Proposal Discussion Basic newbie friendly flight tutorial

[neamerjell]

First problem, and this is really the biggest problem, is docking. I cannot for the life of me do it. I feel like I must be unskilful or something. I've only done it successfully once so far. I line up the ship in the right spot, I'm showing all blue, the ticking noise is going crazy, I read online that you're just supposed to down thrust (F key) and you'll dock.

Well, I just keep jamming my ship into the group. So, I line myself back up again, everything is showing blue - smash! Right back into the ground again, Rinse and repeat this another five or six times before I run out of time and I get blasted. Then I get to start the tutorial alllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll lll over again from the very beginning. It's driving me freaking crazy.

The other problem I have are the instructions on the tutorials. Shouldn't they be teaching me how to play the game? They keep telling me to do things, but they don't bother mentioning how I actually go about doing that.

I'm not giving up, I can't after paying as much as I have for the game, but I'm hoping somebody here can guide me in the right direction! The whole time I'm playing this I saying to myself "what were they thinking?!" Not a good sign...

-Temporaryscars

What a pile of crap this game is - i signed up to be a backer and then as a beta tester and wish i had never bothered - theres never anyone online to speak to and hone my skills and i have tried countless times to beat the crimson touch [sidewinder mission] tutorial mission but just get blown to bits each time - equally difficult is actually landing the ship and navigating between two points neither of which i have yet managed to do - I have done hyperspace jump with 'J' after setting a destination but can never find the space station in question. What hope do i ever chance online against a human player if i cant even beat an npc????!!

Biggest waste of time and money - severely hacked off as its predecessor was far easier to control navigate fight and land!

Get your acts together and sort it job lot - they always say sequels are never as good as the original - case in fact here.

-Glodor

I must admit I partly agreed with the sentiments of these two people when I first started: I paid $75 for this? But I was undaunted because I knew that playing the game with only a keyboard and mouse was an exercise in insanity. There are just too many controls to remember. A decent joystick is practically a requirement for this game. A specialized setup like a HOTAS is highly recommended.

I started looking in the forums for help. I found a lot of resources, but none were quite ideal for getting a newbie up to speed in a few minutes. I was very surprised that there wasn't a guided pilot training tutorial that covered basic flight controls within the game itself. I figured that was because the game is still in beta and the devs just haven't gotten to that yet.

The posts quoted above are proof that a basic newbie friendly flight tutorial is desperately needed, otherwise many more newbies may be lost. The pilot's manual PDF is very informative, but it is a lot to sift through all at once. An ideal tutorial would spoon feed the information a little bit at a time, but in an organized way that lends itself to multiple subsequent tutorials that build on what is learned in the first one.

I have made my first ever video tutorial

This wasn't my first tutorial for Elite, it was my first ever, period. It got a positive response in the forum thread I made it for, but now I want to make more videos. I want to make the newbie friendly tutorial I described above, but I want some input first:

How long/short is too long/short? I know my first video is just over a half hour and I covered a lot of stuff very quickly (and very incompletely).

How much can I cover in the first video without leading to information overload? I definitely want to cover throttle, pitch, yaw, roll and lateral movement. Would it be too much to incorporate docking and all the menu navigation required? I believe I may have answered my question in asking it: if I have to ask, then it probably would be too much to cram into one video.

What are your thoughts on this?

UPDATE: Super Newbie Friendly Tutorial is done! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HUOKGqKWlEU

UPDATE: Scott Manley created an excellent mining tutorial for Beta 3: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kYNip6rBkWw

 

[Morbad]

I've always been surprised by how much trouble some people seem to have learning the basics of Elite: Dangerous. Sure, it's got a learning curve, but once you have the control down (and keyboard/mouse are perfectly serviceable, if not ideal) things like docking, travel, and basic combat come pretty easy. Maybe I've been prepared by my experiences with other games; I've only dabbled in the prior Elite games, but I've played craploads of Privateer, Freelancer, Jumpgate, as well as games like Battlefield and Planetside, plus more than a few actual flight sims (Falcon 3.0, 4.0, and Longbow Gold being old favorites); or perhaps I'm just more patient.

