 24 from existing.
LockSixTime