Topic

Not sure what to do after quests.

Didn't manage to get in during the first test session, so 1 March was my first time.

Having been given clues how to proceed by my pet rock I completed about 5 quests, but then I was left not knowing what to do next. My rock wasn't giving any more clues and after the last quest Uncle Friendly just took the stuff I’d brought him and then had nothing more to say to me. Perhaps I need to pay more attention to what ideas others are exchanging in Global Chat, but having had vendors giving me specific quests I felt maybe some clue from my rock as to what I might do next would have helped.

Posted 3 years ago by Warhead the Grumpy Subscriber! | Permalink

Replies

  • I think this might be part of the normal process of discovery within such a game. Since I try to do some gardening and am told I do not yet have a green enough thumb, I can only assume one must keep petting plants, offering to water, etc...?
    Posted 3 years ago by Chelseathing Subscriber! | Permalink
  • "I can only assume one must keep petting plants, offering to water, etc...?"

    actually no. you need to spend a skill point on "light green thumb".

    see here:

    alpha.glitch.com/profiles/1...

    it appears that you earned 2 skill points but never spent them.
    Posted 3 years ago by striatic Subscriber! | Permalink
  • which makes me wonder if skill trees and skill points might be problematic to non-gamers.

    XP and skill points seem a little weird and gamer-y anyway. part of me wants to suggest that players should have to go to a "glitchversity" and learn skills like animal husbandry and spice milling from robot professors. everything working pretty much the same way, only more obvious and less abstracted. tho another part of me wants to suggest that such a thing wouldn't be worth the effort and that bringing the skill tree in-game might be enough.
    Posted 3 years ago by striatic Subscriber! | Permalink
  • XP is just an operating system to me ;0)

    Having not been much of a game player for the last 20 years or so I have mixed feelings about how much should be offered by hints or help pages and how much should be learned by experimentation. Learning by experimenting is OK as long as what you're learning isn't too obscure or arcane so that you do have an even chance of working out how the game works. I have to feel that I'm making some progress with a game or I'm likely to give up on it in frustration.

    I also wonder how much advantage ex-GNE players may have in Glitch, compared to complete noobs. Hopefully, not much.
    Posted 3 years ago by Warhead the Grumpy Subscriber! | Permalink
  • "which makes me wonder if skill trees and skill points might be problematic to non-gamers."

    I think this is a good point, and it connects to the confusing interface "do you want to gain a new skill now?" or whatever it was and also to the skill tree being outside the game. Initially, I didn't realize that I could get back to the skill tree easily once I said no, and thought I had to wait till I got to the next skill level.

    I think one easy/immediate way to solve this would be to have "spend your level points" or whatever the language is on your quest list (and maybe with some info about how to get to the skill tree?).

    But I also think maybe there's a little too much functionality there in the first place. Why would I want to wait? The first time I waited, I thought there might be something like if I saved my skill points, I could get something better with a bank of them. I suspect the "now or later" choice is there in case you level up while you're in the middle of something, which for the most part isn't happening to us right now. I think going to the level up choice should happen automatically (go. choose.), with an option there to bail out and choose later. But for beginners, they should be steered towards choosing new skills.
    Posted 3 years ago by clare Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Waiting gives newbies time to investigate the options without interrupting the game.
    Posted 3 years ago by Tingly Claus Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Yeah, I know I earned SPs. I thought I *was* a bit of a gamer but this was my first time in Glitch and so I did not 'get' that I should 'spend' SP instead of banking them. I hate when i spend points in a game then something good comes along and I don't have enough points for it.

    I think my browser crashed the second time I was asked about spending a skill point. Also, I didn't bother ti figure out how to get back to do so but I asume there's a way (?).
    Posted 3 years ago by Chelseathing Subscriber! | Permalink
  • skill you want
    Posted 3 years ago by Tingly Claus Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Thanks .. and yeah, I (finally) figured it out since posting that. But hmn, seems odd to do it from your profile, not in-game. I think I'm repeating someone else's comment now, and I uess this will become clear when we play again.
    Posted 3 years ago by Chelseathing Subscriber! | Permalink
  • "Since I try to do some gardening and am told I do not yet have a green enough thumb, I can only assume one must keep petting plants, offering to water, etc...?"

    it may be an issue that this is how certain advancements work, but not others. for example, the first thing you might do in the game is try to milk a butterfly, since they are right there in groddle junction when you warp in. this requires an item [lotion] and a bit of practice [gaining butterfly whisperer status]. maybe this sets the player up to think that advancing through the game involves repeating certain actions .. keep petting plants, offering water ..

    there are two competing advancement modes that aren't clearly delineated, and can lead to initial confusion. eventually players will sort them out, if they stick around long enough, but there could be some attrition.

    the other weird thing is that the beta sign up is promoted with "This is not something you've seen before". i must admit that when first entering the game, the first thing i noticed was that XP bar, and the first thing i thought was "oh great .. i'm going to have to grind." it seems at odds with how you're selling the game to the public, as XP and skill tress are very traditional, maybe even stodgy, and seem to serve as the primary focus of glitch [at least at this point in development].
    Posted 3 years ago by striatic Subscriber! | Permalink