Created a new alt yesterday to test the new player experience.

First, a few words about the Battle Academy--please pass them on to the appropriate audience. I will grant I'm the only person who graduated the academy in one battle, but I'm not even all that good a player, was using unmodified starter fits (following the tutorial) and I easily made 1900 WP. At least half a dozen of the other players looked like they were set to graduate in the next match. Are players ready to graduate with two to three battles under their belts? Given the performance of both teams in the Academy match I was in, definitely not. No one used drop uplinks, the red team didn't hack any CRU's (which I suppose, given that there's no explanation of what a CRU does, is not surprising), and people couldn't even seem to aim all that well most of the time (although there were some sharpshooters).

I like the objective-based tutorial and wonder whether graduation shouldn't be based on it--with some provisions (maybe a slightly increased WP limit and an option to skip). For a new player to graduate, I'd like to see them fulfill an in-battle checklist: hack a CRU (and have some idea what it does), hack a supply depot, use a nanite injector to revive a comrade, call a vehicle into battle, join a squad, form a squad and issue an order. I would also suggest they receive five copies of a militia fit with a drop uplink and be required to deploy at least one drop uplink in battle. That seems like a lot to get done in a handful of battles, but with a WP limit around 3000, the best new players will probably have 3 matches, and the ones who struggle a bit more will have longer to figure it out. There's a lot of strategy to this game that new players are missing by focusing on the letter.

That said, I think there are some things that aren't going to be accomplished by the objective-based approach. Something as simple as dropping people into battle the first time and having a mini "hit L1 to aim down sights," "press the right joystick to melee," etc., tutorial would be helpful, too. Getting accustomed to the interface is important. And ultimately what I think would be most useful is giving them the option to do a simulation where they can fire a few rounds from each of the weapons and test out all the functionality, as well as having the system explained to them in a little more depth. DUST is a lot more complex than the games even experienced players would be coming from.