Explaining RPGs to my grandma Options

[rewells]

For X-mas last year I made copies of my last RM game for my friends and family with cute little jewel cases and cd labels. I recently showed my grandmother, who is is fairly computer-literate for a 65 year old woman, how to play it and I realized there is a lot of information I take for granted in RPGs (Like what is HP? What is MP? What are levels? etc.) The first RPG I played was Mario RPG about 15 years ago, and I remember not liking it at first but then quickly catching on and getting addicted to the genre. Ever since I don't think I've seen an RPG with a very basic tutorial for absolute RPG noobs. Most of my students (I used to teach middle school) were able to pick up my game and figure everything out intuitively, but to the uninitiated I realize now that RPGs can be overwhelming.

Can anyone share their thoughts on this? How did you learn to play RPGs? Have you seen any good tutorials for absolute beginners? This was the best I could come up with on my project website: http://www.gilgameshgame.com/index.php/pla...game-mechanics/

[SteveJobs]

I had a strong imagination as a kid, so things like Mp and Hp just made sense to me.
"oh Hp, Health Points!"

Some MMOs tell you what HP MP SP ect is, but as a console game I can not recall any total noob
tutorials. The reason they don't have to is because when you see the "Fire Spell" you want to use it
and when you do that blue bar goes down. So the player just ends up finding that stuff out themselves.

That is how I learnd how to play RPGs.

[Kaust]

There's really not much to rpgs to provide a tutorial to (especially since most recent releases are mindnumbingly easy), really their chief aspect has always been storytelling (want a 15min lecture on how to read at the beginning of a game? ).

Games on the whole don't really feature tutorials that much anymore, and if they do its for unique additions (battle systems and the like). Kids just pick things up easily and adults were around for the introduction of 'modern gaming'. Basically games are such a typical aspect of modern life that most people are experienced enough in most genres not to need a tutorial. Heck, even controls kinda give it away- "R Button is shoot. Guess I fire at just about anything that comes onscreen."

I mean, just to cite an example of how tutorials are absolutely redundant for this genre, ever play Kingdom Hearts?
In case you haven't I'll paraphrase its tutorial for you; "This is how you walk. Try walking for a bit"- Sora is FIFTEEN for gawds sake.
It goes into the stuff like HP and MP, but lets face it, anyone can make the connection that when you take a hit and a bar goes down you're losing health. They should also be able to understand zero life means just that, death. If they can't they kinda deserve game over.

[Titanhex]

RPGs are wrapped in symbolism. It's easy to make the connection through simply learning.

I learned how to play very basic but non-informative RPGs when I was little. I started on Legend of Zelda I for the NES. It's easy to symbolize hearts mean health and different swords were different strengths. I learned this game at an age where I couldn't even read. It's clear though when the more complex RPGs came about like "Bard's Tale" and many other Rogue Likes, that they were aimed at those far more familiar with the genre. That genre was Table Top gaming.

This is where our traditional RPG like you see entwined in the default RM Series comes from. (Especially from Western developers) They're more structured on the Rogue Like and Table Top gaming with tweaks and changes.

But I digress, even these games weren't that informative.They were a little simpler though. The thing is the RPG is such an evolved genre, there's a ton of tweaks and spins and build-ups on it to keep it fresh and interesting. The most basic ones are on cell phones and the like, where casual gaming gets people started now-a-days.

If you want people to learn, use good symbolism so they understand the cause and effect of each action and reaction.

[rewells]

Thanks for the feedback. Zelda is a good example because there are absolutely no directions, yet I've beaten it without a players guide because it's easy to figure out if you try. Using icons is a great idea.A battle system with only icons and no text would be interesting, if possible to pull off.

The tutorial at the start of FFXII is similar to the Kingdom Hearts one. My grandma would need to be told that the left control stick moves the character. It would be great to be able to turn those tutorial off though, since I'm not my grandmother.

RPGs are wrapped in symbolism. It's easy to make the connection through simply learning.

I learned how to play very basic but non-informative RPGs when I was little. I started on Legend of Zelda I for the NES. It's easy to symbolize hearts mean health and different swords were different strengths. I learned this game at an age where I couldn't even read. It's clear though when the more complex RPGs came about like "Bard's Tale" and many other Rogue Likes, that they were aimed at those far more familiar with the genre. That genre was Table Top gaming.

This is where our traditional RPG like you see entwined in the default RM Series comes from. (Especially from Western developers) They're more structured on the Rogue Like and Table Top gaming with tweaks and changes.

But I digress, even these games weren't that informative.They were a little simpler though. The thing is the RPG is such an evolved genre, there's a ton of tweaks and spins and build-ups on it to keep it fresh and interesting. The most basic ones are on cell phones and the like, where casual gaming gets people started now-a-days.

If you want people to learn, use good symbolism so they understand the cause and effect of each action and reaction.

[Zackwell]

I got my first console when I was nine years old, which is a very late start to videogames for most kids then, considering that it would have been about 2001.

The first RPG I played was pretty simple, and as I'd always been a little more intellectual than most of the kids at school, it was quite easy to pick up the concepts of things like HP, MP and EXP.

I was fond of my first RPG, Legend of Dragoon, because the damage numbers you started with were so low. At first you could hit from 1 to 5 points of damage, and you only had 30HP.

It also helped that I got a running commentary from the friend who had let me play the game. He would point out all the obvious things.

[amerk]

You do not want to load up a project with tutorials unless you offer an opt out feature. That way the majority do not get bogged down on useless information. However, you might find it easier to show your grandma (which by the way is pretty cool if she's into playing games) by word of mouth and visuals. When I first played rpg's, my first game was Final Fantasy. Aside from the manual I had which was very confusing, practice is what made me like the genre even more.

Think of it like a board game. Rules are confusing until you've tried the game out and learned first hand. Once she's played the game, and understands the basics, she should be able to pick it up okay.

[bulmabriefs144]

I'd show her some simple rpg, like Crystalis. Well no, that's among the least simple rpgs. But it's awesome. Try Final Fantasy 3 (6J), it has its own tutorial built in and is a good game to show how a typical rpg works, since there are no surprises.

[rewells]

I've thought about learning to make android games and thinking about an interface composed only of symbols. I might start a new topic and ask for feedback on my ideas...Titanhex, would that be appropriate for this board?

RPGs are wrapped in symbolism. It's easy to make the connection through simply learning.

I learned how to play very basic but non-informative RPGs when I was little. I started on Legend of Zelda I for the NES. It's easy to symbolize hearts mean health and different swords were different strengths. I learned this game at an age where I couldn't even read. It's clear though when the more complex RPGs came about like "Bard's Tale" and many other Rogue Likes, that they were aimed at those far more familiar with the genre. That genre was Table Top gaming.

This is where our traditional RPG like you see entwined in the default RM Series comes from. (Especially from Western developers) They're more structured on the Rogue Like and Table Top gaming with tweaks and changes.

But I digress, even these games weren't that informative.They were a little simpler though. The thing is the RPG is such an evolved genre, there's a ton of tweaks and spins and build-ups on it to keep it fresh and interesting. The most basic ones are on cell phones and the like, where casual gaming gets people started now-a-days.

If you want people to learn, use good symbolism so they understand the cause and effect of each action and reaction.