Regarding the learning structure and information sources

[Destiny]

Good afternoon captains,

 

Some might have seen my name pop up frequently in the Dutch nation chat. I am a new player and am happy to be here, but I have noticed that there is a significant problem when it comes to information.

 

The wiki seems to be outdated on some subjects, such as crafting (the levels and xp) and ship information. There also seems to be a huge lack of actual information on almost everything. The ingame tutorials or 'what to do'-menu doesn't seem to offer much comfort either.

 

To put this into perspective, I came here as a new player with an interest in crafting. The wiki offers absolutely no useful information on this. Another problem for me were all the nautical terms that this game uses. This creates a huge learning curve, which in itself isn't bad, but it is when there is no information to find. An example of this are the buffs provided by the ship upgrades. For instance the staysail and square sail power. What does this actually mean? In what way does this benefit my ship? Another example would be the 'heel' of a ship. What does this mean? In what way does it impact my ship? There's tonnes of more examples when it comes to this, and the wiki once again provides no information on any of the upgrades. I could probably write a whole book about all the other things in this game that are not explained anywhere, and I'm sure most people will understand what I'm trying to say with this.

 

Now, I can already sense the replies coming in: ''this is a simulation/realistic game'', ''use your clanmates for information you need'' and so on. The problem however is, that this game seems to have a rather small population. I have no doubt in my mind that people would love to see another thousand players on this game. These people have to realize that with the current learning structure of this game, new people will quickly be demotivated to play this game. Why? Simple: there is no real easy source of information. A player shouldn't have to be in a clan or continiously use the help channel for information that they need. I tend to read along in these chats all the time, just incase someone provides some useful information. The question that keeps popping in my head is: ''why aren't things explained by the game itself? Why isn't there a more extensive tutorial built in? Why can't I find any information on the wiki?''. This learning structure that the game currently has, forces players to have social interaction, to join clans. I wouldn't say this is necessary a bad thing, but it is when there are no simple alternatives. Casual players shouldn't be forced to join clans and ask everything bit of information they need in help chat, this will only further demotivate them to play.

 

I've had a long day of work so the argumentation might be a bit wonky here and there (just ask for clarification instead of burning an opinion down..), but I do hope most people can find themselves in their story. I'd love to hear what others think about this and what can be done, either by the players or the developers. I can only imagine this subject must've been brought up a hundred times, but apparently that isn't enough to raise awareness on this. 

Edited November 20, 2019 by Destiny

[Tom Farseer]

I feel your pain, mate. The rather simple and likely disappointing answer to your question is that it is simply a matter of time and resources. Game Labs certainly don't have the resources to deliver all that for a game as multifaceted as this. There have been several attempts at community wikis but the amount of information that needs to be accumulated, condensed and put into a readable format has proven to be too much for the people involved. The best resource for newer players right now would be @Felix Victor's wonderful online map.

Even that only displays the info that is dumped daily into some JSON documents for people to parse. Attempts at a full on wiki so far have usually lost traction at some point or other.

 

Edited November 20, 2019 by Tom Farseer

[LegoLarry]

 In short i think the people who were updating the info have left,  but the map felix has created is a good source and mucho respect for him doing it.

[Tortue Agile]

https://na-map.netlify.com/

and that is certainly now the best resource available outside of the game.

[Destiny]

What if the developers came up with some kind of reward system for players that contribute to a/the wiki. Perhaps something like this:

 

Step 1. Player verification

Since not everyone should be allowed to randomly post stuff on the wiki (in my opinion, to prevent false info) there should be a verification system. Players write an article/page about something that can be added onto the page. This has to be something significant (not simply writing something short about top speed). The admins read through the article, and if it is deemed sufficient the player will be allowed unlimited access to posting and editing the wikipedia.

 

Step 2. Filling the wiki

Once the player has been verified and granted the status of wiki contributor, the player (on his own initiative, no quotas or anything like that) the player will start adding pages to the wiki, filling it up with useful information for all players in the game. The initiative to write articles/pages is triggered by rewards.

 

Step 3. Rewards!

Now, this is the hard part, but a player has to be rewarded to make him contribute to the wiki. Not all players need a reward to work on the wiki, but most players wont do this kind of work without getting something in return (people who care about the community vs people who dont care enough to do it without reward). It is at this point that we should be thinking: is information more valuable than a form of 'pay to win'? In my mind, yes, this form of pay to win is accessible to all and the result of this can only be positive (game becomes easier to understand > easier learning curve > more casual players > more pro players). Even players grinding the wiki for all their ingame gains shouldn't be considered a bad thing, because information will help everyone.

 

Personally I would think of a weekly or monthly moment where admins globally check a contributors contribution and reward him with reals or doubloons (reward has to be useful in order to attract people). After this, the cycle goes on and on. This is just a reward system that I came up with real quick, but I invite everyone to come up with something. Maybe we'll catch onto a real good idea.

 

Admins have to verify my reply anyways, so hopefully this idea might get somewhere.

Edited November 20, 2019 by Destiny

[Macjimm]

You are discovering the culture of Game Labs Naval Action.  Brace your self for self discovery.  Be prepared that many of your questions will go unanswered, or worse you may receive well intentioned misinformation from players who are trying to help you.

I've not determined if the company lacks resources to provide information, or if they believe that the experience is enhanced when a player's efforts, by trial and error, reveal secrets and bestow a sense of achievement. 

Dive in and experiment.  Try to enjoy exploring the game mechanics.  Don't risk what you ae not prepared to lose.  With some exertion you may develop skill at fighting, crafting or trading.   One day you may hear players ranting about how poor the game is: and you might silently disagree, and think if you shared all that you know, it would cheat players out of personal development. 

https://na-map.netlify.com/ is truely amazing.  It contains a wealth of information, but like NA there is no guide on how to use it.  The owner developed it privately without Game Labs.  The outdated Wiki's are also volunteer efforts.  Third party resources are integral to many games these days, especially MMOs.  They are labors of love, with no reward.   If you want a good Wiki perhaps you will build one, or contribute to the current ones.