Do you think UO attracts newer players?

SaladinX

SaladinX

Grandmaster
I am not talking about those returning players, I am talking about the new generation. People who have never experienced UO, do they play here? Do they consider this game as playable?

I have a few friends I play other games with and we are looking forward to Dragon Age Inquisition, because they do like playing some sort of RPG roles (Mass effect, Destiny etc), but I can never convince them to try UO. I mean they are gamers, but they would not spend the time to sit and play UO.

Their excuse is that the graphics are outdated, and the learning curve is too high...so only those interested in nostalgia would be interested in such a game.

Is that true? Do you think we cannot attract brand new players? Anyone here brand new to UO, or are we all just the same crowd from 14 years ago?

I know this shard seems to be doing a lot to ease the process for brand new players, which is actually awesome. (Marketing videos, tutorial videos, wiki etc)
 
halygon

halygon

Grandmaster
I think you would be surprised how many first time UO players are on UOF. @Shane has done a crazy good job of advertising in ways to pull fresh blood. Any game this old will always be mostly supported by old veteran players as they care the most.
 
ShinPi

ShinPi

Grandmaster
K got my ol lady to play she never even heard of it other than me talking about what I did 14 yrs ago haha turned her to uof and she LOVES it I've got a few ppl brand new on if they say they are a gamer and they do rpgs they will try it regardless of graphics.. at least try it. if not they are no gamer imo
 
SaladinX

SaladinX

Grandmaster
Yeah, don't get me wrong. I only came to this shard 'cause of those promotional videos and the authentic feel of the old shards.

However, I think we are still lacking on the Wiki, and the Starting out videos. They are there, but they could be better. And thats not to put any blames on the devs, I think the veteran/existing players can contribute a lot more to that.
 
S

Staff

Young Player Help
SaladinX said:
Yeah, don't get me wrong. I only came to this shard 'cause of those promotional videos and the authentic feel of the old shards.

However, I think we are still lacking on the Wiki, and the Starting out videos. They are there, but they could be better. And thats not to put any blames on the devs, I think the veteran/existing players can contribute a lot more to that.
Click to expand...

Our main focus at the moment is attracting new, first time players to UO. We are almost done the launcher which should extremely simplify the installation -> playing process. We are also putting most things on hold until we can get out an extremely good new player quest. It will be along the lines of the old T2A demo disc quest.

We want retention rates for new players to be as high as they can be. Currently, a lot of new people to UO are daunted by the lengthy and confusing install process combined with a lack of direction upon logging in.
 
Messremb

Messremb

Grandmaster
Adam said:
Our main focus at the moment is attracting new, first time players to UO. We are almost done the launcher which should extremely simplify the installation -> playing process. We are also putting most things on hold until we can get out an extremely good new player quest. It will be along the lines of the old T2A demo disc quest.

We want retention rates for new players to be as high as they can be. Currently, a lot of new people to UO are daunted by the lengthy and confusing install process combined with a lack of direction upon logging in.
Click to expand...
IMO there are three things that are a detriment to new player retention

Steep learning curve: uo is not like other games in a lot of ways and those of us that have played for years forget how heard it can be to start it with no idea what's going on.

Lack of direction: most modern mmorpg games are quest based, and that helps new players know what to do. Uo is great cause you do what you want, but when you are new there are just to many options.

extreme griefing from vets: some vets pride themselves on griefing new players. The other day I was helping a completely new person (never played uo) and a vet came over just to tell us that he looks for Youngs to kill cause he thinks its fun. Don't get me wrong, griefing and pking are what make this game great, but most other games don't allow them. And as a first time player its much like being dropped into a put of boiling water, rather than slowly letting it warm up. They are going to jump right out.

I think a good new player quest will help a lot with the first 2 but i'm not sure what can be done about the last.
 
FingersFinn

FingersFinn

Grandmaster
I'm not a vet and first experienced UO not even one year ago on the "regular" server (NA shard). I was drawn in by the great adventures and stories I read about "the good old days" and decided to give it a try. This is home now and for good reason; the risk/reward is here, the RP options are here, the open world is there for the taking and most of all, it's great to be whatever you want and play how you want. Definitely not for the faint of heart or those seeking high-end graphics. Times have changed and in a lot of ways, for the worst in most newer games. All reward, no risk, and very droll.

The easy solution to getting new people used to the game can be very simple, if not time and resource consuming. The benefits of young status help a lot and if there was an actual "starter guild" (not the generic in-game one you auto-start in) that had guides to show folks the ropes, it may be beneficial. It could be player-run by those who want to assist or admin-run. Idk. Just a thought.
 
S

Shane

Guest
FingersFinn said:
I'm not a vet and first experienced UO not even one year ago on the "regular" server (NA shard). I was drawn in by the great adventures and stories I read about "the good old days" and decided to give it a try. This is home now and for good reason; the risk/reward is here, the RP options are here, the open world is there for the taking and most of all, it's great to be whatever you want and play how you want. Definitely not for the faint of heart or those seeking high-end graphics. Times have changed and in a lot of ways, for the worst in most newer games. All reward, no risk, and very droll.

The easy solution to getting new people used to the game can be very simple, if not time and resource consuming. The benefits of young status help a lot and if there was an actual "starter guild" (not the generic in-game one you auto-start in) that had guides to show folks the ropes, it may be beneficial. It could be player-run by those who want to assist or admin-run. Idk. Just a thought.
Click to expand...


There is a starter guild, it asks you to join once you login as a young. We've also implemented an adventurer system that allows you to teleport to other youngs to make friends fast and easy.
 
edw3rdwood

edw3rdwood

Grandmaster
To me, the skills system is the most confusing compared to other MMOs. I played back in the day, so I rolled right into UOF without any hassle, but I bet tons of new players will take swords not knowing they also need tactics, or will take magery without eval and try to be an attack mage, etc etc. I think anything to clarify these little quirks in the skills system for new players would be a good move. Maybe a pop-up gump on new character creation describing the skills system?
 
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