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Use this on-boarding approach as the first impression of video games
With players that loved the first game, the marketing was probably successful in exciting them for this release.I want to approach the hypothetical of making this the first game that someone would want to play. To the point where gamers use this as a gateway game for their non-gamer friends, trusting this experience to be a good enough first exposure to build players for life.
how to integrate the first layer of tutorials into the gameplay at the beginning of the on-boarding phase. Exploring ways to help get new-to-games players and new-to-the-genre players up to the ground level of proficiency to enjoy their experience.
Op-In Kind On-Boarding
With the On-Boarding stage for beginners, I would set up a more structured tutorial that goes over gameplay that is just assumed at this point to help introduce new players and avoid over-saturating them with too many concepts overlapped
Wicked On-Boarding
For players at challenging difficulties, have more chance discoveries of gameplay and an option to hide hints/more over-handed UI aids
The core philosophy behind this split strategy is about how players build a 'mental model' of the game's rules without succumbing to monotony. The structured path avoids fatigue by switching between three distinct modes: introducing a new concept (e.g., a weapon's property), providing knowledge on when to use it, and then creating a safe practice environment to build the skill.
This varied rhythm prevents the player from getting stuck in one type of mental activity for too long. In contrast, the wicked path integrates these modes through exploration, offering 'chance discoveries' (active practice) that the player can immediately experiment and conceptualize on their own terms. The internal charts simply map the duration and environment for each activity to ensure this rhythm is balanced and intentional.
This is a 'beat' to 'beat' audit color coded:
Sora(Blue),
Roxas(Tan),
Exposition(Gray)
This is a break down of the current on-boarding phase. It sets up 3 story lines, with tutorials(green) sprinkled in.
This project is a way to get new players an opportunity to love playing games. My change is a more broken up way to teach combat with skills in specific learning themes for new players to improve their tech-literacy and start building a mental model for game affordances and expectations.
Chess is known as a kind learning environment because it is very easy to get a direct understanding of your action = this consequence. I would have the 'beginners mode' have a kind learning environment without dying to build up a new gamers mental model on how game mechanics work and to help them get to the skill floor level.
Wicked environments require adaptability and creativity, it is exciting and unpredictable. Like an improve jazz group, very fun for experienced players, but too confusing for a new player that can't even find the A note. For veteran players, the wicked environment is fine because they have background experience to help them adapt to the challenge.
In the tutorial Station, there is a 'boss' fight to build the expectation of specialized attack reaction cues. But it is easy for a beginner to die over and over, every time you pop back at the beginning and have to make your way through the obstacles and cut scene, with not a lot to process why you died so fast.
Frustrating enough to churn new players before the on-boarding ends
This was my first time playing a Kingdom hearts game and getting stuck on Roxas for hours not knowing how many days he would go through or when the game would actually start. I found it to be too long and boring,I wish there was a way to bypass the Roxas Prologue
HP hits 0 = DEATH
I think this happens too early; I would have the main tutorial end before such frustrating consequences.Especially to protect new players from churning out before they have any fun or investment
With modern accessibility features, this camera can be aided to auto-lock for players that need to avoid jerky movement, or limited dexterity.It can be quite frustrating to lose a fight because you lost control of the camera
I believe the solution is to implement a dynamic, adaptive safety net—a bottom tier below the current tutorial that remains invisible to players who don't need it. This system would intelligently detect when a player is repeatedly failing for the same underlying reason, like consistently missing a specific attack cue. Instead of forcing them back into the frustrating loop, it would trigger a dedicated 'kind learning' breakout session. This session would isolate and teach the single concept they're not grasping in a consequence-free environment, building the specific mental model they lack.
Crucially, this isn't a punishment; it's personalized support. Players failing in different ways wouldn't trigger it, preventing unnecessary hand-holding. Furthermore, this breakout session presents a golden opportunity to integrate accessibility. It can function as a custom configuration trigger, gently offering the player options to modify difficulty or controls based on their specific struggle points. This ensures all players, regardless of their starting skill or ability, can find a path through the onboarding that provides them with challenges to overcome and, most importantly, the profound satisfaction of conquering them.
Change the on-boarding on a spectrum of kind to wicked as the player picks a difficulty level.(current on-board works for the wicked learning environment)
Sometimes people will misunderstand a tutorial or lesson (no matter how well designed). These optional hints are a second opportunity for the designer to communicate with users.
In this example, it clarifies the timing of a combo attack. Showing how the player can hit on a rhythm to maximize the damage inflicted and to better understand the range of the attacks.
Purpose: review for long gaps in play and reduce frustration for players trying to pull off a specific move
sample series of fight tutorials that build up layers of complexity with each phase.
Target: low-tech literacy, new-to-games, and new-to-genre
This series of six phases illustrates a core pedagogical principle: scaffolding. Each tutorial phase isolates and teaches a single new skill, building directly on the last. It begins with absolute fundamentals (lock-on, attack) and progressively layers on complexity (combos, reaction cues, item management, skill switching), always within a controlled environment.
The final phase is the most important: it removes the scaffolding. By presenting a boss fight with no hints, it forces the player to synthesize everything they've learned and discover their own personal playstyle. This transition from guided instruction to independent mastery is what transforms a beginner into a confident player.
Basics
lock-on to moving targets
X to hit
Practice locking onto/tracking moving target
Accessibility: Auto-focus
Basic Variations
X Combos
Block/Hit Combos
Combo Rhythms
Spacial Awareness
Accessibility: Reduced Speed
Enhanced Variations
△ Fight Reacts
React/Hit Combos
incorporating react supports
Accessibility: High Contrast
Battle Supports
find good times to break from combos
use an item to help during a fight
intro to hotkey set-up
Accessibility: Auto-Loads
AP Set-Up
set up a new skill
switch different skills
Start specializing in preferred styles/moves
Accessibility: Auto-Optimize, Balance Suggestions
Fighting Flows
push exploration
creativity
-playing with different approaches and styles
Accessibility: Hold/ Tap Count customize