This game needs a tutorial badly...

[Sky Render]

It's really not obvious how to proceed right away. Going into the water seems like a logical first step, but a shark bites your face off if you do (usually right around the point where you're too far from the raft to get back before you're killed). A lot of the resources you need to actually survive (at least at a glance) aren't even available to you unless you land on an island to get resources there. And of course, as soon as you inevitably get your face bitten off by the shark, you lose everything, including the tool that lets you not get your face bitten off by the shark when getting resources. Basically, if you don't start perfectly you are completely screwed. Realistic? Yes. Fun? NO.

[niemandel]

You don't need to go in the water or on islands to survive. You can survive indefinitely with the stuff floating around. Granted the learning curve is a bit steep but you can always start on "Peaceful" mode until you get the hang of things.
Also the game starts out in such a minimalistic way there is not really a lot of stuff you need to learn.

[Sky Render]

I think the thing that threw me off more than anything is that you don't need any tools to start a fire. I was looking for extra steps for preparing food and water, and it did me no favors.

[niemandel]

Yeah.. that's kinda weird especially if you are used to games like The Long Dark where not being able to start a fire can make the difference between life or death but.. this game is a lot more chill than that. It's more like a raft vacation simulator than a true survival game. And i am perfectly ok with that.

[hazardousgamingarcades]

I think they should add some emphasis to the journal, as in making its existence more apparent. Perhaps when a new game is created start the character out already viewing the journal. The way the first page is written is somewhat of a tutorial, however by the time I figured out to press "T" I was at the radio tower. Which reading the journal for the first time that far into the game seemed to break the feel of the story written in the journal, for me.

[niemandel]

Or they could put a "New journal entry. Press "T" to open your journal" notification. Starting with the journal in front of you might be a bit confusing if you are new, start browsing the journal and die due to distracted raft driving. This way at least you are aware of your situation and surroundings before you start reading it.

[hazardousgamingarcades]

Originally posted by ;1733258352682111923:

Or they could put a "New journal entry. Press "T" to open your journal" notification. Starting with the journal in front of you might be a bit confusing if you are new, start browsing the journal and die due to distracted raft driving. This way at least you are aware of your situation and surroundings before you start reading it.

You've got something of a point, but there really isn't that much to read at the very first, just one page with some bullet points. Maybe not start exactly within the journal, but once the game is loaded, before controls are gained, show the character opening the journal, then relinquish control to the player with a prompt to close with "T".

I just think the first page of the journal serves pretty well as a "tutorial" for this game, at this point in it's life.

[hazardousgamingarcades]

Originally posted by Sky Render:

Basically, if you don't start perfectly you are completely screwed.

And you are kind of correct about this, there is a small window to get things together to keep the shark off your raft, expand your raft, get you some food and water going. But this window is so small, that if you mess up and your raft is destroyed or you die, it really isn't a pain to just start again. I restarted my very first raft a few times before I was able to get past that "hump", I'll call it. And it wasn't really a learning thing, more than a "grab the right resources fast enough" thing.

[niemandel]

I think that's only an issue if you venture on the wrong difficulty. If you start on easy on peaceful you got tons of time to figure things out.
On hard difficulty.. yes.. a few wrong moves and you're dead. But that's the beauty of it.

[Grezko]

The game is a survival game at core meaning it has an element of figuring things out on your own. The difficulties are there for differently experiences players. There is also creative mode where you easily figure a lot of things out.

As for a tutorial, well here is an alternative:
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1648718375

MY personal thoughts are that no tutorial is needed - for people that want to figure things out on their own its good that way, for everyone else - there is the guide above AND there is the internet :)

[GoldenThunderGaming]

if you crashed in teh ocean, and only had a 2x2 raft, a hook, a rope, some plastic, and a wood hammer... youd have to learn on the fly, right? dont be a female dog(but say the curse word), and play the game..

[Archie]

manuals are for girls.
just survive - lighting the fires is a good point. the forest has a lighter that never runs out.
but games have to have a poetic licence ie somethings need to be easy even unrealistic for you to enjoy it.
I know I am not smart, many have told me so, but I didn't need a manual when I started , just put yourself in the element and think what needs to be done and obvious dangers. like sharks.
you need water and food and floatation and what ever you can think of to do these simple things.
wicky probably has a manual but really no manual is needed but you think one would be handy so good airing your opinion.

[Sky Render]

All advice aside, I find the implication that it is feminine to be intelligent (and to bumble about blindly and ineffectively to be masculine by contrast) to be an amusing if no doubt unintentional viewpoint you've expressed there. Last I checked, gender has absolutely no impact on that sort of thing! I suspect you were more trying to say something along the lines of "I don't like manuals", which is just fine; you have your way, I have mine.

[Blynky]

Originally posted by Sky Render:

All advice aside, I find the implication that it is feminine to be intelligent (and to bumble about blindly and ineffectively to be masculine by contrast) to be an amusing if no doubt unintentional viewpoint you've expressed there. Last I checked, gender has absolutely no impact on that sort of thing! I suspect you were more trying to say something along the lines of "I don't like manuals", which is just fine; you have your way, I have mine.

+1 :D

[Nihil]

If you play alone, play only peacefull only. This game in the current state is heavily built for playing with others. Because the it is a huge work to improve and manage your raft on it's own. Besides that managing the shark too, is too much, plus if you want to gather scrap, you need to dive next to islands. And for that you need either bait or other players to distract the shark.

But learning how to play this game is pretty easy. No tutorial needed.

[Grezko]

Originally posted by Nihilus:

If you play alone, play only peacefull only. This game in the current state is heavily built for playing with others. Because the it is a huge work to improve and manage your raft on it's own. Besides that managing the shark too, is too much, plus if you want to gather scrap, you need to dive next to islands. And for that you need either bait or other players to distract the shark.

But learning how to play this game is pretty easy. No tutorial needed.

I have close to 250 hours played in the game and they are all played alone. The shark can be managed pretty easily with a bit of experience, so do all other hostiles in the game.