Anyway, I skimmed your tutorial video and it seems pretty solid given it's duration. ~30 minutes seems about right. You'd likely need to omit overly much if you condensed it further, while no one would watch an excessively long one. A tutorial is supposed to illustrate the basics and get someone on their feet, they can figure out the rest for themselves. I think your video suffices for this purpose.

 

[Sognar]

Maybe Divide it more and only Cover one Topic at a Time.
Like:
Tutorial A:
Starting and Redocking (10~ Minutes)

Tutorial B:
Flightcontrol (10~ Minutes)

Tutorial C:
In system Travel basics (10 ~ Minutes, or more if you dont want to cut the "travel time")

The idea of yours is Brilliant and the Basic Tutorials really lack any Information more or less - but in contrary to the Previous Poster i think shorter and concentrated on one Topic is better. Both for People that have less time and for People that tend to forget Details and want to rewatch a specific topic.
If you have 30 minutes you can always watch 3 10 Minute Videos - but if you only have 10 MInutes watching part of a30 Minute Video isnt really viable.

EDIT:
What maybe helpful is that you use the Default Controls for the Tutorial and tell the people what buttons to press, so if they never used a Function before they dont have to look it up to follow your instructions.

 

[STABB666]

Autopilot, autopilot, my kingdom for an autopilot.

I have seen mention that autopilot and docking computers will be part of the final release and I expect that they'll be introduced with one of the next few Beta revisions.

I have zero sympathy for people who buy into Beta and expect a finished product. However, a more comprehensive tutorial is a good idea.

Maybe Divide it more and only Cover one Topic at a Time.
Like:
Tutorial A:
Starting and Redocking (10~ Minutes)

Tutorial B:
Flightcontrol (10~ Minutes)

Tutorial C:
In system Travel basics (10 ~ Minutes, or more if you dont want to cut the "travel time")

The idea of yours is Brilliant and the Basic Tutorials really lack any Information more or less - but in contrary to the Previous Poster i think shorter and concentrated on one Topic is better. Both for People that have less time and for People that tend to forget Details and want to rewatch a specific topic.
If you have 30 minutes you can always watch 3 10 Minute Videos - but if you only have 10 MInutes watching part of a30 Minute Video isnt really viable.

yep, 10 mins about the best length for attention span and committing info to memory. I think there was even a study on that somewhere.

 

[Ydiss]

I play kB&m. It's fine.

There's a bug with docking that I've found. If you touch down too slowly it won't register. I just thrust down quickly when it's blue and it's fine.

The tutorial is OK. There are a couple points where it could be more descriptive and it also could repeat the prompts until completion. That would have made it more smooth for me.

The docking thing really got me. But I don't think it's working correctly, as above. I managed to work it out through perseverance because I'm aware I'm here to test. The tutorial could be better. So hopefully they're listening and will improve it before gamma.

 

[Kambalo]

Thank you for the tutorial that was very informative, could you care to share how to setup 2 joysticks?

 

[Lugalbandak]

Thank you for the tutorial that was very informative, could you care to share how to setup 2 joysticks?

Its like one. atleast for me , i plugged both in (usb) and then mapped one by one my controls to my like.

or do you ment a example how other ppl haz it?

great tut. btw op

 

[Ogre]

I think a "Hold me by the hand" tutorial is a great idea.
I've bought the game but not the beta's, I can wait for it to come out completed. I still have to finish Skyrim and Guild Wars yet (though they're both near to completion).
Looking at various posts it seems a joystick is a must and vocal commands seem ideal along with the Roccat grid system for my Nexus 10.

 

[Kambalo]

Thanks for the reply, I have never tried to plug 2 joysticks, so I will try to see what happens.

Another question if I have 2 joysticks installed how do you control the accelerator (throttle)?

 

[uncle bulgaria]

Isn't there a complete docking tutorial in there now since Beta 2?

