Topic

Best items to give to new players

Some of the recent posts in this forum have me thinking about how to best welcome new players. A number of people welcomed me to Glitch, and it really made a difference. I also have an unfinished quest to give an item to 5 newish players.

So what I'm wondering is: what is the best item to give to a new player?

I'm thinking that it should be something that:

1. Is useful
2. A new player isn't likely to have
3. Will make them curious, perhaps leading to a helpful conversation

Cooking something (other than a Sammich) to give to new players seems to fit. It's useful because they can simply eat it for energy. What really like about cooking is that it can lead to conversations about cooking Skills, buying tools, even buying a house (via gardening).

What's the best item you've given to new players or been given by more experienced players? What conversations did it spark?

I was given spinach and butterfly lotion when I first started, and both proved both useful and interesting.

Posted 19 months ago by Elnard McThwack Subscriber! | Permalink

Replies

  • New players have little storage space available, so it's sometimes best to just give a bean or cherry, especially if other people are also giving the person gifts at the time.  Bags are great gifts.  If storage isn't an issue, I'd say hardware is potentially the most useful gift.  Bubble tuners, fruit changers, and spice mills are all useful early on, and the skills needed to use them are quick to learn. 
    Posted 19 months ago by glum pudding Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Bags I think are the best gift - I really remember running out of space when I first started! And they are expensive to buy for a newbie, yet it doesn't feel like you are encroaching on them discovering the other things in the game in their own time.
    Posted 19 months ago by Violet Subscriber! | Permalink
  • It's not a "good gift," but I've started collecting my tickets. I'm planning on buys a bunch on small bags (I have a few at home already), placing a ticket in each and giving those away.
    Posted 19 months ago by Lord Bacon-o Subscriber! | Permalink
  • For the new player, a good gift is anything they're likely to have already (so it combines with an existing stack), something to help them have more space (bags), something they can easily and beneficially consume quickly (the tickets are brilliant Bacon-o), and ideally something they shouldn't be afraid to part with.

    Space is a premium and when the new player leaves the tutorial, they have less than half of their inventory space left... add to that spice, cherry, meat.... fills up fast. Something like Awesome Stew seems fab, but about half of players will tenaciously hold onto it until they can 'use it' or never eat it because they're afraid of losing something precious.

    Best gift to give a new player IMO? A hug and a decent conversation (that should give you a chance to find out what they actually need).

    Editing to add: One of the things I like doing is walking up pretending I'm Rube... I'll trade you a stack of meat for one of your cherries :D
    Posted 19 months ago by Travinara Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Lord Bacon-o, I love the idea of a bag with a ticket in it :) I might have to borrow that idea if you don't mind. 
    Posted 19 months ago by leah Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Thanks everyone for the advice. It sounds like a bag is the way to go. When I first started I really could have used the storage, too, so it makes a lot of sense

    I'm thinking I'll give bags with various things inside, depending on who I'm giving it to. I really like @Travinara's hug & conversation recommendation to find out exactly what they are interested in. 

    As usual, this thread has changed the approach I'm going to take to the game. You guys are amazing.  Thanks.
    Posted 19 months ago by Elnard McThwack Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I don't know that there is a best thing. certainly beans or cherries if you don't want to have to worry about their bag being full.

    A bag perhaps. Though that means you're carrying around empty bags hoping you run into someone.

    Which is why I tend to give music blocks (I usually keep some in my bag for shrines). They're interactive, fun, and you can't do the "wrong" thing with them.

    What I avoid giving them is a consumable they might not know how to take advantage of yet. Honey, Butterfly Milk, Grain, etc. These would be GREAT newbie gifts because of how useful they are for early quests or learning early tools and crafting, but can too easily just be eaten/drunken - the value doesn't come across properly.
    Posted 19 months ago by Another Chris Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I guess I have been too lazy and uncreative.  I just give them all a bunch of meat (30 or 40), since I always have lots and new players can not nibble as much to begin with.  Since they have low max energy levels, only 100-200, I figure this will last them a while.  I just thought this would be the most useful gift to give.
    Posted 19 months ago by RainCat Subscriber! | Permalink