Newbie training program or Military Academy, idea?

[Rolfski]

I posted this idea on the official forum, curious to to see if there would be interest for it here as well.
The idea of a semi-official training outfit/Academy is for player outfits to provide an in-game recruiting ground and for new players to learn and immediately get into the best action without committing themselves to any faction outfits yet.

I guess at this point it's safe to say that SOE's efforts won't be enough to give new players the best experience at launch. There's just too much to this game for new players to get into to immediately grasp the best of PS2.

Here is where the community could step in and collectively create a temporary outfit for new players that will teach them the ropes before they fly out to the player outfits: Planetside Military Academy (PMA)

• Most fun way for new players to get their feet wet: They immediately go to war and cooperate with other new players on their level while learning on the job from the best instructors this community has to offer.
• Semi-official: Backed-up by SOE and all the major outfits.
• Community driven: Outfits provide their most talented people. Being able to serve a tour of duty as instructor on PMA should be considered a legendary honor that will earn you great respect because it means you are the top of the cream.
• A great way for outfits to show what they're made of. The quality of their instructors will likely generate interest of new players for their cause.
• Better quality recruits for outfits. Cadets graduated from PMA will have an easier time finding their way around, making it a viable selection filter for outfits that are only open to more experienced players.
• The Academy acts a normal outfit that has sub-outfits, fighting for every faction on every time zone.

As a new player I would love such an idea and surely sign up for it. For me it would be a great way to immediately team-up with others and get into the best of PS2 without feeling a lonely, clueless newbie. It also gives me a better idea to select which faction and outfit I will invest my valuable time and certs in.

What do you think? Would this work for PS2? Any ideas?

Btw: The inspiration for this idea actually comes from Eve Online's University. A much more complex game of course but there it works really well.

[DDSHADE]

I think this could really be a beneficial idea, but picturing it in practice, it may not work so well.

If each large Outfit were to offer a n00b program, under ideal circumstances, would happen in a VR training facility. The other way is to explain functions of different classes and roles in PS2 over vent/TS or mumble. But the important pieces of advice often come from in-the-moment questions and situations.

The best experience then, would have to come from a buddy system or actively getting a group of noobs together and have them follow you around after teaching them how to find a squad-mate on the map and spawn close to them.

A good idea Rolfski, because we will have to make do until a better new player experience is live, but I don't know if the new players will get the memo to join the new player outfit!

I think that the game should ask players if they wish to be put in an outfit "Welcome to new players" at which point one of the officers gets a message of a pending join request.

[Rolfski]

If each large Outfit were to offer a n00b program, under ideal circumstances, would happen in a VR training facility.

Not sure if this is ideal. The problem is new players being hesitant in committing themselves right off the bat to an outfit. Starting in some neutral team play/training program that helps me getting to know these outfits before deciding which one to join would help me a lot.
Also a VR facility, while nice, is not an environment I want to spend too much time in. People that have been asking for a VR to train newbies seem to forget that most players want to shoot stuff for real and level up for real. Spending hours of your valuable time practicing complicated base capping tactics while not gaining any XP/certs for it is just not going to happen for most players.

The other way is to explain functions of different classes and roles in PS2 over vent/TS or mumble. But the important pieces of advice often come from in-the-moment questions and situations.

The best experience then, would have to come from a buddy system or actively getting a group of noobs together and have them follow you around after teaching them how to find a squad-mate on the map and spawn close to them.

Here you might have a point. The current in-game comms functionality is there to be used by a new player outfit but its not as functional compared to Humble, TeamSpeak etc. Weather this Academy/"Welcome to new players" program could work without people having to install a comms client first is still an open question for me.

but I don't know if the new players will get the memo to join the new player outfit!

I think that the game should ask players if they wish to be put in an outfit "Welcome to new players" at which point one of the officers gets a message of a pending join request.

Another good point because this will only work if the bigger outfits and SOE are behind it. However, I don't see why they wouldn't support this because this is so very much in their own interest. A new player program is the ideal ground for creating commitment to the PS2 game and getting people interested in the outfits.

And it take less time then you think to make it happen as this new player program can start small and grow big over time. Here is an example on how this could work, imagine this:

1. The 3 biggest NC outfits on US West 1 (Theebe) stick together to form a local NC Military Academy: They want more and better recruits to convert to their cause to keep the continents more locked down.
   
2. So they set up a local (NC) Military Academy outfit and contact SOE. SOE could then provide them with Military Academy web templates and forum hosting but at this stage this isn't even necessary.
   
3. Now every time I die or get a load screen (you know, that screens that currently says "Join Alpha squad"), I get a message to join my local Military Academy. I only get this of course when I'm playing NC on US West 1.
   
4. Now when I login as a new player I see that the Military Academy is always listed as a squad to join. So I can always hop in and get right into the action under the guidance of the best instructors NC on West has to offer.

There are many ways to make this work of course, this just an example.

[ringring]

I think it's would be a good thing but how could it work in practise.

In the game if a new person joins they listen to the new intro and then it dumps them in a random squad and in a random battle.

If I or anyone was to be able to help I'd would probably hang around in the WG and call out in chat for any new people there to send me a tell and I'd add them to my noobie squad. --- it's all a little hit and miss and I'd have to tell them to leave the squad they're in already before I could help them.

I think before it would work .... the in-game intro should not dump them into action straight-away, maybe offer a choice one of which would be starting in sanc and taking it from there.

[Rolfski]

As long as SOE is behind this and endorses it, there are many ways to make it work:

• Instead of throwing newbies into a random squad after the intro, place them in an Academy squad
• Or make a tutorial mission about team play where new players operate in an Academy squad
• Or point them out to this initiative after a basic tutorial as an option for advanced learning
• Etc, Etc

[MrBloodworth]

Adopt a system like Americas Army.

[Rolfski]

Originally Posted by MrBloodworth

Adopt a system like Americas Army.

How does that system work?