Obviously i didn't do it as I was playing in Beta 1 so can dock (something that is actually very very easy, I really don't get people's issues with it), i just entered the destroy the cannisters one again to check my bindings were still ok.


Mouse and KB is a glorious control method, the fine control with a mouse is second to none. Tip is set the mouse axes to pitch and yaw NOT roll. Use the WASD area with Q and E on the kb for roll, vertical and lateral thrust.

 

[Lugalbandak]

Thanks for the reply, I have never tried to plug 2 joysticks, so I will try to see what happens.

Another question if I have 2 joysticks installed how do you control the accelerator (throttle)?

i have one hotas joystick , and 1 "normal" so to say.

So , 1 stick with trhottle who is use for my normal flight and speed and the other one for my left hand i use for up,down,left,right.

The + side of 2 sticks , for me atleast , i can map all the stuff on the sticks , no need for keybord and mouse anymore.

i have the T flight hotas and the normal t flight of trhustmaster.
Im sure you can map your trhottle , most sticks have atleast a slider. if you dont have that then you can map 10% 20% 30% etc throttle on buttons.

sorry for the english

 

[Kambalo]

Thanks for the information, I am an old crocodile.

 

[neamerjell]

Wow! Thanks for all the feedback

Maybe Divide it more and only Cover one Topic at a Time.
Like:
Tutorial A:
Starting and Redocking (10~ Minutes)

Tutorial B:
Flightcontrol (10~ Minutes)

Tutorial C:
In system Travel basics (10 ~ Minutes, or more if you dont want to cut the "travel time")

-Sognar

I had thought about this as well. What about a 30 minute video which is divided up into 10 minute segments? Or is it six of one, half a dozen of another?

What maybe helpful is that you use the Default Controls for the Tutorial and tell the people what buttons to press, so if they never used a Function before they dont have to look it up to follow your instructions.

-I will definitely tell people what the default controls are. I printed the pilot manual PDF today (all 157 pages!) in preparation. I had it done at Office Max; double sided and spiral bound with vinyl covers for $20 USD.

Its like one. atleast for me , i plugged both in (usb) and then mapped one by one my controls to my like.

-Lugalbandak

Yes, it is the same for me. I'm not sure if the game sees both joystick as one piece of hardware (CH Products has software that can combine the sticks into one virtual device) or if it is binding to each one separately, but either way, it works.

Another question if I have 2 joysticks installed how do you control the accelerator (throttle)?

-Kambalo

I have two joysticks, the left one is a CH Flightstick Pro with the Y-axis bound to throttle such that pushing forward and backward gives me forward and backward thrust, while centered is dead stop. The X-axis is bound to yaw since I don't have rudder pedals, which would normally provide this function. The right stick is a CH Fighterstick with the Y-axis bound to pitch and the X-axis bound to roll, which would be aileron in a flight sim. The reasons I did this are 1. I wanted a USB version of the Flightstick Pro anyway, since I still have the original which plugs into a game port and is pushing 20 years old - it still works if I had a port to plug it into! 2. It was cheaper than buying the throttle and rudder pedals.

UPDATE: I am uploading a video explaining how I use my joysticks in the game. Once it is live, this link will take you to it: youtu.be/i7Ag0DSFiBk

Isn't there a complete docking tutorial in there now since Beta 2?

Obviously i didn't do it as I was playing in Beta 1 so can dock (something that is actually very very easy, I really don't get people's issues with it), i just entered the destroy the cannisters one again to check my bindings were still ok.


Mouse and KB is a glorious control method, the fine control with a mouse is second to none. Tip is set the mouse axes to pitch and yaw NOT roll. Use the WASD area with Q and E on the kb for roll, vertical and lateral thrust.

-uncle bulgaria

Docking tutorial in the game? Yes, but it does not really cover the extreme basics its pretty much made for someone who has at least some experience in a flight sim.

If you can rock a keyboard and mouse, that's great! I was about to pull what little hair I have left out trying to dock my ship with that setup.

The choice of control hardware is a very personal one. Some people like game pads like XBox controllers (I have found these ideal for first person shooters), others (including me) like joysticks in combination with keyboard and mouse, some people are perfectly happy with only a keyboard and mouse. And then you get into the choice of individual keyboards, mice, and joysticks, etc. Mechanical keys vs. membrane switches, trackball vs, optical mouse. Its like buying a tailored suit - each person is going to have different preferences.

Thank you all for the input!

 

[neamerjell]

Just finished my first polished tutorial

I bought a video editing program today. It was clear to me that Windows Movie Maker simply wasn't up to the task. Now I can make polished videos that actually look like I spent some time on them.

My Super Newbie Friendly Tutorial is rendering as I'm typing this post, I will edit this post with a link as soon as it is ready. It ended up being just over seven minutes long.

UPDATE: Its done! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HUOKGqKWlEU

 

[Sognar]

Very Basic and quite good
Maybe Stay more Focused on the current Topic but otherwise really complete and good told - a New Pilot now would now that he can move the Ships in all Directions how he wants - nice one.

 

[Fonger]

UPDATE: Its done! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HUOKGqKWlEU

edit first post to include this link please

 

[uncle bulgaria]

-uncle bulgaria

Docking tutorial in the game? Yes, but it does not really cover the extreme basics its pretty much made for someone who has at least some experience in a flight sim.

If you can rock a keyboard and mouse, that's great! I was about to pull what little hair I have left out trying to dock my ship with that setup.

The choice of control hardware is a very personal one. Some people like game pads like XBox controllers (I have found these ideal for first person shooters), others (including me) like joysticks in combination with keyboard and mouse, some people are perfectly happy with only a keyboard and mouse. And then you get into the choice of individual keyboards, mice, and joysticks, etc. Mechanical keys vs. membrane switches, trackball vs, optical mouse. Its like buying a tailored suit - each person is going to have different preferences.

Thank you all for the input!

Agreed. I have a cheap HOTAS from when I played BF3 but I just can't seem to get the hang of it, my precise control for fine adjustments (say when shooting at a target 2k away) is hopeless with a stick. I played a lot of FPS in the past so I think that's just the way my brain is wired up now, I've never been a flight sim player.

I started out with ED as keyboard only as a throwback from my BBC days as a nipper

 

[Kambalo]

Thank you for the latest video, that made a lot of sense.

 

[neamerjell]

Done!

edit first post to include this link please

- Fonger

Done!

Very Basic and quite good
Maybe Stay more Focused on the current Topic but otherwise really complete and good told - a New Pilot now would now that he can move the Ships in all Directions how he wants - nice one.

- Sognar

Thanks for the feedback. I know I kind of lost focus towards the end. This was partly due to a technical difficulty where Shadow Play lost all my audio from the original clip and I had to do it over. This is my first video produced with editing software rather than a raw recording, and only my fourth video ever. I agree it could use some improvement, but that's why I like the feedback. My next videos will be better as I learn more about production and editing.

 

[neamerjell]

My next video

I'm already thinking of my next video and I think I should cover basic user interface information; radar, throttle, power management, basic navigation (orientation, selecting destinations)...

What are your thoughts? How much is too much to cover in one video? Has someone else already produced a quality polished newbie friendly video on this (please send me a link to your favorite)?

I got one comment on my docking tutorial video that rubbed me the wrong way:

There are already a lot of docking videos out there, but if you want to reinvent the wheel to help placate yet another whining newbie who just can't be bothered to use a search engine, then more fool you.

-BigDuke6ixx

He seems to have forgotten that he was once himself a newbie...

My response:

This is exactly what I was talking about.
Just telling someone to use Google or "RTFM" is no help at all, in fact it hinders because it alienates the new player from the community to the point that they do not want to participate if that is the way they can expect to be treated.

I'm glad that this person is not representative of the majority of this community. To all those who produce the awesome content in these forums, especially in the sticky posts, thank you!